Question Period Note: Tabling of 2019-20 Public Accounts

The Public Accounts of Canada for the year ended March 31, 2020 were tabled in Parliament by the President of the Treasury Board on November 30, 2020.

• Canadian Heritage’s Public Accounts are in accordance with the Receiver General’s procedures.
• The 2019-2020 Auditor General’s annual review plan did not include the review of the Department of Canadian Heritage’s Public Accounts.

• Canadian Heritage has not been one of the Departments included in the Auditor General’s annual review plan since the plan became risk-based in fiscal year 2013-14.
• Operating expenditures: The Public Accounts lapse of $10.8 million in Operating expenditures include a reprofile of $5.4 million for the new Anti-Racism Strategy-Enhance Data and Evidence Component, for which the majority of funds will be transferred to Statistics Canada ($4.2 million) and Justice Canada ($0.7 million) in 2020-21, and the rest to future years. A reprofile of $3.6 million to be transferred to 2020-21 is also included for the MyPCHOnline initiative to better align with project expenditures. Also contributing to the lapse is a $1.6 million in a frozen allotment for the vacation liability created due to the postponing of automatic cash-out of excess vacation hours at year-end resulting from ongoing Phoenix issues.
• Grants and contributions: The Public Accounts lapse of $38.2 million in Grants and Contributions is mainly due to $35.8 million being reprofiled or transferred from 2019-20 to 2020-21 for various initiatives as a result of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, and delays resulting from external factors such as the teachers’ strikes in Ontario. The most significant in terms of value pertains to the Enhancing Support for Minority-Language Education in Canada initiative delivered under the Official Languages Programs. Adding to the overall lapse is $1.9 million in unspent funds for the Delivery of French-language services and to support the preservation of Indigenous languages in the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut. These unspent funds must be placed in a frozen allotment and be returned to the Fiscal Framework, pursuant to Treasury Board decisions.
• Budget implementation votes: Measures totalling $82.7 million were announced in Budget 2019. This information was included in a new section as part of the 2019-20 Main Estimates. During the year, Treasury Board submissions were prepared and approved and the funds were released to the department. The lapse of $0.8 million represents funds that were not sought by Canadian Heritage.

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