**** NS Auditor General Release
Auditor General to File Complaint with the RCMP After Liberal Association Investigation
The Auditor General plans to file a complaint with the RCMP after completing her investigation into the misuse of public funds at the Liberal Association of Nova Scotia.
The AG’s work on the report started in 2022 following notification from officials at Elections Nova Scotia of suspected significant misuse of funds over several years at the Liberal Association of Nova Scotia.
A former employee’s misuse of travel claims, and a party credit card led to their resignation and the reimbursement of more than $194,000.
The Association chose not to complete a forensic audit or file a complaint with the RCMP and did not report full knowledge of missing funds to their auditors before finalizing the 2020 audit in the Spring of 2021.
“The Association did not fully convey the extent of the misuse of public funds to their auditor and this apparent concealment leaves financial reporting concerns that should be followed up by the police,” Kim Adair said in her new report.
The Association also signed a settlement agreement with a confidentiality provision with the former employee, who was subsequently hired at another publicly funded organization.
While party officials and auditors did meet with the Auditor General, the Association did not provide certain information as requested on numerous occasions between July and October 2022.
“The Association’s delay in providing information to our Office was not in compliance with the Auditor General Act.”
The Act provides the Office with strong unrestricted access to the records of any organization that receives public funding.
All registered parties receive annual operating funds from Elections Nova Scotia. In the past ten years, the Nova Scotia Liberal Party has received $6.4 million in public funds: $2.9 million for party operations and $3.5 million in candidate expense reimbursements.
The Auditor General makes two recommendations in her report including that the Liberal Association of Nova Scotia file formal complaints and fully cooperate with the RCMP relating to the misuse of public funds and the apparent misrepresentation of the Association’s audited financial statements.
The second recommendation is to amend the Elections Act to give the CEO the authority to deal with any similar issues in the future.
It is important to note the current leader of the Liberal Party reviewed the report and agreed to follow our recommendations.
“Holding individuals accountable for the misuse of public funds is diminished when publicly funded organizations do not file criminal complaints. Including this recommendation ensures that similar situations are prevented from happening in the future.”
