Audit on defence procurement scrutinised

Claims some parts of the Defence Department are overstaffed by up to 30 per cent are believed to be addressed in a secret report Defence Minister, Stephen Smith, has been sitting on since February.

The audit, conducted by George Pappas, found non-equipment procurement was overstaffed by 31 per cent, information and communication technologies by 25 per cent, human relations by 22 per cent and finance by 14 per cent.

A defence budget expert with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Mark Thompson, said he would be surprised if the Rufus Black Review into accountability within Defence hadn't picked up on key issues identified in a 2008 Defence audit.

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