Standing Committee on Public Accounts

Comité permanent des comptes publics

For immediate release

Ottawa, March 25, 2021 -

The Government of Canada received its 22nd consecutive unmodified audit opinion from the Auditor General of Canada, which attests that it properly reported its overall financial performance for the 2019–2020 fiscal year to Parliament and to Canadians, according to a report of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Accounts (the Committee) presented today by Kelly Block, Chair of the Committee.

The Public Accounts of Canada 2019-2020 were tabled on 30 November 2020. They present the consolidated financial statements of the Government of Canada and provide information about revenues, expenditures, budgetary balance, liabilities, assets and accumulated deficit.

Concurrently, the Office of the Auditor General of Canada presented for the fifth consecutive year its Commentary on the Financial Audits, including the Auditor General’s Observations, formerly a part of the Public Accounts of Canada. This year, the Observations mainly focused on the three subjects: the transformation of pay administration (including the Phoenix system’s problems); the Department of National Defence’s inventory (including its recent progress therein); and payments made from the Department of Finance Canada.

Furthermore, in this report, the Committee has made one recommendation to the Government of Canada to improve the public accounts.

The Committee wishes to thank all those involved in the preparation and audit of the Public Accounts of Canada 2019-2020, during difficult circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic.