2015/16 Annual review of Drug Free Sport New Zealand

Transcription

1 2015/16 Annual review of Drug Free Sport New Zealand Report of the Government Administration Committee Contents Recommendation 2 Introduction 2 Financial performance 2 Educational programmes and resources 3 Drug testing targets 3 The organisation s role in sporting integrity 3 Engaging with the international anti-doping community 4 Increase in the threshold for cannabinoids 4 Appendix 5

2 Drug Free Sport New Zealand Recommendation The Government Administration Committee has conducted the annual review of the 2015/16 performance and current operations of Drug Free Sport New Zealand, and recommends that the House take note of its report. Introduction Drug Free Sport New Zealand (DFSNZ) is an independent Crown entity established under the New Zealand Sports Drug Agency Act 1994, and the Sports Anti-Doping Act DFSNZ receives the bulk of its funding from Government. Its application of these funds is monitored by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. DFSNZ is responsible for implementing and applying the World Anti-Doping Code in New Zealand and encouraging athletes to reject cheating through the use of prohibited drugs. It conducts a drug testing programme, investigates reports of doping, and provides resources and education to better inform New Zealand athletes of the consequences of doping. DFSNZ employs 11 full- and part-time staff but utilises independent contractors to collect drug samples or deliver education programmes. The chief executive of DFSNZ is Graeme Steel, and the board chair is Hon J Warwick Gendall QC. Financial performance DFSNZ s total revenue in 2015/16 was $2.889 million, and total expenditure was $2.962 million, resulting in a loss of $72,915. The deficit resulted from funds being carried forward from the previous year and a decision to establish an improved education programme for youth. We asked what DFSNZ will do to prevent further deficits. DFSNZ assured us that it would not normally carry forward funds in this way, and expects future budgets to be cashflow positive. Despite this assurance, DFSNZ is forecasting a deficit of $128,000 in 2016/17. DFSNZ received an additional $1 million of funding for the 2016/17 financial year to support financial sustainability, continue access to modern science and intelligencegathering methods, and broaden the scope of its work to include additional athletes, support staff, and junior athletes. In light of the increase in funding, DFSNZ has been working with stakeholders to develop a new strategy and is revising its Statement of Intent. Targeting funding In 2015/16 DFSNZ undertook a new spending initiative to target funds received from the Proceeds of Crime Fund. The funding is used for research into developing and supporting a drug free culture amongst young athletes. It has continued into 2016/17 and will be evaluated upon completion. The $300,000 fund helped DFSNZ to reduce its 2015/16 deficit from the $150,000 originally forecast. 2

3 Audit opinion 2015/16 ANNUAL REVIEW OF DRUG FREE SPORT NEW ZEALAND The Auditor-General issued a standard audit report. It gave DFSNZ s management control environment, and its financial information systems and controls, the highest rating of very good. The Auditor-General rated the entity s performance information and associated systems and controls as good, recommending that DFSNZ carry out a review of its performance measures and targets. This would ensure that DFSNZ s reporting continues to provide meaningful information for readers about its performance. In this context, we note that DFSNZ has commissioned research to establish benchmarks for assessing the attitudes and behaviours of young athletes in relation to doping. Once this project is completed it will then be in a position to monitor changes over time. Educational programmes and resources DFSNZ coordinates anti-doping educational programmes, such as Good Clean Sport, that target both high-performance and young athletes. The programmes give young athletes information about international doping rules and guidance for avoiding drugs. DFSNZ has also invested $100,000 in an e-learning project to better educate athletes, coaches, and support personnel. The project started in September 2015, and will run until April We asked what DFSNZ was doing to address the risks for young athletes in engaging with recreational drugs. DFSNZ said it runs workshops in schools that emphasise the importance of remaining drug free. DFSNZ believes that by reaching a large number of young and aspiring athletes in this way, it can influence their behaviour and create role models in schools. Drug testing targets DFSNZ conducts drug testing of athletes across the country and has set much higher targets for 2016/17. They include increases in the minimum number of urine tests (from 920 in 2015/16 to 1,450 in 2016/17), and in the minimum number of blood samples taken (from 180 in 2015/16 to 270 in 2016/17). Recent media reports about the misleading drug test results of Patrick Tuipulotu highlighted the potential inconsistency of drug tests. We asked DFSNZ how commonly drug test results are found to be inaccurate. We heard that false positive results are extremely rare, but that there is a margin of error with any testing. For this reason, DFSNZ tests multiple times and takes considerable care to minimise the contamination of the samples. The organisation s role in sporting integrity DFSNZ has been engaging in extensive dialogue with Sport New Zealand over the need to address sporting integrity issues beyond doping, most notably match-fixing. They are discussing what role, if any, might be appropriate for DFSNZ should its mandate be extended. We asked DFSNZ if it is reassessing and expanding its responsibility and influence as a regulatory body to take on a broader role. DFSNZ said it has not considered offering to expand its role. It has taken the view that its core business is anti-doping. It emphasised that any suggestion of a wider mandate should not compromise that focus. 3

4 Engaging with the international anti-doping community The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is an international body that provides a vehicle for DFSNZ and other national anti-doping organisations to have input into key policies, particularly by participating in their annual symposium. WADA is also responsible for administering and updating the lists of banned drugs in sport. Since the discovery of wide-scale doping in Russia, WADA has come under scrutiny for not picking this up earlier. DFSNZ told us that the International Olympic Committee had raised this with WADA some time ago, but it became clear that there were issues within WADA. DFSNZ sees the future of WADA as being a much more independent organisation that will make decisions purely on doping issues. Anti-doping organisations in Denmark and Finland Representatives of DFSNZ recently travelled to Denmark and Finland to hear about the successes and operations of those countries national anti-doping organisations. We asked whether these countries, or others, can offer any models of best practice or new initiatives that New Zealand could learn from. DFSNZ told us that these national doping organisations have taken on functions in the areas of match-fixing and corruption. However, it believes that they lack the ability to independently investigate and prosecute cases in front of an independent tribunal. DFSNZ see these elements as central to effective anti-doping regimes. They are also necessary for similar regulatory matters. In its opinion, the functions of dealing with match-fixing and corruption are beyond the scope of DFSNZ. Increase in the threshold for cannabinoids WADA has raised the threshold for tested athletes to return a positive result for cannabinoids. DFSNZ told us that, since the change, there have still been positive tests for cannabinoids, but less costs associated with testing. We asked why cannabinoids were not removed entirely from the list. We were told that a number of countries and organisations are still reluctant to do so. 4

5 Appendix Committee procedure We met on 15 February and 22 March 2017 to consider the annual review of Drug Free Sport New Zealand. We heard evidence from Drug Free Sport New Zealand, and received advice from the Office of the Auditor-General. Committee members Hon Ruth Dyson (Chairperson) Hon David Bennett Barry Coates Brett Hudson Paul Foster-Bell Hon Nanaia Mahuta Advice and evidence received The documents that we received as advice and evidence for this annual review are available on the Parliament website, They are listed below: Office of the Auditor-General, Briefing on Drug Free Sport New Zealand, dated 15 February Drug Free Sport New Zealand, Responses to written questions, dated 13 February and 6 March