Compilation 4: Auditor General's Report & Related -- Other Articles

List of Articles:

* Fraser blasts Ottawa for drug waste...Auditor-general warns of misuse...Wants government to shop around
* CSL responses 'reasonably complete' -- "nothing more than a simple oversight"
* The High Cost Of Corruption -- Rigged markets, as well as regulation, can hurt growth
* Aboriginal education a well-funded debacle
* A precedent for prosperity -- Does "must consult with aboriginals" mean that aboriginals may stop a major project? Who has the final say?
* Auditor General: Wasted drug costs, misspent native education budget highlight report
* Wasted drug costs, misspent native education budget highlight report -- Fintrac/FINTRAC -- The Auditor General "warned against looking at one problem area and concluding the whole government is off the rails."
* Terror financing agency handcuffed -- Fintrac / FINTRAC
* Time needed to close education gap

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Fraser blasts Ottawa for drug waste...Auditor-general warns of misuse...Wants government to shop around

Fraser blasts Ottawa for drug waste -- Auditor-general warns of misuse Wants government to shop around Rick Westhead and Bruce Campion-Smith, Nov. 24, 04

OTTAWA—The federal government is wasting money — and endangering the lives of some Canadians — by the sloppy way it handles its drug benefit program, Auditor-General Sheila Fraser says.

[. . . . ] She has specifically recommended in previous years that Health Canada give pharmacists key information on recent prescription use by patients.
Noting that narcotics have a "high potential for misuse," her audit found more than 900 people were on two or more different narcotics acquired through different doctors and pharmacies. A few patients were even getting narcotics from seven or more doctors.

"Many patterns were highly suggestive of problematic use, such as drug misuse, addiction and possibly trade or sale," she said in her report.

CSL responses 'reasonably complete' -- "nothing more than a simple oversight"

CSL responses 'reasonably complete' CP, Nov. 23, 2004

OTTAWA -- When federal officials failed to mention a $10 million loan guarantee to a company in which the prime minister once had a financial interest, it was likely nothing more than a simple oversight, says auditor general Sheila Fraser.

[. . . . ] The auditor concluded the government's answers were ''reasonably complete'' given the difficulty of tracking deals that dated back as much as a decade.

She noted that officials overlooked a $10 million loan guarantee to Canarctic Shipping Ltd., which was controlled by Ottawa with a minority interest held by CSL.

[. . . . ] What sparked her investigation was a huge discrepancy between initial government estimates and a later tally of the federal contracts, grants and contributions that went to CSL during the 1990s.

In 2002, the figure provided to Opposition MPs was $137,000. By January 2004, the number had been revised to $161 million.

In the Commons on Tuesday, Conservative James Rajotte called it ''the largest clerical error in Canadian history'' and said taxpayers still don't have a clear picture of the government's interactions with CSL. [. . . . ]

For those of us used to amounts in the range of $10-million or $161-million, perhaps it was "nothing more than a simple oversight"--though we ordinary Canadians wish that we might find out what dealing with those sums is like.




The High Cost Of Corruption -- Rigged markets, as well as regulation, can hurt growth

The High Cost Of Corruption -- Rigged markets, as well as regulation, can hurt growth editorial, Nov. 29, 04 (online)

The cost of regulation is high, but the cost of corruption may be higher. Nov. 15 marked the implementation deadline for a key section of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for companies with fiscal years ending on or after that date. Under Section 404 of the law, publicly traded companies must have new financial monitoring controls in place, certified by auditors. Many chief executives are complaining loudly that implementing "Sox" is costing their companies heavily in time and money. But we should all be indignant at the broader economic "tax" imposed by corporate corruption on America.

Corruption makes markets less efficient, more costly, and less innovative. [. . . . ]

Aboriginal education a well-funded debacle

Aboriginal education a well-funded debacle John Ivison, Nov. 25, 04

A precedent for prosperity -- Does "must consult with aboriginals" mean that aboriginals may stop a major project? Who has the final say?

A precedent for prosperity Bruce Rawson and Jodi White, National Post, Nov. 24, 2004

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled last week that Canadian governments must consult with aboriginals before awarding rights to natural resources on public land being claimed by native bands. The specific case involved Weyerhaeuser Co., which was seeking to log parts of the Queen Charlotte Islands in British Columbia that have been claimed by the Haida.

This case may seem arcane to most Canadians, but it will be a critical factor in determining the feasibility and timeframe of numerous resource projects now under consideration. The Supreme Court decision could well affect the pace of resource development across the country and not just in B.C.

North of 55 degrees, Canada is undergoing a renaissance of resource development. The long-held dream of developing the mid-Canada corridor is within reach. Explosive growth in pipelines, energy, mining and forestry projects is on the horizon. The Mackenzie pipeline and Manitoba Hydro expansion will reap economic benefits for southern Canada as well as the North. More modest projects, particularly in mining and forestry, will have significant regional benefits.

Virtually all of these projects are in areas where one or more Aboriginal communities will be affected. [. . . . ]

There are suggestions for government and aboriginal action in this article.




Auditor General: Wasted drug costs, misspent native education budget highlight report

Wasted drug costs, misspent native education budget highlight report: Note also, Highlights of the Nov. 2004 Auditor General's report John Ward, CP, Nov. 23, 04

Wasted drug costs, misspent native education budget highlight report -- The Auditor General "warned against looking at one problem area and concluding the whole government is off the rails."

Wasted drug costs, misspent native education budget highlight report John Ward, CP, Nov. 23, 04.

OTTAWA -- The government is wasting tens of millions on prescription drugs and its billion-dollar annual investment in native education is actually losing ground, Auditor-General Sheila Fraser said Tuesday.

In one of the three reports she submits annually to Parliament, Fraser complained for the fifth straight year that the government keeps pumping billions into a bloated Employment Insurance fund.

Fraser also said the watchdog charged with monitoring money laundering and terrorist financing is hamstrung by legislation and privacy rules which limit what it can tell the police.

The cops usually find that the information they get from the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, known as Fintrac, isn't enough to start an investigation, she said. [This would explain an article in the National Post stating that FINTRAC has yet to reveal its value in this area. Scroll down.]

''There is a delicate balance between privacy rights and the information needs of law enforcement,'' she said. ''Determining the right balance is up to Parliament.''

[. . . . ] The government spends $1.1 billion on primary and high school education for natives and another $273 million to support post-secondary schooling.

The money has little impact on the education aboriginal children get and the number of students supported in post-secondary programs is falling, the report said. [. . . . ]

[. . . . ]




Terror financing agency handcuffed -- Fintrac / FINTRAC

Terror financing agency handcuffed Sandra Cordon, CP, Nov. 23, 04

OTTAWA -- After spending millions to establish a federal agency to fight terrorist financing and money laundering, Ottawa has handcuffed it with tough privacy laws, says the auditor general.

Moreover, a decision last year to exempt lawyers from money-laundering regulations further hampers crime fighting by the new Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, Sheila Fraser said in a report Tuesday.

All the restrictions mean Fintrac's efforts may prove little more valuable than low-tech investigations, in which police depend upon tips from suspicious bankers.

''Law enforcement officers told us that suspicious-transactions reports they received directly from banks often contain more useful information than Fintrac disclosures. They are more current and provide the reasons for suspicion,'' said the auditor's report.

''This is a serious criticism of a system set up expressly to add value to the raw information provided by reporting entities.'' [. . . . ]

Time needed to close education gap

Time needed to close education gap Sue Bailey, CP, Nov. 23, 04

OTTAWA -- It will take aboriginal high school students 28 years to match non-native graduation rates and they're losing ground, says the auditor general.

Indian Affairs is dragging its heels on a troubling range of old problems, Sheila Fraser said in a report Tuesday.

These include jurisdictional squabbles, low teacher salaries and a lack of professional training.

Moreover, Ottawa can't say whether more than $1 billion spent each year on native education is too much or too little to meet required standards.

Fraser also blasts Indian Affairs for poorly tracking another $273 million spent on college and university funding.

[. . . . ] Just over 40 per cent of reserve residents had a high school diploma compared to almost 70 per cent of the general population, says the 2001 census.

[. . . . ] The one bright light she noted in an otherwise dim performance was improved programs for special education. [. . . . ]

There is much to read in the Auditor General's report if you link to these articles.