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2002 December Report of the Auditor General of Canada

December 2002 Report—Chapter 9

Exhibit 9.4—A clear accountability framework: Infrastructure Canada

In our April 2002 Report, Chapter 1, Placing the Public's Money Beyond Parliament's Reach, we described the accountability framework of Infrastructure Canada, which had replaced the Canada Infrastructure Works Program. Infrastructure Canada is a collaborative arrangement between the federal government and provincial and territorial governments; its purpose is to improve urban and rural municipal infrastructure. A key difference between Infrastructure Canada and the earlier program is the governance and accountability framework. It sets out a clear accountability structure for the federal organizations involved in Infrastructure Canada and is a marked improvement over the situation in the program that preceded it.

Some elements of the governance and accountability framework are the following:

Roles and responsibilities. The framework outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Expanded Treasury Board; the Minister responsible for Infrastructure; the National Office of Infrastructure Canada; the ministers responsible for delivery; the Federal-Provincial/Territorial Management Committee and the Federal-Provincial/Territorial Co-Chairs; the provincial, territorial, and local governments; non-governmental organizations; the private sector; and federal departments.

Expected performance. The framework states that the ministers responsible for delivery will ensure that Parliament is informed of expected results through supplementary descriptive material included in each department's Estimates.

Reporting. The framework states that the Minister responsible for Infrastructure Canada will be responsible for reporting to Parliament on the program's overall objectives and results through the report on plans and priorities and the departmental performance report.

Review and adjustment. The framework states that the National Office will undertake program evaluations and other national reviews. It also states that the audit and evaluation frameworks will provide all the processes and controls necessary for due diligence to ensure proper spending of federal funds. Further review and adjustment take place when ministers report to Parliament.

In addition, the federal government has a program agreement with each of the provinces that outlines the roles and responsibilities of the management committee, the program's objectives and procedures, a Shared Information Management System for Infrastructure, and provisions for audit and evaluation of the program.