Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Ms. Bisaro.Review of the GNWT Public Accounts for 2012-13 Contents of the Public Accounts
As comptroller general, Warren St. Germaine stated in his opening comments on March 15, the public accounts represent one of the key accountability mechanisms of the Government of the Northwest Territories. The Office of the Comptroller General, a branch of the Department of Finance, superintends the preparation of the consolidated public accounts.
The volume under review, titled Section One: Consolidated Financial Statements and
Government Indicators, presents the financial position of the consolidated government reporting entity as at March 31, 2012, and the results of operations for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. The “government reporting entity” includes the GNWT, the Business Development and Investment Corporation (BDIC), the NWT Housing Corporation, education boards and councils, Aurora College, health and social services authorities, the NWT Opportunities Fund, the NWT Human Rights Commission, the NWT Status of Women Council, and the Northwest Territories Hydro Corporation and its subsidiary, the NWT Power Corporation. It does not include the operations of the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission. The document also provides a wealth of information in notes and schedules. All of this information is audited by the Auditor General of Canada, and the auditor’s report is included in the document. The public accounts section one also includes an unaudited narrative of key indicators of the financial health of the GNWT.
A second volume of the public accounts, titled Section Two: Non-Consolidated Financial Statements, presents the financial position and operating results of GNWT departments and the Legislative Assembly. It does not include the boards and agencies consolidated in section one, and the information is unaudited. Section two is prepared earlier than section one, and is tabled earlier as the interim public accounts. The interim public accounts for 2011-12 were tabled on October 18, 2012. The committee referred to but did not review this volume in full.
The Standing Committee on Government Operations is very pleased that the Department of Finance has now posted 2011 and 2012 audited financial statements for GNWT boards and agencies, education councils, and health authorities on its website on its public accounts page, titled Section Three. Financial statements for local housing authorities are not yet available on the website. The committee will pursue further improvements to publicly available information with the Department of Finance.Highlights of the Review of the 2011-12 Public Accounts Section One 1. Independent Auditor’s Report: A “Clean”
Opinion
The standing committee examined, first, the independent auditor’s report provided by the Auditor General of Canada.
Members were pleased to see that the Auditor General’s opinion on the public accounts was “clean;” that is, it contained no qualifications. The Auditor General’s opinion was that the consolidated statements present fairly the financial position of the GNWT as at 31 March 2012, and the results of its operations, changes in its net debt, and its cash
flows for the year, in accordance with Canadian public sector accounting standards. The Auditor General, as required by the Northwest Territories Act, also reported that Canadian public sector accounting standards were applied on a consistent basis year over year, and proper books of account have been kept by the GNWT.
While the consolidated government entity received an unqualified opinion, one of its components did not. In discussion with the Auditor General’s staff, the committee learned that the NWT Housing Corporation did not submit its 2011-12 annual report to the Minister before the statutory deadline under the Financial Administration Act, which allows submission up to 150 days after the end of the fiscal year. The corporation tabled its annual report on March 14, 2013.
As well, a lack of internal controls over inventory costing did not allow the auditor to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence about the value of Housing Corporation inventories as of April 1, 2010. This 2010-11 issue carried over into the 2011-12 audit report, by affecting the comparability of information year over year. When the Housing Corporation’s 2012-13 Annual Report is tabled, the standing committee will review the audit report for assurance that the inventory costing issue has been corrected.
The committee is aware that the Housing Corporation has had a great deal of catching up to do in terms of reporting over the last few years. Submitting its annual report before the end of the succeeding fiscal year in fact represents progress for this agency. The committee encourages the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation to continue to improve the timeliness of its reporting.
Recommendation 5
The Standing Committee on Government Operations recommends that the NWT Housing Corporation submit its 2012-13 Annual Report within 150 days of the fiscal year end. If this does not prove to be possible, the NWTHC should provide the House with reasons.
With your permission, Mr. Speaker, I’d like to turn over the floor to Mr. Moses.