P.E.I. auditor general report to be released Monday

The office of P.E.I. Speaker Carolyn Bertram will release the annual auditor general report Monday without the legislature sitting.

The auditor general report is usually released on the first day of the spring sitting of the legislature, but it has to be delivered to the speaker's office before then.

"The annual report of the Auditor General shall be submitted to the Speaker not later than March 15," the Audit Act reads.

The speaker will normally hold on to the report until the house convenes, but it is expected that sitting will be delayed this year by an election call.

While tabling is the normal practice it is not the only way for the auditor general report to be released. The Audit Act says

"The Speaker shall

    (a) lay the report before the Legislative Assembly within 15 days of the receipt of the report; or

    (b) where the Legislative Assembly is not in session, lay the report before the Legislative Assembly within 15 days of the commencement of the next sitting of the Legislative Assembly."

Releasing government reports without the legislature in session is not in itself unusual. It happens with documents all the time, for instance with reports from government departments and with government's annual audited financial statements. It is, however, uncommon for the auditor general report to be released in this way.

Copies of the report will be delivered to the offices of members of the legislative assembly. It will also be available online on the auditor general's web site.

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