Government Operations committee  I think there were a couple of things in there. Yes, the practice we had in New Brunswick was very much an alignment between the budget and the main estimates. But I think you started the question by saying that people have suggested moving the fiscal year-end—

Government Operations committee  I'd have to look at that. I have a hard time understanding moving the fiscal year-end. To me, it just potentially moves all of the problems to different dates.

Government Operations committee  I think I'll answer the question by going back again to my experience in New Brunswick, which is a small province when compared to the complexity of the federal government. In New Brunswick, when we tabled a budget that included an amount of total expenses we also tabled main est

Government Operations committee  Again, it was a surprise to me when I got here and found out that the main estimates are actually done on a different basis from the budget and the financial statements. I see that we've made a recommendation on it: that there should be full accrual budgeting in the main estimate

Government Operations committee  The argument I guess essentially is.... Well, if you start with the financial statements of a government, the financial statements of a government that represent “here's what happened during the year”—so they're backward-looking documents—have to be prepared on an accrual basis.

Government Operations committee  The work we do in the Office of the Auditor General is that we conduct audits. We set an objective and a set of criteria, and then we audit to those. We haven't done an audit of the estimates process and we don't have an audit of the estimates process under way right now. It's no

Government Operations committee  You know, I think we are on record in the office as recommending accrual budgeting: that the main estimates be done on an accrual basis. I understand that there are some complexities to this and that you have to also consider the cash side of the appropriations. We are on record

Government Operations committee  Again, in terms of the details of the mechanisms and the internal workings, it's not something we have done an audit of, so I think it would be the government officials who would have to tell you what those actual processes are. It's not something we've looked at or made a recomm

Government Operations committee  We did an audit that included the G-8 legacy fund, but my understanding is that it didn't include something dealing with those transfers. We did make observations about the G-8 legacy fund, though.

Government Operations committee  Our office has always promoted and will always promote government transparency and accountability. I can't speak to the specific item you're talking about or the response to the government, because it's just not something we have looked at or have audited, but as a general concep

Government Operations committee  Again, it's not something we have done an audit of. As I responded to the earlier questioner, it was a normal practice in New Brunswick on the capital budget side, and we did it once on the operating budget side. On the operating budget side, the advantage, of course, was to ce

Government Operations committee  My recollection in terms of the budget information that was made public was that for the most part it was simply documents available on the Internet and that sort of thing.

Government Operations committee  Again, it's not something we have done significant work on—or done any work on—as to what the right timing is. Anything I would say in response to that would be purely personal. Again, I think the only thing I can really say is that I have seen a budget prepared well in advance o

Government Operations committee  Again, because we just haven't done the work on that, it's not something I can comment on.

Government Operations committee  Well, I can describe to you how it worked in New Brunswick. For the most part, there would have been a vote for a department on ordinary account; there would have been a number of programs within that ordinary account. Each one would have been described in the main estimates. B