Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Accountability is germane to public administration. In the Financial Administration Act, designating the deputy head as the accounting officer, it also means that the accounting officer is accountable for the various results and performance of the organization he or she leads. That individual relies significantly on the chief financial officer in terms of being able to provide the information so that indeed the accounting officer can be held accountable. Hence, the linkage is there to support the broader accountability.
The other aspect is that without good financial reporting it is difficult to see what the results are, and it would be difficult to generally hold that organization accountable for the resources that have been vested with it.