This Web page has been archived on the Web.

1984 Report of the Auditor General of Canada

Introduction

15.1 The Office of the Auditor General is part of the legislative branch of government. The Auditor General is an Officer of Parliament, reporting direct to the House of Commons. The Auditor General Act (reproduced as Appendix A to this Report) ensures that the Auditor General remains independent from the executive branch of Government and that he is answerable only to Parliament. Exhibit 15.1 shows the place of the Office of the Auditor General within the Government of Canada.

(Exhibit not available)

15.2 The Auditor General's mandate requires him to examine the Government's financial transactions, verify the information presented to him, and report his findings to the House of Commons. His mandate also requires him to provide assurance to Members of Parliament that public moneys have been economically and efficiently spent for the purposes intended, and that there are procedures in place to enable those who administer programs to measure the effectiveness of those programs.

15.3 In considering the scope of his mandate, the Auditor General has stated that his mission is:

    - to make independent examinations of the accounts of federal departments and agencies and of other entities for which he is the appointed auditor, and to express his opinion on their integrity;
    - to make such independent examinations and inquiries as he considers necessary and, based on them, to report on whether or not there were significant deficiencies in the management control systems and practices in the audited entity during the period under examination; thereby providing reasonable assurance, where possible, that:
      - public assets are safeguarded and controlled;
      - transactions are lawful and proper;
      - financial, human and physical resources are managed with due regard to economy and efficiency, and procedures are in place to measure and report the effectiveness of programs;
    - to call attention to anything that he considers to be of significance and of a nature that should be brought to the attention of the House of Commons, to communicate his findings and observations to management of the audited entity and to make any constructive recommendations he may have;
    - to maintain the stature of his Office, share its expertise with Canadian and international colleagues, and contribute to the development of comprehensive audit methodology and practices; and
    - to manage his Office with due regard for economy, efficiency and effectiveness, ensuring professional and administrative competence and adherence to applicable government policies.

Organization of the Office

15.4 In September 1984, the Office of the Auditor General underwent a major reorganization. The Auditor General articulated the reasons for the change, as follows:

    - to consolidate all auditing functions within one branch in order to improve co-ordination and integration of audit work;
    - to clarify and distinguish the functions of Deputy Auditors General (DAGs) and Assistant Auditors General (AAGs) by:
      - providing more responsibility for AAGs to manage Audit Groups; and,
      - enabling the DAGs of Audit Operations to play a more active role in assisting the Auditor General to review critical issues and to perform a general management function in directing overall planning, administration and resource allocation within Audit Operations;
    - to reinforce the aim of the Office to develop strong core audit teams and groups that have considerable knowledge, on a continuing basis, of the departments and entities they audit and;
    - to increase the productivity of audit work by enabling AAGs and Principals to plan and manage resources within their Audit Groups.
15.5 Overall direction of the Office and planning remain with the Auditor General and the Executive Committee. This Committee comprises the Deputy Auditors General with the Auditor General as chairman.

15.6 The organizational chart, Exhibit 15.2, outlines the Office's organization as implemented on 4 September 1984. The major changes from the previous organization are as follows:

(Exhibit not available)

    - The functional groups that were part of the Professional Services Branch have been moved to Audit Operations. These include:
      - Human Resource Management (formerly called Payroll Costs Management);
      - Efficiency and Capital Projects (formerly Control Evaluations);
      - Computer Audit; and
      - Effectiveness.
    - The functions of Professional Services have been changed to incorporate the Executive Office, the Library, Career and Professional Development, and Standards, Research and Methodology.
    - The Audit Groups within Audit Operations have been modified.

Audit Operations

15.7 The Audit Operations Branch is the largest component, reflecting the major thrust and work of the Office. It plans and conducts audits of federal departments and agencies and of other entities for which the Auditor General is the appointed auditor.

Departments, Agencies and Crown Corporations

15.8 The activities of the Audit Operations Branch include audits of government departments and agencies, audits of Crown-owned corporations, and government-wide audits and other studies.

15.9 To audit departments and agencies, the Branch is organized internally into Audit Groups. Each group audits departments which have a strong program interrelationship and which are, in many instances, linked to the same budgetary envelopes.

15.10 This concentration by area provides greater continuity in the audit process and improved understanding of issues, resulting in better relationships with client entities.

15.11 The responsibility for government-wide audits and other studies, together with any special audits, is shared among all the Audit Groups.

15.12 The Crown Corporations group is responsible for providing direction and advice on general accountability issues relating to Crown corporations and other entities and for analysing the impact on the Office of the passage of the amendments to the Financial Administration Act with respect to Crown-owned corporations, in terms of policy and methodology development, operational considerations and co-ordination and liaison. Its reporting standards unit focuses on reviewing audit reporting in order to provide advice to the Auditor General and to staff with a view to ensuring greater consistency and efficiency in audits conducted by the Office in Crown corporations and other entities. In addition, the group is responsible for carrying out audits in a number of selected Crown corporations.

Functional and Special Areas

15.13 The Computer Audit group provides expertise and methodology in assessing whether value for money has been achieved in expenditures on electronic data processing and in the evaluation of financial controls in computerized systems within the government. The group has five activities:

    - to provide EDP audit expertise to support the Office's financial audit work; for example, the attest opinion given by the Office on the Government's financial statements and those of some Crown corporations, and the assessment of the adequacy of financial controls in EDP-based systems in the government;
    - to provide facilities and expertise to the Office in the areas of sampling methodology and computer audit software;
    - to provide the value-for-money component for EDP management matters in departmental and government-wide audits;
    - to identify and carry out investigations of suitable government-wide topics in the field of EDP; and
    - to provide support to microcomputers used in the Office.
15.14 The Efficiency and Capital Projects group provides professional specialist advice and assistance to audit teams. This is achieved by ensuring that qualified staff are assigned to audits, maintaining an inventory of consultants capable of providing necessary services, providing functional guidance during the audit, and performing a quality control function. The group develops approaches to auditing efficiency and productivity in the government environment. In addition, the group provides expertise in the specific area of capital projects, assisting in the fulfilment of the Auditor General's commitment to audit such projects whenever the cost exceeds $ 100 million.

15.15 The Effectiveness Audit group is responsible for advising and assisting audit teams to assess the degree to which departments and agencies have satisfactory procedures in place to measure and report on the effectiveness of their programs. This is done in two ways: the staff of the group carry out audit work on effectiveness as members of audit teams; or, when necessary, the group will ensure that qualified consultants are supplied to the audit. Additionally, the group is responsible for quality control on all effectiveness audit work done by the Office, for developing and publishing effectiveness audit methodology, and for planning, conducting, and reporting government-wide audits of effectiveness measurement and reporting.

15.16 The Federal Government Reporting group is responsible for auditing the Public Accounts, for audit work related to Part IIIs of the Estimates, and matters involving the government's reporting of financial information. At present, the group is specifically responsible for the Federal Government Reporting Study.

15.17 The Human Resource Management group addresses value-for-money issues in the management of human resources in government departments and agencies. Its responsibilities include developing audit techniques and methodology and conducting government-wide studies that address service-wide management issues including central agency policies and directives, their impact on departmental and agency operations and departmental human resource management practices. The group also provides staff or consultants, functional direction and quality control to the human resource management components of audits. As an integral part of the comprehensive audit, the work examines human resource management controls and systems and their impact on the entity's capacity to deliver its programs.

15.18 The Planning and Co-ordination group is responsible for strategic and operational planning and for management services in the Audit Operations Branch. The group's major responsibility is to develop the planning, budgeting, organizational and administrative framework for Audit Operations.

15.19 The Regional Office Audit groups are, to a large extent, stand-alone operations. The groups represent the Auditor General in a regional environment. They plan, conduct and report on audits of entities with head offices in their respective regions and also contribute to the development of national audit plans for decentralized departments, agencies and Crown corporations. As well, they participate in departmental and government-wide audits and other studies.

15.20 The Audit Operations Branch consists of approximately 350 auditors, together with support staff. It accounts for about 63 per cent of the Office's human resources. Its staff is employed in Ottawa and in regional offices in Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Regina, Edmonton and Vancouver.

15.21 The Branch is responsible for auditing over 150 entities, covering the 10 major expenditure areas. During the year ended 31 March 1984, the Branch also performed the audits necessary for the Auditor General to express an opinion, as either the auditor or joint auditor, on the accounts of a number agency and proprietary Crown corporations, in accordance with section 77 of the Financial Administration Act, and of departmental Crown corporations and other entities. In addition, the Branch audits the accounts of the Governments of Yukon and the Northwest Territories and their agencies. As well, it performs the audit required by the Auditor General in his capacity as the external auditor of the International Civil Aviation Organization.

15.22 Audit Operations is responsible for the audit assignments of students on the staff who are enrolled in programs leading to the designation of Chartered Accountant, Certified General Accountant or Registered Industrial Accountant. During these assignments, students receive the practical experience needed to meet requirements for professional accreditation.

15.23 Audit Operations staff are regularly called on to participate in special projects. These include international audits, development of audit methodology, financial and administrative tasks, and professional development courses.

Professional Services

15.24 The Office re-organization brought together into the Professional Services Branch certain activities which support the work of Audit Operations. These include editing and producing the annual Report, liasing with Parliament, communicating internally and externally, and providing professional and career development. Professional Services is also involved in establishing audit policies, developing methodology, carrying out ongoing research, and maintaining the Office's Library.

15.25 The Reports group is responsible for editing and producing reports to Parliament and for providing reporting guidelines to audit teams and editorial advice to staff writing material for internal and external distribution. The annual Report of the Auditor General to the House of Commons is the principal product of the Office and is subject to central review, edit and technical verification by the Reports group.

15.26 The Parliamentary Liaison group co-ordinates the Office's relations with Parliament and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the House of Commons. This involves preparing for PAC hearings and assisting Committee members and staff. The group also helps ensure that reports to Parliament meet the information needs of PAC members as they fulfil their responsibility of overseeing the expenditure of public funds.

15.27 The Public Affairs and Communications Advisory groups are responsible for the Office's internal and external communications. These include relations with the media, responding to inquiries from the public, and producing Office publications. A recent initiative has been the production and publication of the Office's bi-monthly magazine, Opinions.

15.28 The responsibilities of the Career and Professional Development group include designing, developing and delivering training and development courses for all Office staff in both official languages, and providing assistance in career planning and related counselling services. During the year, the group provided some 2,354 training days internally and 957 training days in courses outside the Office. There were 38 in-house training courses for professional and administrative staff. The group is also responsible for the Office's integrated career planning and development policy.

15.29 The Professional Practices group is responsible for developing and maintaining auditing policies, managing auditing methodology development, and conducting auditing research. During the year, the group has developed and published six Audit Guides dealing with auditing electronic data processing, auditing the planning function, and auditing the Public Accounts, among others. Several Accounting and Auditing Bulletins were also published. The Bulletins are designed to keep staff up to date on accounting and auditing matters. This methodology is shared with other legislative auditors in Canada and around the world. Auditing policies and procedures are assessed periodically with resulting changes communicated to staff, and auditing research is conducted to develop ways to improve audits. One of the group's major projects, nearing completion, is an extensive revision of the Office's Comprehensive Auditing Manual.

15.30 The Professional Services Branch is responsible for a number of matters of direct personal concern to the Auditor General. These include legal matters, relations with provincial Auditors General and relations with institutes and associations in the accounting and management consulting professions. The Branch also looks after the international activities of the Office. These are described in more detail later in this chapter.

15.31 The Library contains a collection of auditing and accounting material, Canadian parliamentary and government documents and publications, federal and provincial reports, and national and international publications and periodicals in fields related to the Office's mandate and responsibilities. The Library also has a computerized literature searching capability and, through contracts with five major data base vendors, access is available to well over 200 data bases covering all major fields in the social sciences, sciences and arts. The Auditor General encourages the use of the Library by private sector accounting and auditing firms engaged in auditing Crown-owned entities.

Administrative Services

15.32 The Administrative Services Branch provides all other central support services in the Office. It is responsible for and provides advice on working with applicable administrative, contracting, financial, official languages and personnel policies. Its services are offered through five groups.

15.33 The Administration group provides support services including mail and messenger, office supplies and equipment, file maintenance, word processing, audio-visual, graphics, accommodation, telecommunications, receptionists and security personnel.

15.34 The Contract Administration group negotiates and monitors all contracts for engaging people from the private sector, including those who are brought into the Office for assignments of up to two years under the Public Service Commission's Interchange Canada program.

15.35 The Comptroller's group is responsible for, and provides advice on, the financial planning and reporting of the Office's resource requirements, providing electronic data processing services and systems development, and establishing procedures, systems and controls for managing the financial administration activities of the Office.

15.36 The Personnel group develops and administers personnel policies, practices and programs. These include staffing, classification, compensation and benefits, staff relations and human resource planning. From time to time, this group also assists the Office in government-wide audits of human resource management.

15.37 The Official Languages group advises senior management on interpretation of government official languages policies as they apply to the Office and develops and implements the Office's official languages policies and programs.

Program Evaluation and Internal Audit

15.38 The Program Evaluation and Internal Audit function reports direct to the Auditor General.

15.39 Program Evaluation examines the effectiveness of the Office's work in terms of its usefulness in assisting the House of Commons in the scrutiny of government programs, revenues and expenditures. The evaluation involves analysing the use made of the annual Report by the Public Accounts Committee and other Committees of the House. As well, periodic interviews are held with Members of Parliament to obtain their views on the usefulness of the information provided in the annual Report and to solicit suggestions on how the Report could be improved. Finally, post-audit quality review is carried out to ensure that the work of the Office meets the highest professional standards.

15.40 Internal Audit assesses the economy, efficiency and effectiveness of the Office's internal management policies, practices and controls.

Advisers to the Auditor General

15.41 The Panel of Senior Advisers counsels the Auditor General on the application of comprehensive auditing, with particular emphasis on public sector corporate entities. Members of the Panel are:

Kenneth G. Belbeck, F.M.C., President, Thorne Stevenson & Kellogg, Toronto

H. Marcel Caron, F.C.A., Associate, Clarkson Gordon, Montreal

Warren Chippindale, F.C.A., Chairman & Chief Executive Partner, Coopers & Lybrand, Toronto

Gordon H. Cowperthwaite, F.C.A., Chairman, Canadian Comprehensive Auditing Foundation, Ottawa

Frank A. Hughes, C.A., Chairman Partner, Campbell Sharp, Toronto

Giles R. Meikle, F.C.A., Senior Partner, Deloitte Haskins & Sells, Toronto

Edward W. Netten, C.A., Managing Partner, Price Waterhouse Associates, Toronto

John Palmer, C.A., Executive Partner, Thorne Riddell, Toronto

Robert M. Rennie, F.C.A., Chairman of the Board, Touche Ross & Co., Montreal

15.42 The Independent Advisory Committee on Government Accounting and Auditing Standards comprises senior representatives of accounting firms, management consulting firms, and the academic community. The Committee reviews major documents such as the opinion and observations on the annual financial statements of the Government and the Office's Comprehensive Auditing Manual and Audit Guides. Members are:

Ronald G. Gage, F.C.A., Partner, Clarkson Gordon, Toronto

James L. Goodfellow, C.A., Partner, Touche Ross & Co., Toronto

John J. Kelly, C.A., Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, Toronto

Patrick D. Lafferty, C.A., Partner, Coopers & Lybrand, Ottawa

Alwyn D. Lloyd, C.A., Senior Partner, Lloyd Courey & Bruneau, Montreal

P. Howard Lyons, F.C.A., Partner, Deloitte Haskins & Sells, Toronto

Michael H. Rayner, F.C.A., Partner, Price Waterhouse Associates, Ottawa

Ronald B. Robinson, F.M.C. Partner Thorne Stevenson & Kellogg Toronto

Professor L.S. Rosen, F.C.A. Faculty of Administrative Studies York University Toronto

William R. Sloan, F.C.A. (Chairman) Partner Arthur Andersen & Co. Ottawa

George L. Stephenson, F.C.A. Partner Thorne Riddell Toronto

Reporting Responsibilities

15.43 Four sections in the Auditor General Act detail the Auditor General's responsibility to report to Parliament. Section 6 requires the Auditor General to express an opinion on the financial statements of the Government of Canada. Section 7 requires the Auditor General to report annually to the House of Commons anything that he considers to be of significance and of a nature that should be brought to its attention. This includes cases where public funds have been expended without due regard to economy or efficiency, or where procedures have not been established to measure and report the effectiveness of programs, where such procedures could appropriately and reasonably be implemented. Section 8 enables the Auditor General to make a special report to the House of Commons on any matter of pressing importance or urgency that, in his opinion, should not be deferred until the annual Report is tabled. Finally, section 11 permits the Auditor General to inquire into and report on matters in response to requests from the Governor in Council.

Public Accounts Committee

15.44 Following the tabling of the annual Report by the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Report is referred for more detailed study to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). In connection with the 1983 Report, the Auditor General, together with members of his staff, attended 14 PAC meetings.

15.45 In addition, the Auditor General appeared four times before the Committee on Miscellaneous Estimates and was also a witness at the Senate Committee on National Finance.

International Activities

15.46 Canada has acquired a wide reputation in public sector auditing that is recognized by countries and organizations around the world. The Office's work is also well known and respected by the Internal Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), where the Auditor General serves on the governing board; the United Nations, where Canada is on the Panel of External Auditors and the Auditor General of Canada is chairman; NATO, where we have a representative on the Board of Audit; and the association of Commonwealth Auditors General.

15.47 Since 1982, the Office has been involved in an international effort with CIDA, the United Nations and the Peoples' Republic of China to assist the Peoples' Republic in developing the legislative audit function called for in its new constitution. In May 1984, the Office received a delegation of seven senior auditors from the Peoples' Republic, headed by Madam Qi Tian, Deputy Auditor General. In addition to intensive training and discussion sessions in the Office, the delegation met with parliamentarians and visited a number of other organizations.

15.48 The Office continues to be involved in international assignments. Canadian auditors are working with the Asian Development Bank in Manila, the NATO Board of Audit in Brussels, and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, in Addis Ababa. In 1983-84, the Office entered into an exchange with the National Audit Office of the United Kingdom; a senior auditor of that Department worked in the Office of the Auditor General in Ottawa while one of the Office's Principals worked for the year in London.

15.49 The Office helps to support the international community through the International Audit Office Assistance Program. Announced in the United Nations in the fall of 1979, the program is designed to help auditors from developing nations upgrade their public sector auditing skills and techniques, especially through the practice of value-for-money auditing. The program is a Canadian initiative, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency and administered by the Canadian Comprehensive Auditing Foundation. There is a training component and a fellowship program.

15.50 Through the training arm of the program, a seminar on Comprehensive Auditing was presented in Tunis for French-speaking countries that are members of ARABOSAI, the Arab region of the International Organization of Supreme Auditing Institutions.

15.51 The fellowship component of the program provides one-year assignments in the Audit Office for senior auditors from around the world. To fellowship graduates from Chile, Colombia, Ghana, Kenya, Malaysia, Nepal, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, Tanzania, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago were added this year's graduates from Belize, Dominica, Indonesia, Jamaica, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peoples' Republic of China, Tanzania and Uganda. The 1984-85 fellows are from Brazil, Kenya, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Sri Lanka and Trinidad and Tobago.

15.52 The program is achievement oriented, extending beyond formal and on-the-job training experience into follow-up by Canadian advisers when Fellows return home to apply their newly acquired expertise.

15.53 Among recent international visitors to the Office have been:

    - Miguel Rico, Auditor General of Mexico;
    - Hugh Marsh, Chairman of the Board of the International Institute of Internal Auditors;
    - The Rt. Hon. Peter Rees, P.C., Q.C., M.P., Chief Secretary to the Treasury, United Kingdom;
    - J.R.P. Dumas and Gordon Draper of the Public Service Review Task Force of Trinidad and Tobago;
    - Madam Qi Tian, Deputy Auditor General of the Peoples' Republic of China;
    - Jack O'Donnell, Auditor General of New South Wales;
    - A.O. Osoba, Auditor General of Nigeria;
    - B.H.C. Tyler, Controller and Auditor General of New Zealand.

The Canadian Comprehensive Auditing Foundation

15.54 The Office continues to be a major contributor to the activities of the Canadian Comprehensive Auditing Foundation. The Foundation is a national non-profit organization, established to encourage the development of methodology and professional development programs in comprehensive auditing. An association of public and private sector auditors, accountants and management consultants, international auditors in the public and private sectors, and academics, the Foundation operates as a co-operative agency for audit research and as a forum for exchanging and disseminating information among members. Members of the Foundation include institutions and professional organizations such as legislative audit offices, government and private sector internal audit groups, public accounting and management consulting firms, individuals and corporations. The Foundation is financed by contributions from the federal and provincial legislative audit offices and by fees paid by the various sustaining, subscribing and individual members.

Canadian Conference of Legislative Auditors

15.55 The Office maintains an active role in the Canadian Conference of Legislative Auditors, attended each year by the federal and provincial auditors, together with their deputies and the chairpersons of provincial and territorial public accounts committees. The Conference, held in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island in 1984, plays an important part in improving governmental accountability in Canada.

Human Resources

15.56 The growing complexity of government operations, the sophistication of modern accounting systems and audit techniques and the changing and expanding responsibilities of the Audit Office require a skilled staff of high quality. The Office recruits and develops highly qualified people in accounting and auditing. In addition, the special requirements of comprehensive audits and government-wide studies require professionals drawn from a variety of other fields and disciplines, including engineering, sociology, economics and political science.

15.57 The following table presents a profile of the full-time staff of the Office.

31 March
1984

31 March
1983

Principals 69 59
Directors and Managers 103 105
Supervisors and Auditors

154

146

Other audit staff 62 68
Administrative support staff 186 158

574

536

National Capital Region

475

441

Other Regions

99

95

574

536


15.58 The Office continues to make use of private-sector professionals on personal service contracts or through the Public Service Commission's Interchange Canada program. These professionals provide the Office with specialized knowledge and experience not required on a full-time basis. Over the years, the Office has found this assistance to be cost-effective with benefits for both the private-sector professionals and the Office staff. As of 31 March 1984, the Office had 10 participants under the Interchange Canada program and 257 persons engaged under personal services contracts. During the year, private-sector individuals provided about 74 person-years of professional service.

Women in the Office

15.59 The Office continues to move closer to fulfilling its equal opportunity goal, set out in 1977, "...to provide career opportunities which are equally available to women and men throughout our organization to ensure that, within a reasonable period of time, representation of male and female employees of the Office approximates the proportion of qualified and interested persons of both sexes by occupational group and level."

15.60 During 1983-84, 80 persons were hired into the Office; 35, or 44 per cent, were women. Of 18 students-in-accounts recruited, 10 were women. Throughout the Office, 99 people were promoted. Of these, 52 were women, 28 in the professional categories, 24 in support groups. Fifteen women were appointed to permanent positions from term. Twenty-two women progressed in the Students-in-Accounts Program.

Official Languages

15.61 The Auditor General's objective of having a fully functional bilingual Office moved substantially closer during the year. Ninety employees participated in the Office's in-house French language training and development workshops; seven were completing full-time training; three were enrolled in the Public Service Commission's evening courses; and three were participating in other intensive language sessions. The Language Knowledge Examination was administered to 58 staff members. In English-language training three employees were enrolled in intensive programs and four in part-time studies.

15.62 The Commissioner of Official Languages reported that

in 1983 the Office of the Auditor General of Canada consolidated a number of the gains noted in our last Report. It increased its capacity to serve the public and its client departments in their preferred language, raised the number of senior positions that require bilingual capability and mounted a comprehensive language-training program. However, it was less successful in correcting the perpetual problem of low francophone representation in the executive ranks. Professional development courses are offered in English and French. Staff are encouraged to use either language at meetings and have the option of working in French in the two headquarters units set up for that purpose. The performance review process, which so far has not taken employees' linguistic preferences into account, is currently under study. Overall the participation rates of the two language groups remain constant (70 per cent anglophone, 30 per cent francophone). The Office's efforts to increase francophone participation through recruitment have been successful: 35 per cent of the 109 new employees in 1983 were francophones.

Employment for the Handicapped

15.63 It is the policy of the Office of the Auditor General to provide to handicapped persons equal access to employment and career development, according to the skills and abilities of individuals, in positions for which they are considered to be qualified, and to ensure that any barriers to such access, whether procedural, attitudinal or physical, are eliminated. During the 1983-84 fiscal year, action was under way to ensure that all handicapped employees in the Office have access to or are provided with services and/or equipment to facilitate the conduct of their duties. To achieve this objective, the help of all currently employed handicapped persons in the Office was sought to determine the types of assistance required and to provide it.

Deaths and Retirements

15.64 During the year, the Office was saddened by the deaths of Marcel Ferland, Deputy Auditor General, who served in the Office for 7 years; and Keith Abel, who had served as an Audit Supervisor for 11 years.

15.65 Members of the Audit Office retiring in the year ended 31 March 1984 (with their length of public service) included:

    - Frank Matthews, Audit Director (19 years);
    - Stanley M. Toporowski, Senior Auditor (21 years);
    - Ian Buzza, Director (23 years); and
    - William Yusak, Audit Director (36 years).

Technical Resources

15.66 The nature of auditing is changing. Whether in the public or private sector, computer-assisted auditing is an essential tool. Microcomputers are now extensively used by auditors throughout the Office. As well, the Career and Professional Development group provides a number of training sessions in the application of electronic data processing to audit activities.

15.67 The Computer Audit group is linked to a large service bureau for our work in Computer Assisted Audit Techniques (CAAT). About half the Office's CAAT work is done through this service bureau, with the remainder being done on large departmental computers.

15.68 A minicomputer system is used in the complex task of deploying the staff of the Office economically, efficiently and effectively. In addition to supporting time reporting and contracts, the system processes the Office's priority resource allocation and management system and the career and professional development management information system.

15.69 The demands of producing the annual Report and the other reports of the Office have resulted in the development of a sophisticated word processing capability. Word processing at Head Office is done in both central and decentralized areas. Text processing is provided by work stations connected by local area network to a laser printer, resulting in a sophisticated and powerful graphics preparation and text integration capability which permits, for example, the complete text processing of the annual Report, the Comprehensive Auditing Manual and Audit Guides. Word processors in the Montreal and Edmonton offices transmit and receive documents, improving the communication capability between Head Office and the regions.

Financial Resources

15.70 Exhibit 15.3 sets out the appropriations and expenditures of the Office, by activity and by object.

(Exhibit not available)

15.71 The actual expenditures by the Office, in relation to the financial transactions of the government that the Office audits, continue to show a decline: see Exhibit 15.4.

(Exhibit not available)

15.72 The value of being audited, contrasted with the Office's expenditure, represents both a timely reminder of the immensity of federal government financial activity and the value for money provided by the Audit Office in helping to ensure the accountability of the Government.