 Auditor General of Canada Sheila Fraser tables the 2009 Fall Report in Ottawa, Ont., Tuesday November 3, 2009. She was joined by Commissioner of Environmental and Sustainable Development Scott Vaughan. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
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OTTAWA — Canada is ill-equipped to lead a coordinated response to a massive emergency like a flood, terrorist attack or global pandemic like H1N1, warns Auditor General Sheila Fraser.
In a sweeping quarterly report that highlights waste, skirting spending rules and bureaucratic bungling across several government departments, Fraser fingers Public Safety Canada for putting human security and critical infrastructure at risk by failing to put plan into action.
In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the feds invested millions of dollars to develop an emergency response plan. But nine years later, that interim plan has not been formally endorsed by government or federal departments.
"Until it is adopted, it will be difficult for Public Safety Canada to fulfill its assigned role," Fraser said. "Until it is clearly established how Public Safety Canada will work with other departments, it will be difficult for it to truly coordinate the federal response to emergency situations."
While Fraser declined to comment specifically on how an implemented plan could have helped mitigate the current chaos surrounding the H1N1 vaccine rollout, she said it would help manage any emergency if federal, provincial and municipal authorities were clear on roles and responsibilities.
She is baffled as to what the hold-up is.
"I have no idea as to why the plan is not approved. I think that would be an excellent question to government," she said.
Fraser pointed to a high staff turnover and position vacancy rate at Public Safety that is "particularly problematic" for an agency assigned to lead the country through crises.
The audit notes that the H1N1 pandemic, the 2003 power blackout, SARS and terrorist conspiracies have all shown how global trade, international travel and cyberspace have enabled crises to escalate fast in scope and severity. A federal response is required for large-scale emergencies that have a low probability of occurrence but high potential impact, she said.
Fraser also blasted the Department of National Defence for bypassing procurement policies to fast-track "urgent" purchases of vehicles for the mission in Afghanistan. Acknowledging that some equipment was deemed necessary to protect troops from improvised explosive devices, she found three of the four projects studied met operational needs but the fourth is two years behind schedule with costs ballooning to double the original approved estimates.
"National Defence needs to develop a process geared to managing urgent acquisitions. It should also examine whether there are lessons from these projects that can be applied to its regular acquisitions," she said.
Fraser's audit also flagged substandard labelling practices that fail to inform consumers of the dangers associated with long-term exposure to certain products; pointed inadequate sewage and landfills on First Nation reserves and lack of surveillance of the foreign workers immigration program.
kathleen.harris@sunmedia.ca
