Opening Statement before the Standing Committee on Public Accounts of the Yukon Legislative Assembly

Report of the Auditor General of Canada on the 2023–24 Consolidated Financial Statements of the Government of Yukon

14 January 2025

Karen Hogan, Fellow Chartered Professional AccountantFCPA
Auditor General of Canada

Mr. Chair, thank you for the opportunity to discuss our audit of the consolidated financial statements of the Government of Yukon for the 2023–24 fiscal year. I would like to respectfully acknowledge all Yukon First Nations and acknowledge that the committee meets on the traditional territories of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council. I am accompanied by Lana Dar, who was the principal responsible for the audit.

As the Government of Yukon’s independent financial auditor, our responsibility is to audit the government’s consolidated financial statements and express an opinion on them. We also audit and report on the government’s compliance with specified authorities.

The Yukon Public Accounts, which includes the consolidated financial statements, is a key government accountability document that can help legislative assembly members understand the results of the government’s financial transactions. Therefore, our audit of the consolidated financial statements supports the legislative assembly’s oversight of the government, promotes transparency, and encourages good financial management.

The committee’s review of the Public Accounts is an important step in ensuring accountability for how public funds are spent and how government finances are reported.

The government’s consolidated financial statements are prepared by the Office of the Comptroller in the Department of Finance. The Deputy Minister of Finance and the Comptroller will answer questions about the financial statements. We will focus on the results of our audit.

Our independent auditor’s report is on pages 29 to 32 of Part 2 of the Yukon Public Accounts. We issued an unmodified audit opinion on the consolidated financial statements. This means that they conform in all material respects with the Canadian public sector accounting standards, so you can rely on the information provided in these statements.

The 2023–24 financial statements were tabled on 24 October 2024. The government therefore met its statutory deadline for tabling the Yukon Public Accounts. However, we identified opportunities for management to improve the efficiency and timeliness of completing the financial statements.

I would like to thank the Deputy Minister of Finance, the Comptroller, and the staff of the departments and territorial corporations who were involved in preparing the government’s consolidated financial statements.

Mr. Chair, this concludes my opening remarks. We would be pleased to answer any questions the committee may have. Thank you.