Public Accounts committee  No, not really, other than the fact that the demand to audit all COVID-19-related programs is immense. For this reason, our response to the motion will be phased over several years.

Public Accounts committee  I believe we will try to deliver some in May as well, but it is very difficult for me to give the exact number. There will certainly be some later in the year. I can get back to you on that, if you want, but I know that there will also be audits related to COVID-19 in 2022 and 2023.

Public Accounts committee  Are you talking about reports you should be studying?

Public Accounts committee  Thank you for the question. I may turn to Kim Leblanc at some point, if she should want to add to this, if I forget a few of the things in the concrete actions we're taking to focus on outcomes. We look at our employment equity distribution. In my mind it is just the minimum that we need to meet.

Public Accounts committee  The answer is not simple, but I will try to answer your question in a satisfactory manner. To address the motion, we would have to look at all the programs that the government has put in place in response to the pandemic. As I mentioned before, it is almost impossible to meet this request.

Public Accounts committee  It would be to study our reports and have a little patience. We're going to get our funding, and we've already hired almost 100 people this year. It's not just new employees, because you have to factor in the usual staff turnover. We are in the process of onboarding them and training them.

Public Accounts committee  Yes and no. Honestly, it depends on the departments and how committed they are to the pandemic response. There are certainly some delays in getting information out. As I mentioned earlier, there are only 24 hours in a day, and a lot of people in the departments are very busy. From time to time, audits that we would like to complete have to be pushed back.

Public Accounts committee  I worked very hard with my executive team, after lots of consultations and discussions with all of our people across the office, to make sure that our vision spoke to people. I think it addresses what I've been telling this committee for a while, that I want to modernize not just our processes but also how we work and how we interact, and that's why breaking down some of the audits into smaller pieces is one of those things we have to see working to see how it goes.

Public Accounts committee  Coming up with that percentage is a little complicated, so I want to talk about a few things that are in it. It includes all the reports that we will table in the House. A few years ago we started to table all of our special examinations of Crown corporations so that they would be available if a parliamentary committee wanted to study them.

Public Accounts committee  Thank you very much. I agree with you. We spend a lot of time, and so do the departments and entities we audit, and we want to make sure that we make a change that improves programs in the lives of Canadians. We have a few options, and we follow them up. For example, we have this new product that I mentioned that we're going to be putting together that will look at certain measures in some of our audits.

Public Accounts committee  I'm very happy that we're all willing to try something new, because I think that's what we should do. I'm here for 10 years to help serve Parliament, and I want to make sure that I'm meeting your needs. It's definitely something I want to engage in with all of you. From a vaccine perspective, there will be nothing tabled in March.

Public Accounts committee  The chief information officer of Canada has a digital strategy; the federal government has a digitization strategy, and I think everyone's going on that journey. The pandemic has forced a lot of us to take steps faster than we would have done. I think that's a positive, and we need to keep building on that.

Public Accounts committee  Thank you very much for that question. I feel like you have been sitting with me when I talk to all the people in our office. We have to look at the process, absolutely, and we need to help improve that, but we should keep our eye on the outcomes. A part of how I hope to accomplish that is by breaking down some of the audits.

Public Accounts committee  Thank you, Madam Chair. We are pleased to have this opportunity to discuss the work of our office, including our most recent departmental reports. With me today are Andrew Hayes, deputy auditor general; Hélène Haddad, principal responsible for financial management; and Kimberly Leblanc, principal responsible for human resources.

Public Accounts committee  We did not consider this aspect. However, in a previous audit, we found that the yards were selected through an open process, and Davie was determined to be an eligible provider. I don't think I can answer the question further.