Unauthorised disclosure of confidential information remains a key integrity risk for Redland City Council with its Audit and Risk Management Committee calling for stronger controls, training and awareness among staff and councillors.
The issue was repeatedly raised in the committee’s August 26 meeting minutes, which will go before Council for adoption at Wednesday’s general meeting.
The committee was told Council management was continuing to strengthen its control environment in response to the risk of confidential material being disclosed without authorisation.
In its Ethics and Integrity update, the committee noted that complaint volumes remained manageable and closure times had improved.
However, it specifically identified the handling of confidential information as an ongoing concern.
“Unauthorised disclosure of confidential information remains a key integrity risk,” the minutes state.
The committee discussed the need for both “hard and soft controls” to address the problem, saying Council’s response needed to include technical controls, governance processes, staff training and greater awareness among councillors.
It noted the importance of continuing to strengthen those measures to reduce the risk of confidential-information leaks.
The issue was also highlighted in the chief executive’s report, where the committee noted risks linked to the unauthorised disclosure of confidential information and management’s work to improve controls.
Council’s Governance and Legal report similarly identified an ongoing focus on confidential-information controls, alongside legislative compliance processes and broader risk management.
The matter was also considered through Council’s Cyber Security Program, with the committee receiving an update on controls introduced to manage confidential material.
Committee members discussed the need to balance appropriate protections with organisational transparency, including whether greater transparency could reduce the need for some restrictions.
That question was left for management to consider.
The confidential-information concern sits among a broader set of risks facing Council, including supply-chain and fuel pressures, waste infrastructure, City Water’s financial sustainability, asset information and pressure on delivery of major projects.
The committee said Council’s overall risk profile remained manageable, but its confidence was assessed as medium because of increasing external and operational pressures and the need to further validate controls for risks outside the organisation’s target tolerance.
