Thank you very much, and we appreciate your feedback on the lock-up. We'll always strive to improve that every time we release reports.
I saw the interest in maximizing question time, since we have only an hour. I was asked to give a really quick roll-up, so I will try to do that from scribbled-together notes. Hopefully, it will be a good summary of the opening statement I delivered earlier today.
I will start with our audit on COVID‑19 vaccines.
We found that the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada, supported by Public Services and Procurement Canada, worked together to respond to the urgent and evolving nature of the pandemic.
Health Canada adjusted its usual authorization process to speed up the regulatory approval of COVID‑19 vaccines. Public Services and Procurement Canada secured enough vaccine doses for the provinces and territories to vaccinate everyone who wanted it in Canada.
However, we observed that the Public Health Agency of Canada's efforts to minimize wastage were unsuccessful. Long-standing issues remain with respect to sharing of data, and delays in implementing functionalities of VaccineConnect affected the government's response.
I'll turn next to the audit that we did on specific COVID-19 benefits. In that audit we found that the support programs were effectively delivered by Canada Revenue Agency and Employment and Social Development Canada. The early decision in 2020 to align with international best practices to limit prepayment controls and rely on attestations allowed the government to get support to Canadians and employers quickly while meeting its goal of preventing an increase in poverty and income inequalities and helping the economy bounce back.
The government also knew that in making these decisions there was an increased risk that money would be paid to ineligible recipients. Our audit found that overpayments of $4.6 billion were paid to ineligible individuals. We also estimated that at least $27.4 billion in payments to individuals and employers should be investigated further.
Where it's confirmed that benefits were paid in error, notifications should be sent and amounts recovered. Under the current system, that's what the government is required to do. If it wants to choose a different approach, for example by forgiving some amounts owing, then it needs to be clear and transparent with Canadians.
We would be pleased to answer any questions the committee members may have.