DEPARTMENTAL ACTION PLAN

ON

INTEREST-BEARING DEBT

IN RESPONSE TO AUDIT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS CONTAINED IN

CHAPTER 3, “INTEREST-BEARING DEBT OF THE

SPRING 2012 REPORT OF THE AUDITOR GENERAL OF CANADA

PRESENTED BY

THE TREASURY BOARD OF CANADA SECRETARIAT

June 5, 2013


Office of the Auditor General Recommendation

Response

Actions and Timelines

OAG Recommendation 3.62: 

3.62 Recommendation.  Given the magnitude of charges related to the superannuation accounts, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and the Department of Finance Canada should improve the clarity of information on interest charges by separating, in the Estimates, the projected interest charges for the market debt from other interest charges in order to improve transparency.

Response from the Treasury Board  of Canada Secretariat on the OAG recommendation:

Agreed.

The Department of Finance Canada will produce for the Estimates a breakdown of interest and other costs, starting with the 2012–13 Estimates, which the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will publish.

Related actions to be taken by TBS further to the response to the OAG:

Action has been completed. Interest on unmatured debt is presented as a separate line as a statutory item for the Department of Finance beginning in the 2012-13 Main Estimates.

OAG Recommendation 3.72: 

3.72 Recommendation.  The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and the Department of Finance Canada should report, in a consolidated manner, clear and understandable information on the public sector pension plan liabilities (including supporting methodology and assumptions) and should explain their impact on the government’s finances.

Response from the Treasury Board  of Canada Secretariat on the OAG recommendation:

Agreed.

The Public Accounts of Canada is intended to provide clear and understandable summary information on the government’s public sector pension plan liabilities and their impact on the government’s financial results. The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will work with the Department of Finance Canada to look at ways of improving the presentation of public sector pension plan information in the Public Accounts, starting with the 2013 Public Accounts.

Related actions to be taken by TBS further to the response to the OAG:

Proposed changes related to the public sector pension plan information in the Public Accounts have been provided to OSFI, the Department of Finance and OCHRO. Consultation with these stakeholders is currently underway.  The changes will be finalized during the summer 2013 and will be audited by the Office of the Auditor General as part of the annual audit of the consolidated financial statements of the Government of Canada.  The signatories (Comptroller General, Secretary, Deputy Receiver General and Deputy Minister of Finance) will approve the consolidated financial statements by August 2013.  These audited financial statements will be made public once tabled in Parliament no later than December 31, 2013.