Government Holds True On Its Commitment to Implement AG Recommendations
96 of 115 Recommendations Completed from 2021, 2022, and 2023 Performance Audits
For release March 31 – The Government of Nova Scotia continues to build on its success rate in implementing recommendations from past Auditor General reports and it’s now upped its three-year rolling average from 80 to 83 per cent.
“The progress made to date sends a clear signal that Government is committed to carrying out recommendations made in our reports, and that it values the work of the Office,” Auditor General Kim Adair said.
The Auditor General makes recommendations in performance audits to identify opportunities for improvement in government services and programs. There were 115 recommendations in the 13 audits completed by the office between 2021 and 2023.
Every year, the Office assesses government’s implementation rate in the annual Follow-up Report, a process first started almost a quarter century ago.
While Government has completed all 26 of the recommendations from 2021 audits (including Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation – Phase II; Planning and Implementation of the Pre-Primary Program; Internet for Nova Scotia and Value for Money of Early COVID-19 Relief Programs for Individuals and Small Businesses), it needs a little push to carry out the recommendations from 2022 and 2023 audits, with 84% and 69% completion rates, respectively.
Three of the audits from those years have about half of their recommendations complete, including the 2022 Audit of Oversight and Management of Government Owned Public Housing; the 2023 Audit of Ground Ambulance Services; and the 2023 Audit of Provincial Fire Safety Management.
Recommendations not completed from those audits include:
- Growth and Development has not implemented a lease renewal process to verify tenants' continued eligibility for public housing, including assessing whether they are over-housed; nor has it assessed the eligibility criteria and the screening process used to determine access to public housing.
- Health and Wellness has not completed its own quarterly assessment of Emergency Medical Care Inc.’s performance against ground ambulance standards; and it has not introduced financial penalties for failing to meet medical performance standards.
- The Office of the Fire Marshal has not implemented a fire safety complaint tracking and resolution process; and it’s not regularly updating building listings for completeness and accuracy.
In addition, the Department of Cyber Security and Digital Solutions has yet to complete a recommendation to fully implement detailed action plans based on the technical reports provided by our cybersecurity expert in the 2024 Audit of Cybersecurity Readiness in Healthcare.
The government has publicly agreed that it will complete all Auditor General recommendations within a two-year timeframe. However, the Auditor General committed to checking in on one recommendation from the cybersecurity report after just a year because the 2024 audit found weaknesses in several key network controls which raised concerns about cybersecurity across the digital health network.
“I encourage all organizations to work toward the timely completion of every recommendation to promote government accountability and foster public administration excellence,” she said.