CONTENTS
Standing Committee on Public Accounts
THIRTIETH
LEGISLATURE
of
the
Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
STANDING
COMMITTEE ON
Hansard Verbatim Report
No.
15 — Tuesday, May 12, 2026
Chair
Wotherspoon: — Well good morning, everyone. I’m
Trent Wotherspoon, the Chair of the Public Accounts, MLA [Member of the
Legislative Assembly] for Regina Mount Royal. I’d like to introduce our
committee members: Deputy Chair Thorsteinson, MLA Weedmark is substituting for
MLA Chan, MLA Keisig, MLA Bromm, MLA Gordon, MLA Pratchler.
We have the following documents to
table: PAC 84‑30, Provincial Auditor of Saskatchewan: Third quarter
financial forecast for the nine months ending December 31st, 2025; PAC 85‑30,
Ministry of Advanced Education: Report of public losses, October 1, 2025 to
December 31st, 2025; PAC 86‑30, Ministry of Finance: Report of public
losses, October 1, 2025 to December 31st, 2025; PAC 87‑30, Ministry of
Health: Report of public losses, October 1, 2025 to December 31st, 2025; PAC 88‑30,
Ministry of Education: Report of public losses, September 1, 2025 to November
30th, 2025; PAC 89‑30, Saskatchewan Distance Learning Centre: Responses
to questions raised at January 21, 2026 meeting; PAC 90‑30, Ministry of
Education: Report of public losses, December 1, 2025 to February 28th, 2026;
PAC 91‑30, Ministry of Finance: Report of public losses, January 1, 2026
to March 31st, 2026; PAC 92‑30, Provincial Auditor of Saskatchewan:
Fourth quarter financial forecast for the year ending March 31st, 2026; PAC 93‑30,
Ministry of Advanced Education: Report of public losses, January 1, 2026 to
March 31st, 2026.
Okay, I’d like to introduce our first
agenda item here this morning, and that’s attendance at the annual CCPAC/CCOLA
[Canadian Council of Public Accounts Committees/ Canadian
Council of Legislative Auditors] conference, this year being hosted in Halifax,
Nova Scotia, August 23rd to the 25th, 2026.
Maybe just a few remarks by way of a
brief introduction of what this conference is all about. This is the annual
conference of the public accounts and the audit community in Canada. It’s
hosted in a different jurisdiction each year, a different province or territory
each year. The participants are all of the provinces in Canada, the
territories, as well as the federal government as well.
The community exists with the CCPAC
community, which is your public accounts community. So tables like ours are
public accounts right across the country, including our Chairs and the
membership of those committees as well as the Clerks of those committees.
And the CCOLA component is the audit
community, so the provincial auditors, the federal AG [Attorney General], the
auditors in the territories. I can speak from history that it’s a really good
learning opportunity to deepen one’s skills and practice at the public accounts
table.
And Saskatchewan, I’ve always been very
proud. We’ve been a real leader at that conference and at that table in sharing
some of our best practice. Of course we’ve also learned from other
jurisdictions and brought some of that best practice back to this table, all
for the purpose of improving accountability and the efficiency and economy of
performance of government programs.
We hosted it last year in this province,
and that was a big undertaking for us. I’ve shared before, but I’d like to
thank again our Clerk and our organizing committee, all of our members, all the
team with the auditor’s office.
And the response from those that
attended from across Canada was that they felt we held a really excellent
conference with really great learning experiences, and also had the
opportunity, of course, to showcase our province. With that being said, Nova Scotia’s
hosting this year, and their planning is under way. I’ve had a bit of a window
into that as the Chair for the host committee last year.
At this point I’d ask a member to move
the following motion:
That the Standing
Committee on Public Accounts authorize the Chair, the Deputy Chair, one
government member of the committee, and one opposition member of the committee
to attend the Canadian Council of Public Accounts Committees, CCPAC, and
Canadian Council of Legislative Auditors, CCOLA, annual conference to be held
in Halifax, Nova Scotia from August 23rd to the 25th, 2026; and further,
That if the Chair
or Deputy Chair cannot attend, they be authorized to designate another
committee member to attend in their place.
Do I have a mover? MLA Gordon moves.
Hugh Gordon: — I do.
Chair
Wotherspoon: — The motion has been moved. All
agreed?
Some
Hon. Members: — Agreed.
Chair Wotherspoon:
— Okay, that’s carried.
Okay, moving along to another agenda
item here. That’d be to consider the draft second report. The report covers the
activities of the committee between May 13th, 2025 and May 12th, 2026. This in
essence is the report, or the annual report, for all of our activities in this
past year, and it’s a very straightforward report.
Any discussion on this matter? Not
seeing any discussion on the report at this time, I’d ask a member to move the
following motion:
That the second
report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts for the thirtieth
legislature be adopted and presented to the Assembly.
James
Thorsteinson: —
I’ll so move.
Chair
Wotherspoon: — Moved by Deputy Chair Thorsteinson.
All agreed?
Some
Hon. Members: — Agreed.
Chair
Wotherspoon: — Okay, that’s carried as well. All
right. Okay, that’s our business here for today, folks. Thanks for coming
together. I would welcome a motion to adjourn.
James
Thorsteinson: —
I’ll so move.
Chair
Wotherspoon: — Moved by Deputy Chair Thorsteinson.
All agreed?
Some
Hon. Members: — Agreed.
Chair
Wotherspoon: — That’s carried. This committee
stands adjourned to the call of the Chair.
[The committee adjourned at 09:23.]
Published
under the authority of the Hon. Todd Goudy, Speaker
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