THE Queensland Audit Office has identified a new deficiency in Redland City Council’s procurement processes, warning that inadequate monitoring of declared conflicts of interest could undermine confidence in council decision-making and expose the organisation to reputational risk.
The finding is contained in the Queensland Audit Office’s 2026 Interim Report, which will be presented to councillors at next week’s general meeting.
While auditors said the issue would not affect the overall audit opinion and had not delayed the audit process, they found council had failed to adequately document how it monitored adherence to a probity plan during a major procurement process involving an external specialist who had declared a conflict of interest.
According to the report, council undertook an expression of interest and request for proposal process in late 2023 for a significant project requiring specialist expertise.
Because of the niche nature of the industry, an external evaluation committee member declared a conflict of interest, which was managed through a formal probity plan.
However, auditors found there was no evidence council monitored compliance with the plan or conducted a retrospective review to confirm the conflict had been appropriately managed.
Meeting minutes documenting committee discussions about conflicts were also not maintained.
The audit office warned that inadequate monitoring of actual, perceived or potential conflicts could lead to inappropriate procurement processes, preferential treatment of suppliers and damage to council’s reputation.
In response, council has committed to strengthening its conflict-of-interest procedures, including requiring evaluation panel chairs to maintain a formal register documenting disclosures, mitigation measures and monitoring activities.
A new probity plan is also being developed for major strategic procurements and politically sensitive projects, with implementation targeted by September 30, 2026.
Aside from the procurement issue, the audit office reported no new financial reporting issues during its interim review and said the audit was progressing according to schedule.
The report notes auditors reviewed several high-risk areas including procurement, infrastructure asset valuations, landfill rehabilitation liabilities, infrastructure charges and contributed assets.
No issues requiring reporting were identified in the valuation of infrastructure assets, although auditors flagged that inflationary pressures could significantly increase the value of council’s infrastructure assets and lead to higher depreciation costs in future years.
Auditors also highlighted the potential transfer of part of the Southern Redland Bay Wastewater Treatment Plant to council before June 30, which could affect the city’s financial statements.
The interim report shows council continues to work through a range of previously identified audit issues.
Two significant deficiencies and 15 deficiencies from earlier audits remain either in progress or awaiting audit clearance.
Among the unresolved matters are concerns about asset management processes, including the annual review of asset useful lives and impairment assessments, and the ongoing failure to publish awarded contracts and tenders on council’s website in a timely manner.
Auditors noted that as of June 2026, only tenders related to the Project Delivery Group had been published, with other contracts awarded after December 2025 still not publicly available.
The report also reveals council is continuing work to address longstanding issues around the timely capture of completed capital projects and monitoring controls over grants administration.
Several information technology control weaknesses identified in previous audits have now been resolved or are awaiting final audit clearance, including issues relating to privileged user access, dormant accounts, password controls and software patching.
The Queensland Audit Office is expected to complete its final audit work between August and September, with the final audit opinion scheduled to be issued in October.
