Good afternoon, everyone. This is meeting number 51 of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Wednesday, April 5, 2017.
I will remind everyone that we are televised today, so we should mute our telephones and communications devices. I will also mention to our viewers, our audience, and our guests today that bells are ringing, and we will be interrupted. In about 20 minutes, we will have to leave and go for a vote.
Today, we're holding a hearing on the government's main estimates for the years 2017-18, vote 1 under the Office of the Auditor General. As well, we're considering the report on plans and priorities for the years 2017-18 of the Office of the Auditor General, and finally, the performance report of the Office of the Auditor General for the years 2015-16.
We're joined by officials of the Office of the Auditor General, Michael Ferguson, our Auditor General; Sylvain Ricard, assistant auditor general, corporate services, and chief financial officer; Susan Seally, principal, human resources; and Ronald Bergin, principal, strategic planning.
I will invite you to give us your statements. I'm told by the clerk that I need unanimous consent to begin, and I see that we have that. We welcome you and your statement today, sir.