The City of Melville would like to respond to the article Councils caught in cost of living it up crisis published in The West Australian on Thursday, 5 June 2025 and in other media outlets.
As part of the City’s ongoing commitment to financial stewardship, long term financial sustainability and continuous improvement, the City has already commenced implementing the audit’s recommendations.
Noting that there are some instances where purchase cards were the only feasible payment method.
City of Melville Chief Executive Officer Gail Bowman welcomed the Office of the Auditor General’s performance audit and was pleased that no instances were found of public funds being misused by City of Melville cardholders.
“The OAG audit plays an important role to review local governments’ management of purchasing cards and ensure we are delivering our commitment to responsible and transparent governance, compliance, and oversight practices.
“We recognise the value of continuous improvement and have already commenced implementing the audit’s recommendations, all actions are expected to be completed by the end of 2025.”
For more information, visit Local Government Management of Purchasing Cards – Larger Metropolitan Entities webpage.
- The Office of General Auditor (OAG) audit did not identify any instances of public funds being misused by City of Melville cardholders.
- The City of Melville did not have any findings related to the purchase of champagne or oysters.
- It is important to note that the majority of food and drink expenses were associated with community and cultural events and not for staff or Elected Members as some media reporting may imply.
- The "General retail" spending category identified in the audit, include operational and community service-related costs (only) such as:
- Library materials, emergency purchases and parking, advertising, website management fees and on-line subscriptions.
- Expenses related to the State Emergency Services.
- Store cards which are used for facility and infrastructure maintenance-related expenditures, such as Bunnings purchase cards.
As part of the City’s ongoing commitment to financial stewardship, long term financial sustainability and continuous improvement, the City has already commenced implementing the audit’s recommendations.
Noting that there are some instances where purchase cards were the only feasible payment method.
City of Melville Chief Executive Officer Gail Bowman welcomed the Office of the Auditor General’s performance audit and was pleased that no instances were found of public funds being misused by City of Melville cardholders.
“The OAG audit plays an important role to review local governments’ management of purchasing cards and ensure we are delivering our commitment to responsible and transparent governance, compliance, and oversight practices.
“We recognise the value of continuous improvement and have already commenced implementing the audit’s recommendations, all actions are expected to be completed by the end of 2025.”
For more information, visit Local Government Management of Purchasing Cards – Larger Metropolitan Entities webpage.