Good afternoon, colleagues.
This is meeting 90 of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts for Thursday, March 22, 2018.
Today we are here to consider “Report 4: Oral Health Programs for First Nations and Inuit—Health Canada” of the fall 2017 reports of the Auditor General of Canada.
I would remind all of our guests as well as members of our committee and those in the audience today that we are televised.
I welcome our witnesses today. We have the Auditor General of Canada, Mr. Michael Ferguson. Welcome back. As well, from the Office of the Auditor General, we have Jo Ann Schwartz, Principal. Welcome to you.
From the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, we have Jean-François Tremblay, Deputy Minister; Sony Perron, Associate Deputy Minister; David Peckham, Chief Audit and Evaluation Executive, Audit and Evaluation Sector; as well as Marc Plante, Manager, Dental Policy, First Nations and Inuit health Branch.
Colleagues, I would like to point out that when this audit was undertaken by the Office of the Auditor General, the authority and responsibility for first nation and Inuit oral health programs fell under the purview of the first nations and Inuit health branch within Health Canada. Due to an order in council dated November 30, 2017, it is now under the purview of the Department of Indigenous Services Canada, and thus the reason we have officials from the Department of Indian and Northern Development here as opposed to from Health Canada.
We welcome our guests today. I open the floor and turn it to Mr. Ferguson, our Auditor General.
Welcome.