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Overview

Role of the Auditor-General 

The role of the Auditor-General is to provide Parliament with independent assurance of public sector accountability and performance. This is achieved through reporting to Parliament on the results of its financial and performance audits.

About the Auditor-General Report

This report examines whether the Queensland public sector has policies and guidelines to effectively manage ethical risks associated with artificial intelligence (AI) systems.

Auditor-General recommendations

The Auditor-General made 7 recommendations, which are outlined below:  

Recommendations 1, 2, 3 and 6 are that the Department of Customer Services, Open Data and Small and Family Business:

1.  Enhances its Foundational artificial intelligence risk assessment (FAIRA) and supporting material by:

• clarifying when and how often entities should use the FAIRA across the AI life cycle, including retrospective application
• developing guidance for alternative risk assessments for lower-risk AI systems
• clarifying key ethical principles that alternative frameworks should address if entities choose not to use the FAIRA, aligned where possible with national standards or leading practices in other jurisdictions.

2.  Supports continuous improvement by assessing the effectiveness of the AI governance policy and supporting tools.

3.  Improves its understanding of AI system use and risks across the public sector and develops risk-based advice to support entities in managing higher-risk AI systems.

6.  Supports entities to better manage the risks associated with using generative AI systems, such as QChat, by providing entities with access to content safety information.

Recommendations 4 and 5 are that the Department of Transport and Main Roads:

4.  Enhances its governance arrangements to support responsible use of AI by:

• assessing and updating governance arrangements to ensure they are suitable to manage ethical risks and align with the requirements of the Queensland Government’s AI governance policy
• implementing appropriate assurance frameworks to ensure its AI governance arrangements are effective at managing ethical risks, meet required standards, and operate within its risk appetite
• improving visibility of AI systems to strengthen oversight of ethical risks and controls.

5.  Improves QChat’s controls to manage ethical risks more effectively by:

• establishing monitoring activities to strengthen oversight and ensure usage is appropriate
• developing a structured approach to enhance staff capability and promote responsible use of AI systems through training and education.

Recommendation 7 is that all public sector entities:

7.  Implement ethical risk assessment processes for AI systems in use or under development to more comprehensively identify and manage ethical risks.

Referral to Committee 

Standing Order 194B provides that the Committee of the Legislative Assembly shall as soon as practicable after a report of the Auditor-General is tabled in the Assembly refer that report to the relevant portfolio committee for consideration.

The committee is responsible under section 94 of the Parliament of Queensland Act 2001 for assessing the integrity, economy, efficiency and effectiveness of government financial management by examining government financial documents and considering reports of the Auditor-General.

The Committee of the Legislative Assembly referred this Auditor-General report to the committee on 16 October 2025.

PUBLIC BRIEFING

A public briefing was held with the Queensland Audit Office on Wednesday, 29 October 2025 at 9:00am - program - broadcast - transcript

RELATED INFORMATION

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