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Auditor General Backgrounder

This section provides background on the purpose, history, position and responsibilities of the Office of the Auditor General of Canada.

• Auditor General of Canada Website – About Us
• Auditor General of Canada Website – What We Do

Purpose of the Auditor General

The Office of the Auditor General helps Parliament hold the government (the prime minister and cabinet) accountable for its management of public funds.

The government is not given free reign with regards to public funds. The government must obtain permission from Parliament before it can collect or spend money. Furthermore, it is obligated to report to and be held accountable by Parliament for how it manages that money. As part of this obligation, the government provides financial documents to Parliament every year. These statements include the Estimates (or annual spending plans of all departments), reports on department activity over the past year, and the annual financial statements showing all federal spending, borrowing and taxing, known as the Public Accounts of Canada.

The Office of the Auditor General reviews these financial documents and provides impartial assessments of them to Parliament. This allows Parliament to effectively assess the government's performance and to gain assurances that the information provided by the government accurately reflects its activities.

Position of the Auditor General

The Auditor General is appointed for a 10-year period. The position is independent of the government of the day--similar to the same way the judiciary is independent of the government. This protects against government interference with the Auditor General and thus maintain s Office impartiality. The Auditor General has the freedom to recruit his or her own staff and set terms and conditions of their employment. The Auditor General has the right to ask the government for any information necessary for fulfilling the mandate of the Office.

The current Auditor General of Canada is Sheila Fraser. She was appointed to the position in 2001. She has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University. Mrs. Fraser became a Chartered Accountant in 1974 and a FCA in 1994. Before becoming Auditor General, Mrs. Fraser practiced with the accounting firm Ernst & Young, becoming a partner in 1981.

Full Shelia Fraser Biography

History of the Auditor General

• 1878 – Parliament appoints the first independent Auditor General of Canada. Responsibilities included examining and reporting on past transactions and approving or rejecting the issue of government cheques.
• 1931 – Parliament transfers responsibilities for issuing cheques to the Comptroller (Comptroller?) of the Treasury. The Auditor General becomes responsible for examining and reporting on how the government handles public funds.
• 1950s – The work of the Auditor General moves in its current direction. The Auditor General begins to report on “non-productive payments” or transactions that provide no apparent benefits to Canadians.
• 1977 – Parliament introduces the Auditor General Act to clarify and expand the responsibilities of the Auditor General. In addition to examining the accuracy of financial statements, the Auditor General was given a broader mandate to examine how well the government managed its affairs.
• 1994 –Parliament amends the Auditor General Act to provide for the production of up to three reports per year in addition to the annual Report.

Responsibilities of the Auditor General

In examining government's management of public monies, the Auditor General addresses three main questions:

• Is the government keeping proper accounts and records and presenting its financial information accurately? The Auditor General examines whether the documents provided by the government reflect actual government activities.

• Did the government collect or spend the authorized amount of money and for the purposes intended by Parliament? The auditor examines whether the government has complied with the wishes of Parliament.

• Were programs run economically and efficiently? Does the government have the means to measure their effectiveness? The auditor examines whether or not taxpayers got value for their tax dollars.

Reports of the Auditor General

The Office of the Auditor General may produce up to three reports per year in addition to the annual r eport. These reports contain:

• Comprehensive audits of federal departments and agencies, and of issues that cross departmental lines
• Government-wide audits (for example, the use of computers);
• Follow-up reports, which review the actions taken by departments in response to previous audits
• Audit observations, which are significant matters that are not included in any of the above-noted audit reports.

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Sponsorship Program Backgrounder

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This page was last modified: August 10, 2007