International Journal of Government Auditing – January 2007
Canada
Report Cites Improvements Needed in Government Response to Climate Change
In a report tabled in the House of Commons in September 2006, Johanne Gélinas, Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development for the Office of the Auditor General, cited the federal government’s poor track record in dealing with climate change. Instead of declining, greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to grow, and Canada will likely not be able to meet its international commitments to reduce those emissions.
The report notes that the transportation and industry sectors account for more than three quarters of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions. However, even if key measures proposed for these sectors are implemented, they may only slow the rate of emission growth. The audit found potentially serious financial implications for the Canadian taxpayer in the proposed system for trading domestic emissions.
The report concludes that the government must apply the basics of good management—governance and accountability—in its leadership of climate change. Those involved need to clearly understand, agree to, and fulfill their roles and responsibilities. However, the government has yet to create an effective governance structure for managing its climate change activities and has not yet issued promised public reports.
Looking to the future, the Commissioner urged the government to come up with a credible, realistic, and clear plan with short- and long-term goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; in particular, the government’s plan should address the long-neglected need to help Canadians cope with the consequences of climate change.
The Commissioner welcomed the government’s agreement to act on the recommendations in her report, which created considerable interest among the members of Parliament and the Canadian media.
The mandate of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development and her audit team is to audit how well federal departments and agencies implement government policies on environmental and sustainable development issues and report to Parliament and Canadians.
The report is available online at: www.oag-bvg.gc.ca/domino/reports.nsf/html/.
For additional information, contact the Office of the Auditor General, Communications:
Fax: ++(613) 957-0474
E-mail: communications@oag-bvg.gc.ca
Web site: www.oag-bvg.gc.ca