Opening Statement to the Standing Senate Committee on National Finance

31 January 2012

Michael Ferguson, FCA
Auditor General of Canada

Thank you, Mr. Chair, for this opportunity to meet with all of you today. I am accompanied by Jocelyne Therrien, who heads our parliamentary liaison team. I am happy to answer any questions that the Honourable Senators may have. But first, with your indulgence, I would like to start by providing a bit of background information about myself and how I plan to fulfill my mandate. I will be brief.

As some of you may already know, I served five years as Comptroller and the past year as Deputy Minister of Finance in New Brunswick. I also served five years, between 2005 and 2010, as the Auditor General for the province, reporting to the New Brunswick legislature. I am currently in my third term serving on the Public Sector Accounting Board, the organization that establishes accounting standards for Canadian governments. And I served one year as president of the New Brunswick Institute of Chartered Accountants.

My goal is to build on the excellent work of Sheila Fraser, just as she was able to build on the exemplary contribution made in the position by Denis Desautels. There is a tradition of excellence in the Office, and I am committed to upholding the standards set by these two remarkable public servants.

In the two months that I have been in the position, I have focused my energy on getting to know the people who work in the Office and on learning about the audits that are currently being conducted. I am also getting to know some of the senior public servants within the federal government.

In the short term, my plan is to stay the course. I do not anticipate any major changes. I have the good fortune of having joined an organization that is widely respected, and that from my vantage point appears to be very well run. I do not expect to have to make significant changes to the operations of the Office.

The Office has always respected the mandate that it has been given—to provide information to Parliament gathered through a rigorous and objective process so that Parliament can in turn hold government accountable for its delivery of services to Canadians. I can commit to you today that we will maintain this integrity so that you can continue to rely on our work.

Honourable Senators, you will recall that there was some controversy regarding my language abilities during the nomination process. I wish to inform you that since that time, my language training has started, and it is the one item in my daily calendar that I try not to cancel.

It is a very intensive and structured program. I am confident that it will lead to good results. I can assure you that I am personally committed to this process in recognition of the fundamental importance of achieving a functional level of bilingualism. I have also committed to staff in the Office to preserving our bilingual environment.

Mr. Chair, I would like to conclude by saying that I look forward to a productive relationship with this Committee. I welcome your input and your advice. Part of the success of the Office of the Auditor General is its ability to maintain its relevance to the stakeholders of the Office, starting with Parliament as its primary client.

We have a parliamentary liaison unit that is dedicated to facilitating this relationship, and I encourage you to contact us should you have anything you would like to discuss.

For this meeting, I have not reviewed the reports presented by the previous Auditor General or the Interim Auditor General. If you have specific questions about work that has been done in the past, I will have to bring the answers back to you at a later date. I would be more than happy to answer any other questions you may have.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.