Acting provincial auditor general Wayne Loveys has attempted to continue the work of his predecessor in conducting a no-holds review of the Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board (CNLOPB).
In his annual report, Loveys stated that, like former auditor general John Noseworthy, he has been unable to get unrestricted access to the board’s information and the ability to publish his findings without restriction or review.
“In the four years since January 2008, several attempts were made by the former Auditor General (to 31 July 2011) and me (since 1 August 2011) to conduct the planned review,” the report states.
According to the acting AG, any attempts at conducting a review to his liking have been “a lengthy and often frustrating process” and the offshore petroleum board has had “varying responses.”
A timeline outlining the back and forth between the auditor general’s office and the board from January 2008 to October 2011 is included within the Loveys’ report.
Ultimately, Loveys states he will not be proceeding with a review of the board.
“The inability to complete the planned review is regrettable, as the CNLOPB will not be held accountable in the same manner as other entities within the jurisdiction of the Auditor General Act operating in the province, ie., through an audit by the provincial auditor general,” the report states.
The CNLOPB has previously stated a section within the Accord Acts (section 119, federal) discusses privileged and proprietary information and creates hurdles that do not permit the board to provide unrestricted access to all information relating to the board and activities offshore.
Read the full story in Thursday’s edition of The Telegram.
•••
Government refusal to provide information to AG outrageous: Ball
Liberal Opposition Leader Dwight Ball stated today it’s outrageous that the provincial government has refused to provide the Auditor General with information on an infrastructure strategy.
“Government has often referenced their Infrastructure Strategy, most recently indicating in March 2011 that it was valued at $5 billion,” said Ball. “Meanwhile the Auditor General has discovered that the government has no formal strategy, and to make matters worse, they have refused to release any information on the issue.”
Ball noted that the Dunderdale Government is setting a dangerous precedent by denying the Auditor General access to information.
“This government has proven that they are the most secretive administration in the history of our province,” said Ball. “To deny access by the Auditor General is a direct insult to democracy in Newfoundland and Labrador. Not only has the premier closed the House of Assembly, shutting out the people’s voice, she is now removing any checks and balances by the Auditor General on her government.”
•••
Policy not followed for hiring temporary employees: AG report
The province’s acting auditor general says the former department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment didn’t follow government policy on hiring temporary employees.
Wayne Loveys’ report, released this afternoon, reviewed 62 temporary employees files at the department — now the Advanced Education and Skills department — between March 31, 2010, and Oct. 26, 2011, finding that 42 of those employees were hired without a job competition.
“In 41 of the 42 files reviewed, where no job competition was held upon initial employment, the department could not demonstrate on what basis individuals were initially selected for temporary employment or assignment, or whether the merit principles were followed,” reads the report.
While Public Service Commission policy allows for the hiring of temporary employees without a competition, there must be a competition held within 13 weeks. But the review found that in more than three-quarters of the files — 32 instances — where employees were hired without competition, there was no competition held within the maximum 13 weeks, and all 32 received extensions from the department, ranging from seven weeks to 11 years.
While the response from the Department of Advanced Education and Skills “generally agrees” with the report’s recommendations to comply with Public Service Commission policy on temporary employment, the department also says the report illustrates the challenging environment departments face in recruiting and retaining staff.
“Spurred by an aging demographic, HRLE experienced very high turnover of staff in recent years,” the response stated.
More coverage in Thursday’s Telegram.
•••
Report raises concerns over program’s funding dispersement
The Auditor General’s Report has raised a number of questions about how the Growing Forward Program, and its $30 million fund, has been managed.
The program is a joint venture between the provincial and federal governments, but is administered locally. Its mandate is to distribute grants, from its fund, to eligible agricultural research and development projects in Newfoundland and Labrador.
A review of the project outlined several instances where the applicants who did not meet the requirements were still given funding, payments being made without proper documentation and a lack of oversight and follow up from approved projects.
As of March 31, 2011, Growing Forward has approved funding for 360 projects at a cost of about half the fund, or $15 million.
In its response to the report, the Department of Natural Resources stated that in its assessment the Growing Forward Program has been administered appropriately within its mandate.
“It is the Department’s opinion that this program is being delivered within a responsible context while exercising due diligence in the administration of the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Bilateral Growing Forward Agreement,” said the department’s response.
However, the department also acknowledged the auditor general’s findings and suggested that several of his recommendations would be acted upon.
•••
AG report flags spending concerns at commodity boards
The report of the provincial auditor general has delved into the province’s commodity boards and the organization charged with their oversight, finding accounting “concerns” and a general lack of accountability.
The three commodity boards cover production, processing and marketing of milk, eggs and chicken.
According to the AG, these boards — Dairy Farmers of Newfoundland and Labrador, Chicken Farmers of Newfoundland and Labrador and Egg Producers of Newfoundland and Labrador — have had a a “lack of meaningful monitoring and supervision.”
“In many instances, expenditures by the three commodity boards for such things as board remuneration, employee compensation and leave entitlements, travel and entertainment, and other discretionary expenses were inconsistent between the three boards, inconsistent and above the amounts provided for in government policy, and in our opinion, in some cases, were not an appropriate use of board funds,” Acting Auditor General Wayne Loveys stated.
According to the AG, the Farm Industry Review Board — a government entity charged with oversight of the three provincial commodity boards — has failed to direct and monitor the boards, has not been represented at regular meetings of the commodity boards and has not performed financial reviews of the boards that might identify inappropriate spending.
Spending flagged by the AG includes $331 spent by the dairy board on a cell phone bill for an employee’s spouse, Christmas bonuses of $1,450 for four employees of the egg producers’ board (this is not provided for under government policy) and $5,000 lump sum payments annually to an employee of the chicken farmers’ board, for use of a personal vehicle for board business (government reimburses at specific rates, often based on mileage).
“The lack of meaningful monitoring and supervision of the three boards has contributed to the inconsistent expenditure and personnel policies of the three boards and presents an increased risk of financial loss within the commodity boards,” the AG has stated.
In response, the boards have stated there is no requirement for them to follow government policies under existing legislation. They have stated they are confident spending has been “appropriate.”
Even so, all have indicated they are open to discussing changes in the existing regulations with the Department of Natural Resources.
The Farm Industry Review Board has “in general terms” acknowledged the AG’s findings and recommendations.
•••
Government refused auditor general request on infrastructure spending
The provincial government has refused to provide the Office of the Auditor General documents detailing how departments come to a final decision on the billions of dollars spent on infrastructure.
Released today, the auditor’s annual report found that the province’s infrastructure strategy, whose development was first referred to in 2004 and for which dollar figures have been attributed to in recent budgets, does not exist as a formal document.
Both the Department of Health and Community Services and the Department of Justice informed the auditor’s office last year they would not provide documents on how they identify, evaluate, and rank potential infrastructure projects. They said doing so would reveal cabinet confidences protected from disclosure under the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
In his report, acting auditor general Wayne Loveys said government was broadly interpreting the act.
For more on this story, read Thursday’s edition of The Telegram.
•••
Marshall responds to Auditor General’s Report
In responding to the release of the Auditor General’s report today, Finance Minister Tom Marshall said the provincial government is committed to ensuring the province’s finances are managed in a prudent and effective manner.
Acting Auditor General Wayne R. Loveys this afternoon presented his 2011 Annual Report to the Speaker of the House of Assembly.
The 500-page report includes commentary, recommendations and auditees’ comments, related to: infrastructure strategy; Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board; temporary employees; Western School District; industrial compliance; Royal Newfoundland Constabulary – firearms; Growing Forward Program; Mineral Incentive Program; provincial commodity boards; provincial lottery licensing; Workplace Health and Safety inspections; Marble Mountain Development Corporation; building maintenance; and Trans Labrador Highway.
The report also provides comments on the audit of the province’s financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2011.
“We appreciate the work that the Auditor General does on behalf of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in providing insight on how well the government is managing the resources available to us,” Marshall said. “We will carefully review all the recommendations contained in this report. Using the public’s tax dollars as effectively as possible has always been a top priority for us and will remain as a key focus in the future.”
The report found that the province’s financial position has improved significantly over the past five years as evidenced by $4.7 billion in cumulative surpluses, increases in GDP and improvements in the debt to GDP ratio. Concerns were raised, however, around the level of debt and expenditure growth.
“As noted by the Auditor General, the province’s fiscal situation has improved substantially since 2006,” Marshall said. “We do, however, recognize the need for a continued focus on debt reduction, while containing growth in expenditures. Debt expenses were still more than $835 million last year and despite the fact that $4.4 billion has been put into the public pension funds, our unfunded pension and insurance liabilities continue to increase annually. We must continue to spend within our means and focus on sustainability as we plan for the future of Newfoundland and Labrador.”
•••
Poor watch on lottery licences: AG report
The province’s monitoring of lottery licences has been lax, according to the auditor general’s report.
Acting auditor general Wayne Loveys and his office found concerns with procedures at the Consumer Affairs division, which is responsible for issuing lottery licences to applicants for fundraising purposes, and for monitoring those lotteries.
The lotteries include bingos, breakopen ticket events, games of chance, monte carlo nights and sports events.
In 2009-10, the division issued a total of 3,249 licences, with gross proceeds of $54.1 million, resulting in net proceeds — after prize payouts and expenses — of $11.2 million.
“We found that: licence applications were not being approved by the appropriate people, applications with incomplete or outdated information were approved, licences with unapproved intended uses of proceeds were approved and required business plans were not received with applications,” Loveys’ report said.
“In addition, we found that licence monitoring was inadequate in that: required financial reports were being submitted late or not at all; licensee reporting requirements did not fully address legislation; the licensing auditor position was vacant for more than four years, and, therefore, financial reports were not being properly reviewed and financial audits were not occurring; on-site inspections were not being performed; the division has not made a determination of in what circumstances audited financial statements should be required; and there were instances where lotteries had operated without a licence.”
•••
RNC must improve firearms policy compliance: acting AG
The RNC is not following firearms policy, and infractions are not being properly followed up, according to the auditor general’s report.
There are also concerns with controls of firearms, ammunition and other use of force of equipment — the inventory system is not accurate.
“Furthermore, RNC officials could not provide documentation demonstrating that the annual internal firearms audits agreed to by the minister of Justice had been completed for 2007, 2008 or 2009,” the report issued today by acting auditor general Wayne Loveys.
“Given the serious repercussions, i.e., the increase in risk to workplace and public safety that could result for issues related to firearms and other use of force equipment it is critical that the RNC continue efforts to improve compliance with established policies and procedures.”
Among the findings, the auditor general’s office found that officials at the Corner Brook and Labrador armouries could not account for all items under their control.
The 2011 internal firearms audit completed internally by the RNC’s audit managers found serious issues with regards to firearms locker security, the report said.
As well, the five-year review of the RNC arming policy covering the five years to March 2003 was never completed.
The auditor general’s office also found firearms policy infractions were not being followed up.
More coverage to come on The Telegram website and full coverage in Thursday’s Telegram.
•••
Auditor General's Report released
Acting Auditor General Wayne R. Loveys this afternoon presented his 2011 Annual Report to the Speaker of the House of Assembly.
The 500-page report includes commentary, recommendations and auditees’ comments, related to:
Infrastructure Strategy;
Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board;
Temporary Employees;
Western School District;
Industrial Compliance;
Royal Newfoundland Constabulary – Firearms;
Growing Forward Program;
Mineral Incentive Program;
Provincial Commodity Boards;
Provincial Lottery Licensing;
Workplace Health and Safety Inspections;
Marble Mountain Development Corporation;
Building Maintenance;
Trans Labrador Highway.
In the report, Loveys comments on two instances where his office was refused access to information he says was required to do the Auditor General’s work.
The two instances related to the office’s attempt to review information maintained at the departments of Health and Community Services, and Justice, in relation to the province’s infrastructure strategy; and an attempt to review the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board.
The report also provides comments on the audit of the province’s financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2011.
Updates to later on The Telegram website and more coverage in Thursday’s Telegram.
To review full report, Click Here.
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
