Victoria's roads, railways, schools, prisons and hospitals are part of the $265 billion of non-financial assets that government departments and agencies manage. Managing these assets well is important because they support the delivery of services that affect all Victorians. Despite this, many of our audits show that asset management is often neglected or poorly done, with more focus on building or buying new assets than on managing them strategically to get the best value from them.

This audit looked at whether the management of native vegetation clearing is protecting state and nationally significant native vegetation in the extended urban growth boundary areas. We focused on the Melbourne Strategic Assessment. Under this program, Victoria committed to establishing two grassland reserves by 2020 to offset native vegetation lost due to development in Melbourne’s extended urban growth boundary. We looked at how the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning is implementing this program and Parks Victoria’s ongoing management of the reserves.

Sexual harassment is harmful, unlawful and, in some instances, a criminal offence. Its impact on individuals and organisations can be significant.

We examined whether the Victorian public service provides workplaces that are free from sexual harassment. We looked at whether all eight departments effectively prevent, report and respond to sexual harassment.