September communiqué

At its September meeting, the Board received an update from the SIRA Chief Executive regarding appearances at hearings of:

• the NSW Parliament Public Accountability Committee Inquiry into the regulation of building standards, building quality and building disputes
• the 2019/2020 Budget Estimates Inquiry
• the Legislative Council Standing Committee on Law and Justice Inquiry into the 2019 review of the Dust Diseases scheme.

The Board discussed the progress of the Compliance and Performance Review of the Workers Compensation Nominal Insurer Scheme (managed by icare) and were briefed on the key findings of the analysis undertaken by independent actuaries, EY, engaged to support Independent Reviewer, Ms Janet Dore. The Board noted that SIRA has commenced publishing submissions received during the public consultation phase of the review, which are available on the SIRA website.

The Board reviewed a revised set of assumptions for premium setting in the NSW Compulsory Third Party (CTP) system and approved the Transitional Excess Profit and Loss Mechanism (TEPL) Guidelines, which will be published shortly. The guidelines will be accompanied by a fact sheet outlining the functionality of TEPL as a mechanism to reduce excess profits or excess losses in the NSW Compulsory Third Party (CTP) market. The Board was also pleased to note a review of the scheme’s risk equalisation mechanism which is functioning well.

Ms Nancy Milne OAM, currently Deputy Chair of the SIRA Board, and the delegate Chair of the SIRA Audit and Risk Committee (ARC) for July, provided an update on the July 2019 ARC meeting. Board members noted the extensive work completed to facilitate SIRA’s compliance with end of financial year requirements.

The Board also approved the allocation of the 2019-2020 financial year budget across SIRA’s operational funds.

The Board noted that public consultation has commenced on options relating to regulatory requirements to manage health care costs and improve outcomes within the NSW CTP and workers compensation schemes. The consultation paper is now available on the SIRA website and was endorsed for release by the Board out of session. Members of the public are invited to make submissions before 1 November 2019.

Other matters at the September 2019 Board meeting included:

• discussion about the strategic considerations to be included at the upcoming Board 2019/20 planning day, with the Board also approving the 2019/20 SIRA delivery plan
• a progress report on several matters relating to the CTP Scheme.

Trevor Matthews

Chairperson,  SIRA Board