Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I thank the Auditor General and her staff for being here.
As this is being televised.... The Auditor General is always a mystery to the public. They know about the office, and they know that “Madam” Fraser is a she. They know that the Auditor General reviews the books and shows the accountability and transparency. They know that her office conducts financial audits, value-for-money, performance audits, etc. They rely on the Auditor General to provide assurance that taxpayer dollars are being properly utilized. But sometimes they want to know who's minding the minder.
For the benefit of the public, and I guess for the benefit of everyone--I'm sure that not everybody will read the performance reports and the estimates--how is the Office of the Auditor General held accountable? Who assesses their methodologies?
The reason I ask is that there are new accounting reporting standards, international financial reporting standards. So I have a number of questions.
First, how would that affect your reporting of government books--or would it affect the government? Second, on the funding that the AG's office receives, which is about $86 million, who audits or reviews the funding and its applicability? Third, how does your work add value not only to the Government of Canada and its agencies, boards, and commissions, but also on an international basis? Moving forward, what are some of the challenges that the AG's office faces that need to be addressed in its own shop so that it can be more effective, efficient, etc.?
I'm sure that will take all of my seven minutes.