Response to Parliamentary Committees and External Audits

The Minister of Natural Resources did not present any responses to parliamentary committees during 2013-14.

In response to parliamentary committees’ requests for improved follow-up to requests and recommendations, NRCan’s Parliamentary Affairs Unit implemented an internal process to track and monitor questions raised at parliamentary committee meetings and ensure delivery of completed written responses to parliamentary committee chairs within four weeks. NRCan responded to 17 follow-up questions for a 100% completion rate in response to questions posed at various parliamentary committees requiring a written response.

2013 Fall Report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD)
Chapter 1 -Backgrounder on Biological Diversity
The CESD’s Backgrounder Report on Biological Diversity was tabled in the fall of 2013. The Backgrounder examined the nature and importance of biological diversity, the threats to it and its underlying causes, ways of measuring it, and key elements for managing such diversity.

The Backgrounder accompanied several audits focusing on biodiversity issues that were included in the Commissioner's Fall 2013 Report to Parliament. The purpose of the report was to provide readers with sufficient understanding of biodiversity so that they could appreciate audit findings and recommendations in the other chapters of the Commissioner’s Report.

As this was a Backgrounder report and not an audit, there were no associated recommendations. Further, this Backgrounder report should not be interpreted as being an assessment of the federal government’s current practices in managing or protecting biodiversity.

Link: Chapter 1—Backgrounder on Biological Diversity

2012-2013 OAG Public Accounts Audit (NRCan)

The Office of the Auditor General’s Audit of Public Accounts for 2013 was tabled in the House of Commons on October 30, 2013.

The audit found that the transactions and financial information of Natural Resources Canada were, in all material respects, in accordance with the stated accounting policies of the Government of Canada.

There were no recommendations addressed to the Department.

N/A. There were no instances of external audits conducted by the PSC or the OCOL in 2013-14, involving NRCan.