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Appendices

1: Legislative Requirements
2: Advisory Committees and Chairs
3: Service Charter
4: List of Abbreviations
5: Compliance Checklist

Appendix 1: Legislative Requirements
RIRDC's annual report complies with the requirements of Australian Government's legislation which are set out below. The Acts are:

• the Primary Industries and Energy Research and Development Act 1989 (PIERD Act)
• the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 (CAC Act)
• The Commonwealth Authorities and Companies (Report of Operations) Orders 2005
• the Environment Protection and Biodiviersity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) (see page 18)

The Primary Industries and Energy Research and Development Act 1989 (PIERD Act)

Section 3: Objects
The objects of this Act are to make provision for the funding and administration of research and development relating to primary industries with a view to:

a. increasing the economic, environmental and social benefits to members of primary industries and to the community in general by improving the production, processing, storage, transport or marketing of the products of primary industries; and

b. achieving the sustainable use and sustainable management of natural resources; and

c. making more effective use of the resources and skills of the community in general and the scientific community in particular; and

d. improving accountability for expenditure upon research and development activities in relation to primary industries.

Section 7: Representative organisations

1. The Minister may, by notice published in the Gazette, declare one or more specified organisations to be representative organisations in relation to an R&D Corporation or an R&D Council.
2. A declaration may be made in respect of an R&D Corporation or an R&D Council at any time after the making of regulations under section 8 or 92 establishing the Corporation or Council, even if the regulations concerned are not in force at that time.
3. The Minister must, in relation to each R&D Corporation and each R&D Council, declare at least one organisation to be a representative organisation.

Section 9: Establishment of the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation

1. The Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation is established. 2) The regulations may specify the primary industries or class of primary industries in respect of which the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation is established.

Section 11: Functions
The functions of the RIRDC, deriving from section 11 of the PIERD Act are:

(a) to investigate and evaluate the requirements for research and development in relation to the primary industry or class of primary industries in respect of which it was established and, on the basis of such investigation and evaluation:

(i) to prepare an R&D plan under section 19;

(ii) to review and revise the plan; and

(b ) to prepare an annual operational plan under section 25 for each financial year;

(c) to coordinate or fund the carrying out of R&D activities that are consistent with the annual operational plan prepared by the Corporation and in force at the time;

(d) to monitor, evaluate and report to the Parliament, the Minister and its representative organisation on R&D activities that are coordinated or funded, wholly or partly, by the Corporation;

(e) to facilitate the dissemination, adoption and commercialisation of the results of research and development in relation to the primary industry or class of primary industries in respect of which the Corporation was established; and

(f ) such other functions as are conferred on the Corporation by this Act or any other Act.

Section 28: Annual report
1) The directors must include in each report on an R&D Corporation prepared under section 9 of the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997:

(a) particulars of:

(i)

the R&D activities that it co-ordinated or funded, wholly or partly, during the period; and

(ii)

the amount that it spent during the period in relation to each of those activities; and (iia) which (if any) of those activities related to ecologically sustainable development; and

(iii) revisions of its R&D plan or annual operational plan approved by the Minister during the period; and

(iv)

the entering into of agreements under sections 1 and 1 during the period and its activities during the period in relation to agreements entered into under that section during or prior to the period; and

(v)

its activities during the period in relation to applying for patents for inventions, commercially exploiting patented inventions and granting licences under patented inventions; and

(vi)

the activities of any companies in which the Corporation has an interest; and

(vii) any activities relating to the formation of a company; and (viii) significant acquisitions and dispositions of real property by it during the period; and

(b)

an assessment of the extent to which its operations during the period have:

(i)

achieved its objectives as stated in its R&D plan; and

(ii)

implemented the annual operational plan applicable to the period; and

(c)

an assessment of the extent to which the Corporation has, during the period, contributed to the attainment of the objects of this Act as set out in section ; and

(d)

in respect of the grain industry or such other primary industry or class of primary industries as is prescribed in the regulations, particulars of sources and expenditure of funds, including:

(i)

commodity, cross commodity and regional classifications; and

(ii)

funds derived from transfer of:

(A)

assets, debts, liabilities and obligations under section 1; and

(B)

levies attached to Research Funds under the Rural Industries Research Act 1985 under section 151 of this Act.

The Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 (CAC Act)
The CAC Act is the main legislation that specifies content and standards for presentation of statutory authorities' annual reports for parliamentary scrutiny.

Section 9 of the CAC Act requires RIRDC directors to prepare an annual report in accordance with schedule 1 each financial year and to give it to the responsible Minister by 15 October.

Clause 10 of the CAC Orders specifies that the report of operations and future prospects (one of three main elements of the annual report, the others being financial statements and a report by the Auditor-General) to include, among other things*:

• a review of how RIRDc has performed during the financial year in relation to its statutory objects and functions, its R&D plan and its principal outputs and contribution to outcomes
• factors influencing its performance over the financial year and in the future
• significant events
• operational and financial results, including principal outputs, major investing and financing activities and key financial and non-financial performance indicators
• significant changes in RIRDC's state of affairs or principal activities
• developments since the end of the financial year
• matters required to be included by the PIERD Act and any other legislation

*This is an edited version of clauses 8-18 of the CAC (Report of Operations) Orders 2005)

Appendix 2: RIRDC R&D Advisory Committees and Chairs for 2006-07

Appendix 3: Service Charter

Core Business

• fostering the development of new industries-both prospective and emerging
• managing research and development investments for established industries
• developing a research program which addresses important strategic, cross-sectoral issues facing the rural sector

The Board

• sets strategic direction and establishes policies for the Corporation
• oversights operational and functional performance against budget and other key performance indicators on behalf of stakeholders

Stakeholders

• the Australian Government on behalf of rural industries and taxpayers
• industry funders
• Australian community

Primary Clients

• for RIRDC-related industries, all participants in the marketing chain (producers, processors, distributors and consumers)
• on RIRDC's strategic cross-sectoral program, the National Farmers'Federation on behalf of all rural industries

Mr Douglas Robertson Mr Barry Shay Ms Nola Anderson Ms Jane Vincent Mr Don Law Mr Des Cannon Dr Glen Kile Mr Brian Topper Dr Ian McCausland Mr Don Fraser Mrs Penny Hendy Dr Carol Mathew Mr Daryl Gibbs Ms Pat Bolster Ms Christine Horsman

Industry Consultations

communication channels between RIRDC and rural industries meet two essential functions-accountability and bringing

industry influence to bear on the research agenda

• at the peak industry level, the Corporation is accountable to:
• National Farmers' Federation
• Australian Chicken Meat Federation

All of the research programs and sub-programs have reference steering committees with stakeholder membership

Reporting to Stakeholders

• there are four key accountability documents for stakeholders:
• a five-year strategic plan which sets out strategies, directions and performance indicators for the Corporatio
• five-year R&D plans for each industry subprogram within emerging industries and established industries
• an Annual Operational Plan which sets out yearly objectives to give effect to the Corporate Plan, the five-year industry plans, the annual budget and annual research priorities
• the Annual Report which sets out achievements against objectives, budgets and administration costs

Appendix 4: List of Abbreviations

Appendix 5: Compliance Checklist

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