RED DEER, Alta. – For the first time in its history the Canadian Wheat Board will open its books for the federal auditor general’s assessment.
But it probably won’t happen again, according to one Canadian Wheat Board director.
“I can’t see it being an annual occurrence. I think it is a one-shot deal,” said David Hilton, who chairs the board’s finance and audit committee.
The board gets its books privately audited and doesn’t think it’s appropriate for the auditor general to do a review every year, he said.
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“We’re trying to move the wheat board into looking like any other business.”
The audit on operations and accounts will likely begin in January, said Hilton, adding details still have to be worked out. Legislation in the CWB Act gives the auditor general permission for a one-time look at the books.
“That I think was framed in requests that had come from the producer community but this isn’t a decision that was taken by dragging and screaming,” said Hilton, who made the announcement in Red Deer April 15. “We just think this is a good business decision to be done.”
It’s good as long as the audit meets certain criteria, said Craig Docksteader of the Centre for Prairie Agriculture, a group that wants the CWB to show more accountability.
“We applaud every effort to increase accountability and openness at the Canadian Wheat Board so in that regard we’re very much in favor of this,” he said.
“However, at the same time we’re also concerned that it really falls quite short of what would be most productive.”
His group thinks the CWB should undergo annual audits by the auditor general.
“It’s the auditor general who is trained to examine corporations from a public policy perspective. We would like to see the auditor general have access to the Canadian Wheat Board books in the same manner and to the same degree that he has access to the other government corporations.”
The cost of the audit will not come from the CWB’s accounts.
