Water authorities commonly use consultants for their operational and capital delivery needs. Consultants bring with them a level of technical expertise and specialised skill that is often lacking within the ranks of water authorities and is needed for a temporary and/or urgent basis. Public disclosures by water authorities allow us to inspect how each water authority operates to improve transparency and accountability.
A directive from the Department of Treasury and Finance in Victoria (FDR22) requires all water corporations to disclose details of individual consultants engaged with a value of more than $10,000. Financial year 2022-23 was the first time water corporations released this information alongside their annual reports.
This disclosure highlights the vital role consultants play in the operation of water corporations. As is tradition here at Qanat, I have collated a list of all consultants for the water authorities below and presented the data in an easy-to-use format. You can find the list here. (You can bookmark this link for easy future reference).
– Melbourne Water
– South East Water
– Yarra Valley Water
– Greater Western Water
– Barwon Water
– Coliban Water
– Central Highlands Water
– Gippsland Water
– Goulburn-Murray Water
– Lower Murray Water
– Westernport Water
While all the above-mentioned water corporations publicly published their consultant expenditures for the 2022-23 financial year alongside their annual report on their website in compliance with FDR22, some had to be obtained through contacting individual water authorities or through Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.
With another financial year coming to an end, I am eager to see how consultant engagements evolve, providing a trend for further analysis. Such disclosures can be an important tool for improving efficiency and competitiveness among water corporations, which is a central intent of their original mandate.
QANAT 