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Reports of Standing and Special Committees Hunter Tootoo, MLA

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Reports of Standing and Special Committees Hunter Tootoo, MLA Item 11: Reports of Standing and Special Committees Hunter Tootoo, MLA Chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Accountability Report on the Review of the 2007 Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut on the Financial Assistance for Nunavut Students (FANS) Program 4th Session of the 2nd Legislative Assembly November 2007 Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have the honour today of presenting the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Accountability’s report on its review of the 2007 Report of the Auditor General of Canada to the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut on the Financial Assistance for Nunavut Students Program. As you will recall, Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General’s Report on the FANS Program was tabled in the House on June 6, 2007. The Standing Committee held its hearings on the report on June 13 and 14 of this year. As is the practice of the Standing Committee, these hearings were open to the public and news media to observe. In the interest of maximum public transparency, the transcripts from the Standing Committee’s hearings were subsequently posted to the Legislative Assembly’s website in both Inuktitut and English. Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General’s 2006 annual report to the Legislative Assembly made important observations concerning the need for education and training programs to develop our future accountants and financial management professionals. The Standing Committee viewed her report on the FANS Program as being timely. The report on the FANS Program constituted the Auditor General’s first stand- alone report to our Legislative Assembly that provides a performance audit of a specific GN program. The Standing Committee was pleased to have had the opportunity to scrutinize the Auditor General’s findings and recommendations concerning this important program. The Standing Committee looks forward to holding public hearings on the reports of the Auditor General on her office’s performance audits of the Nunavut Business Credit Corporation and the Department of Health and Social Services. Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General’s 2007 Report on the FANS Program contained thirteen specific recommendations for improvements to the management of the program. These recommendations addressed the following areas: • Program governance; • Assessment of applications and issuing of benefits; • Financial and management controls; • Information and management systems; • Management of student loans; and • Measurement, reporting and use of program results. The Standing Committee was pleased to note that the Department of Education agreed with all of the Auditor General’s recommendations. Mr. Speaker, every report of the Auditor General to the Legislative Assembly has been referred to a Standing Committee for review. Witnesses from appropriate GN departments have been invited to appear in public before the Committee to account for the government’s responses to the Auditor General’s recommendations and the concerns of MLAs. The quality of the government’s responses has varied considerably over the years, as has its performance in taking action to address the recommendations of both the Auditor General and the Standing Committee. As a result, the Standing Committee, in its 2006 report to the Legislative Assembly, began the practice of providing a detailed status report on the government’s actions in response to outstanding issues. This practice will continue. Mr. Speaker, Members of the Standing Committee were pleased with the Department of Education’s willingness to acknowledge the need for improvements to the administration of the FANS Program and to present a detailed action plan to address the issues raised in the Auditor General’s report. 2 At the appropriate time, I will be formally tabling copies of the materials provided by the department at the request of the Standing Committee, including follow-up information that Members received in August of this year. I would also add that the Standing Committee has taken careful note of the Minister of Education’s Statement to the House of October 29, 2007, on progress achieved by the department in addressing the recommendations contained in the performance audit. Mr. Speaker, a number of themes and priorities for future action have emerged during the Standing Committee’s review of the issues raised in the Auditor General’s report. The Standing Committee recommends that the department address the following areas: • The importance of ensuring that the department works to ensure that benefits under the FANS Program are provided to students in a timely manner. While the Standing Committee recognizes that students have a responsibility to ensure that they submit their applications in accordance with established deadlines, Members continue to hear concerns from students and other stakeholders with respect to late payments and problems with travel arrangements, especially for students attending post-secondary institutions outside of the territory. The department should regularly survey its clients on their satisfaction with the program. • The importance of periodically reviewing the eligibility criteria for receiving FANS and the benefits provided under the program. For example, it remains unclear whether students enrolling in the GN’s Cultural School will be eligible to receive FANS benefits. The issue of benefits for students enrolled in Adult Basic Education programs also remains a concern, as is the issue of benefits for students enrolling in the GN’s Trades School. The department must report the results of its review, including cost implications, to the Legislative Assembly in a clear and candid manner. • The importance of examining the feasibility of establishing separate funding programs for students enrolled in courses of study that grant professional accreditation in such areas as nursing, education, engineering and accountancy. • The importance of preparing and tabling an annual report in the Legislative Assembly on the administration of the FANS Program that includes meaningful performance measures of how well the program is achieving its objectives. 3 Mr. Speaker, as I noted earlier, the Standing Committee held its hearings on the Auditor General’s report in June of 2007. The Standing Committee recommends that the Minister table a comprehensive update on his department’s progress in implementing the recommendations in the Auditor General’s report and the recommendations of the Standing Committee in this report during the 2008 spring sitting of the Legislative Assembly. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Rule 91(5), the Standing Committee formally requests that the government present a comprehensive response to this report within 120 days. With that, I move that the report of the Standing Committee be received by the House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. 4.
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