Québec, December 2003

Transcription

1 Québec, December 2003 This brochure is a brief version of Volume Two of the Report of the Auditor General to the National Assembly for This abbreviated form brings together the main observations arising from the work that our audit teams have carried out in recent months. The purpose of this shorter version is to give readers access to information that is both concise and effective. I hope that the Members of the National Assembly and citizens who are interested in the subjects that we address will appreciate this quick reference designed to meet specific needs. Of course, this brochure in no way replaces the full report, but is only meant as a supporting tool. I invite readers to examine the full report, which makes a detailed presentation of the results of the audit engagements and follow-ups, in addition to offering the point of view of the entities. Doris Paradis, CA Acting Auditor General

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 Page CHAPTER 1 OBSERVATIONS OF THE ACTING AUDITOR GENERAL Introduction 5 Interim term of office 5 Revision of the Auditor General Act 5 Consolidated financial statements of the government 7 Integrated Resource Management (GIRES) Project 7 Follow-up on the application of the recommendations 9 Summary of the content of this volume 10 Conclusion 12 CHAPTER 2 MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES 13 CHAPTER 3 SUPERVISION AND CONTROL OF WATER, DRINKING WATER 18 AND LONG-TERM PLANNING COMPONENTS CHAPTER 4 BRIDGE CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT 20 CHAPTER 5 FOLLOW-UP ON VALUE-FOR-MONEY AUDITS 22 Introduction 22 Act to foster the development of manpower training 24 Establishment of Emploi-Québec 28 Management of the social and economic impact of gambling 30 CHAPTER 6 CERTIFICATION OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION 33 Introduction 33 Commission administrative des régimes de retraite et d assurances 34 Commission de la construction du Québec 35 Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail 36 Canada-Quebec Labour Market Development Implementation Agreement Institut de la statistique du Québec 48 The masculine gender when used in the text designates both women and men, where applicable The numbers of the chapters as

3 1. OBSERVATIONS OF THE ACTING AUDITOR GENERAL INTRODUCTION 1.1 The Québec National Assembly has entrusted the Auditor General with the mandate of fostering, through audit, parliamentary control over public funds and other public property. This mandate comprises, to the extent deemed appropriate by the Auditor General, financial audits, audits to ensure the compliance of operations with statutes, regulations, policy statements and directives, as well as value-for-money audits. The Auditor General s field of jurisdiction mainly encompasses the government, its agencies and its corporations; the Auditor General is also empowered to audit funds paid in the form of subsidies. 1.2 In the annual report that the Auditor General submits to the National Assembly, he draws attention to any topic ensuing from his work that deserves to be brought to the attention of parliamentarians. This report is published in two volumes, one in June, and the other in December. 1.3 Chapter I of each volume gives the Auditor General the opportunity to establish a more personal contact with readers and to share his comments and concerns about his mission and the directions taken in government administration; moreover, the reader will find a brief presentation of the questions addressed in the publication. INTERIM TERM OF OFFICE 1.4 On December 16, 2001 the term of office of my predecessor ended. On that same date, the President of the National Assembly designated me to perform the duties of this office on an interim basis until the National Assembly appoints the next Auditor General. REVISION OF THE AUDITOR GENERAL ACT 1.5 A few weeks ago I sent the government proposals for amendments to the Auditor General Act for tabling in the National Assembly. 1.6 These proposals follow the assessment of the application of this Act which was presented in Volume II of the Report of the Auditor General to the National Assembly for Moreover, they take into account the expectations and concerns that the members of the Committee on Public Administration expressed regarding various aspects of the Auditor General s mandate during work sessions and public sessions held in the fall of 2001 and in that of Basically, the proposed amendments deal with value-for-money audits of government corporations, audits conducted with beneficiaries of subsidies or other forms of government support procuring a benefit, the immunity of the Auditor General in the field of compellability as a witness and his role in audits in the environment and sustainable development field. 1.8 As for value-for-money audits in government corporations, the current Act distinguishes between those for which the Auditor General audits the financial statements and those whose financial statements are audited by other external auditors of the private sector. In the first case, the Act mandates me to audit the quality of the management of these corporations, but only after having reached an agreement with their board of directors,

4 which has proven to be an obstacle to this type of audit. In the second case, the Act does not grant such a mandate to the auditors of private firms and it is not very explicit about the latitude given to the Auditor General in the field of value-for-money audits in these corporations. 1.9 The legislative amendment proposals that I have submitted to the government seek to clarify the Act in this respect so that I can carry out unimpeded and in all government corporations the work that I deem important to adequately inform the National Assembly of the use made of public funds by these corporations In light of the discussions with the members of the Committee on Public Administration concerning the potential consequences of the public dissemination of the report of the value-for-money audit conducted with certain corporations having a commercial vocation, I have proposed an exception. Under this proposal, the results of an audit of this type would not be made public if it involves a government corporation designated by a resolution of the National Assembly or some of its activities I have also proposed that I be able to be assisted in the carrying out of value-for-money audits of government corporations and agencies by the private firms that certify the financial statements of these entities, given their knowledge of the latter Moreover, the government is increasingly resorting to forms of financial support conferring a benefit which, without corresponding as such to what is understood by subsidies, are closely related to them. Refundable tax credits are a case in point. That is why I propose that the Auditor General be able to audit every form of financial support conferring a benefit coming from a government entity, including a government corporation, all the way up to the ultimate beneficiary of this support Furthermore, the legislative amendment proposals seek to strengthen the independence of the position of the Auditor General, a guarantee of his objectivity. The Auditor General must be able to freely make the observations and recommendations that ensue from his work. I have therefore reiterated the need to complete the immunity that my colleagues and I enjoy, to ensure that we are not compelled as witnesses in legal proceedings involving entities audited on behalf of the National Assembly, as this would distort the Auditor General s role Finally, over the course of the last two years, I have had discussions with the members of the Committee on Public Administration on the Auditor General s role regarding audits in the environment and sustainable development field The members of this Committee have clearly indicated that they want the environment and sustainable development field to become a priority for parliamentary control purposes. Following their comments, I came to the conclusion that legislative amendments were desirable to ensure that the Act better reflects the concerns of parliamentarians on this subject That is why the legislative proposals provide for the creation of the position of commissioner responsible for the environment and sustainable development. The latter, under the authority of the Auditor General, would conduct audits in these fields. Within this perspective, all departments as well as all government agencies and corporations designated by their Lead Minister would be required to adopt a sustainable development strategy. Each year, the commissioner would prepare a report on the results of his work, intended for the National Assembly. This report would be separate from that of the Auditor General. CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF THE

5 GOVERNMENT 1.17 In my observations of last June on the government s consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ended on March 31, 2002, I pointed out that for several years now, the time required to table the public accounts in the National Assembly has been unreasonably long, namely some nine months or more after the end of the fiscal year. Indeed, for the last seven years, the Auditor General has been recommending that the financial statements be tabled earlier I am delighted by the commitment made on June 12, 2003 by the Minister of Finance in his Budget Speech. He plans to make public the government s consolidated financial statements within a maximum period of six months after the end of the fiscal year, beginning in Such a commitment is an important step towards ensuring greater transparency when it comes to Québec s financial position Moreover, another one of the recommendations that the Auditor General has been making in recent years met with a favorable response in the same speech. Recognizing that the financial statements, if they are to be transparent, must provide a comprehensive portrait of the state of public finance, the Minister made known his intention of including the results of the health and social services and education networks in those of the government. He plans to implement, in , the network management and operation follow-up mechanisms required for this purpose. He has agreed to publish, beginning this year, the financial position of the networks in notes to the financial statements I encourage the government to continue in this direction, with the assurance that its efforts will contribute to the disclosure of high-quality information that is more relevant for users. In this perspective, I once again incite the government to present an action plan containing precise deadlines for applying all of my recommendations concerning its consolidated financial statements In June, I also expressed the wish that the appropriate parliamentary committee discuss the content of my report on the government s consolidated financial statements with the managers in question to promote the application of the recommendations intended for them. I reiterate this wish while assuring parliamentarians of my full availability to take part in this work. INTEGRATED RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (GIRES) PROJECT 1.22 These observations deal with the evolution of the Integrated Resource Management (GIRES) Project since the publication, in June 2003, of my last comments I reiterate that the aim of this project was to unify the management of information pertaining to the Government s human, financial and material resources by implementing a software solution. The anticipated cost of the project, excluding the expenditures of the departments and agencies, increased considerably, rising from $83 million in 1998 to $345 million in In June 2003, I mentioned that the project had progressed substantially, but that the government still did not have a global vision of the associated costs and benefits. I also pointed out that the risks related to the project had grown due, among other things, to the accumulated delays and the little support for the implementation of general functions, which was under the responsibility of the central agencies. The pitfalls observed were likely to postpone the start-up of the system, increase costs or, in a worst case scenario, to reduce its scope and quality. Clearly, the situation deteriorated and the government was forced to make crucial decisions regarding this huge project.

6 1.25 As of August 31, 2003, the project had entailed outlays of $173 million for the Secrétariat du Conseil du Trésor and $11 million for the departments and agencies The integrator namely the specialized firm that was responsible in particular for the system s development tabled, in October 2002, an estimate of additional costs that could reach $100 million, over and above the $180 million contract, to complete the project. After extensive analysis work, the Secrétariat du Conseil du Trésor informed the integrator that it could not respond favorably to the request. Within this context, the integrator made a major reduction, between January and July 2003, of the resources assigned to the project, making it even harder to respect the timetable In June 2003, the Conseil du Trésor mandated an advisory committee to make a strategic analysis of the GIRES project. This committee was entrusted with the task of proposing recommendations to the Minister to help her decide on what option should be chosen from among those available to her In its report, the advisory committee draws a summary portrait of the project s evolution, describes and analyzes the risks that it entails and presents the possible options. The report also contains three recommendations. The first consists of abandoning the GIRES project, which involves terminating the contract with the integrator and the government activities related to the project both at the Secrétariat du Conseil du Trésor and at the pilot sites The second recommendation is to subsequently envisage two separate projects to address the need to modernize the Système automatisé de gestion des informations sur le personnel (SAGIP) (automated system for managing information on personnel) and Système de gestion budgétaire et comptable (SYGBEC) (budget and accounting management system), while making provision, in particular, for the exchange of data between systems and the possibility of recovering, as the case may be, the deliverables of GIRES Finally, a third recommendation of a general nature was made regarding the shortcomings associated with the GIRES project. It involves setting up a decision-making process drawing inspiration from an approach that consists of first identifying and approving business needs, taking into account the various scenarios possible, then making the detailed study of the chosen scenario and finally, approving this scenario formally On September 30th of this year, the government announced that it was preferable to stop the GIRES project and that it intended to terminate the contract entered into with the integrator. Consequently, the government applied a part of the first recommendation It is my understanding of the situation that few possibilities were available to the government regarding the continuation of the project according to what had been agreed upon with the integrator in July Indeed, it is important to point out that each party stuck to its position. Moreover, the integrator submitted a request for an additional $100 million to complete the project. For its part, the government refused to respond favorably to this request. Furthermore, the advisory committee s report mentions that the relationship of trust necessary for the continuation of the project had weakened. To limit the costs, the government decided to terminate the contract with the integrator. An agreement to sever the contract was reached between the government and the integrator on October 30th On September 30th, the Chair of the Treasury Board also announced that she was entrusting the associate secretary for the government information highway and informational resources with the task of redefining the project while examining the possibility of recovering the greatest possible amount of the some $180 million already

7 invested. The secretary intends to propose a solution by the end of the year The government must now specify its position regarding the modernization of SAGIP and SYGBEC. The time out that the government has ordered will allow the Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor to carefully analyze the events and to reconsolidate this project s foundations. The Secretariat will also have to propose a new action plan to give the government a resource management system that is both modern and effective. FOLLOW-UP ON THE APPLICATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS 1.35 In February 2003, the government asked its departments and agencies to include in their annual management report a specific section to report on the corrective steps that they have taken based on the recommendations formulated in my reports to the National Assembly In their annual management report for , the departments and agencies are encouraged to describe the mechanisms that they have implemented or will implement to ensure a follow-up on the recommendations. Beginning in , these same reports will have to specify the actions taken to follow up on the recommendations found in my reports to the National Assembly This new requirement will promote an increase in the rate of application of the recommendations that I make. It will provide information that is very useful for the exercise of parliamentary control This additional incentive to implement the measures intended to correct the identified shortcomings is most welcome. Indeed, the follow-ups that I make each year on past audits generally reveal that the efforts made by several entities to apply my recommendations, albeit legitimate, are insufficient For example, the four follow-ups included in this volume reveal that 90 percent of the recommendations have given rise to Tangible actions on the part of the entities in question: this is a good start. However, I consider that the progress achieved is satisfactory in only 57 percent of the cases, which is too little when one considers that three to seven years have passed since the initial audit. Several of the actions taken represent only a partial response or there is insufficient progress in the application of these actions. It is my wish that the new annual public accountability requirement will result in greater determination on the part of the audited entities when applying my recommendations As of mid-november 2003, 55 annual management reports concerning the fiscal year had been tabled in the National Assembly by the departments and agencies subject to this new requirement. More than half of these entities, including most of those to which I had made recommendations in , describe in their report the followup mechanism that they have put in place or they present directly the actions taken to follow up on these recommendations The follow-up that I will do on these recommendations will enable me to see if this new practice has had a positive effect on their rate of application. SUMMARY OF THE CONTENT OF THIS VOLUME 1.42 The following paragraphs provide a summary of the subjects dealt with in the other chapters.

8 1.43 Chapter 2 reports on the results of an audit concerning mental health services. This sector requires a significant portion of the health and social services budget: in , close to $1.5 billion was devoted to mental health services, namely 8.5 percent of the global budget It has been established that twenty percent of the population suffers from a mental illness at some point in time. Despite this fact, I find that the management of the mental health program does not make it possible to adequately meet the needs in this field. Indeed, some services are not developed enough and it is hard to have access to other services in several regions. What is more, certain components of the Mental Health Policy have never been applied and the actions that could have served to promote them have never been specified Moreover, the Department does not provide the necessary leadership to ensure that the transformation of mental health services takes place correctly, and the network has not managed to earmark the monies required for this purpose. Finally, I note that the management information that the Department and the regional boards have does not allow them to adequately monitor the mental health program. As a result, the Department is unable to gauge its performance Chapter 3 deals with the supervision and control of water, drinking water and long-term planning components. The audit, conducted with the ministère de l Environnement, reveals that the Department is unable to orient its interventions based on a comprehensive risk assessment, owing to an insufficient knowledge of various important factors. Indeed, the Department does not have an exhaustive knowledge of all the drinking water distribution networks and of the competence of the persons in charge of operating them. Nor does it know the extent to which operators maintain their knowledge of the quality of the water entering treatment facilities Furthermore, the Department is also having difficulty enforcing compliance with the requirements of the Regulation respecting the quality of drinking water. Several distribution networks surveyed do not transmit water samples at the minimum frequency specified. In addition, situations involving the failure to meet quality standards tend to persist Finally, the Policy on the protection of banks, littoral zones and floodplains as well as the National Water Policy seek to promote over the long term the quality of the drinking water supply. However, indicators reveal that the principles conveyed in the first policy are not always respected. Meanwhile, the implementation of the second policy has gotten off to a modest start. To promote the perennial nature of this essential resource, it would seem that the Department needs to improve its knowledge of watersheds, which are drinking water supply sources As for Chapter 4, it deals with bridge conservation management. This concerns the bridges and other similar structures for which the ministère des Transports assumes responsibilities. The latter consist, on the one hand, of ensuring the complete management of more than 4,800 bridges of the primary road network (PRN) and, on the other, of providing technical or financial assistance to municipalities having less than 100,000 inhabitants. For instance, the Department inspects close to 4,400 municipal bridges. I took an interest, among other things, in the Department s practices seeking to preserve or prolong the useful life of bridges and to maintain them in satisfactory condition I note that, even if systems and processes have been put in place to manage the conservation of bridges, there are a number of shortcomings that need to be corrected. Some of them, including the fact that required inspections have not been made, raise doubts as to the reliability and the usefulness of the information available on municipal

9 bridges and those of the PRN. In addition, since the activity planning process for bridges of the PRN is not applied properly, the activities of the last three years with respect to repair and major rehabilitation works have been insufficient to meet all of the priority needs. Moreover, the Department does not have the assurance, in my opinion, that the right activities are planned or that they are carried out at the most appropriate time and place. If one adds to this the preventive and routine maintenance deficit that I ascertained, the situation is worrying from the standpoint of monies that will have to be spent in the future to preserve the bridges of the PRN I also found shortcomings in the follow-up done by the Department on repair and major rehabilitation projects that have been approved for these bridges and concerning other elements that impact on the smooth unfolding of these projects. As a result, their realization has given rise to unforeseen or different work, that could have been avoided, to postponed deadlines and to additional costs. Finally, I noticed that the communications between the Department and the municipalities on the subject of municipal bridges are deficient As for Chapter 5, it presents the results of three follow-ups on value-for-money audits. The first presents the follow-up given to my recommendations regarding the application of the Act to foster the development of manpower training whereas the second one deals with the establishment of Emploi-Québec. The third follow-up deals with the management of the social and economic impact of gambling. The results of a fourth audit dealing with mental health are found in Chapter Chapter 6 contains my comments ensuing from the financial information certification work done with five entities in recent months Finally, readers will find appended to this document the reports concerning the two audits conducted with the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and some of its subsidiaries; these reports were tabled separately in the National Assembly in June Appendix A presents the Report of the audit of the Complexe CDP Capital construction project. Appendix B reproduces the Report of the audit of Montréal Mode inc. and Montréal Mode Investissements inc. CONCLUSION 1.55 The Auditor General s reports deliberately draw attention to deficiencies and propose avenues to remedy them. This approach allows parliamentarians to focus their discussions with managers on the improvements that should be made to public services However, I would like to underscore the competence and dedication of the managers and employees of the entities that I audit. Québec benefits from a highly professional public service. The improvements, occasionally substantial, which must be made to the operation of public services must not allow us to lose sight of the quality of services that we already enjoy The management of the government administration requires constant efforts to strike a balance between limited resources and needs that at times seem to be unlimited. This is no easy task Finally, I would like to thank all the persons who cooperated in the carrying out of my work and in the preparation of this report.

10 2. MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES 2.1 Mental health problems are commonplace and are observed in all societies: 20 percent of the population suffers from a mental illness at some point in time. In Québec, $1.456 billion, or 8.5 percent of the health budget, was earmarked for the mental health sector in The purpose of our audit was to obtain the assurance that the management of the mental health program makes it possible to meet the public s needs in this field. We also wanted to evaluate the extent to which the organization of mental health services promotes their availability, accessibility and continuity. Finally, we sought to determine if the management information and accountability facilitate decision-making and make it possible to gauge the performance with respect to these services. 2.3 We carried out our work with the ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) and 4 regional boards. We also met with more than 200 managers and health professionals and conducted a survey with 15 of the 18 regional boards. Our audit extended from October 2002 to September At the present time, the management of the mental health program does not make it possible to meet adequately all of the public s needs in this field. Indeed, some services are not sufficiently developed and access to others is difficult in several regions. 2.5 Several components of the Mental Health Policy have never been applied and the actions that could have been used to promote these components have not been specified. The Department has not set its objectives or devised an action plan for the clientele having transient disorders, for promotion and prevention as well as for certain specialized services that require a critical mass in terms of clientele and professional expertise. Furthermore, the Department has not set precise and measurable targets for each of its objectives and has not provided related indicators. As a result, it is hard for the Department to evaluate the extent to which the transformation of services is taking place, and the regional boards have very few guidelines to direct their actions. 2.6 The sums required to transform mental health services have not been earmarked. Moreover, as the Department already allocates almost all of the financial resources on a historical basis, it does not ensure a fair sharing between the regions. Consequently, the weighted cost per inhabitant is close to 3 times higher in the most favored regions than in the leased favored ones. 2.7 The Department is also required to allocate fairly medical personnel among the regions. The number of psychiatrists per inhabitant is highly variable from one region to the next, which is the source of major unfairness. In many regions, the difficulty of obtaining access to psychiatric resources is real, both for the clientele and for family physicians and the teams dealing with mental health issues. For example, in two regions the average waiting time to obtain a consultation with a psychiatrist is 3.8 months and 14 months respectively. 2.8 Moreover, the Department does not provide the necessary leadership to ensure that the transformation of services is taking place adequately. The Department does not systematically examine the evolution of these services and requests very little information from the regional boards about the services offered. 2.9 Most of the regional boards do not have a comprehensive and up-to-date mental health services organization plan, even though such a plan is required under the Act. What is more, the boards set few expectations regarding service providers and do not evaluate

11 the results observed. Furthermore, the boards have not entered into management agreements with establishments and community organizations The management information that the Department and the regional boards have does not allow them to adequately monitor the mental health program or to know the accessibility of services by type of service and by resource. Such a lack of data makes it more difficult to evaluate the mental health program, and the Department cannot measure the performance within a global perspective of improving services Some services have not been developed much and their accessibility varies greatly from one region to the next. In the regions that we audited, while patients are received and evaluated right away at the CLSCs, the treatment often begins much later. Indeed, the waiting period is generally from one to six months and may even reach 10 months on a given territory Many beds have been closed: from 1995 to 2002, their number went from 6,000 to 3,496, namely an overall reduction of 42 percent, but the provincial target has not yet been completely reached. The Québec City and Montréal regions alone account for 60 percent of psychiatry beds, whereas these two regions represent 33 percent of Québec s population. This concentration of beds could be justified if travel by the clientele between the regions were facilitated At the present time, several individuals with mental health problems are waiting or looking for a residential resource that meets their needs. There is little variety in the available resources and they are poorly adapted to new mental health practices. For example, several persons who are ready to live in another setting must remain hospitalized, which entails major costs Moreover, our follow-up on the recommendations made in the mental health component of the value-for-money audit reveals that much work must still be done to remedy the problems raised at the time. Indeed, only 24 percent of the recommendations that we had made have been applied or have given rise to satisfactory progress. Follow-up on the recommendations made to the Department and to the regional boards in In , we conducted a value-for-money audit dealing with the government s action regarding community organizations involved in health and social services and mental health. In the mental health component, we wanted to make sure that the services contributed to the government s objectives and orientations in this field and that they were managed with a concern for efficiency. In this chapter, we did a value-for-money audit, the objectives of which comprised those of We were thus able to see if the recommendations made at the time had been taken into account by the health and social services network and if corrective actions had been implemented in response to the shortcomings that we had identified. Our follow-up reveals that much work still needs to be done to remedy the problems raised initially. The lack of leadership on the part of the Department and the regional boards has certainly contributed to this situation. Indeed, of the 27 recommendations made in regarding mental health services, only 3 have been applied. Three others have been applied partially, with the progress being satisfactory. As for the remaining recommendations, 16 have been applied partially, albeit in an unsatisfactory manner, 4 have not yet been followed, and one is no longer applicable. Many tangible actions still need to be taken both by the Department and by the regional boards; indeed, globally, only 24 percent of the recommendations have been applied or have given rise to

12 satisfactory progress. Table 3 presents the level of application of each recommendation.

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14 3. SUPERVISION AND CONTROL OF WATER, DRINKING WATER AND LONG-TERM PLANNING COMPONENTS 3.1 Water-related questions have been very much in the news of late and the preservation of this resource is a major stake. We feel that it is important to check if the management of water is carried out in a sustainable development perspective to protect public health and to ensure the perennial nature of the ecosystems for the benefit of future generations. 3.2 Several government stakeholders have an important role to play in the management of water; however, the current audit concerns more specifically the activities of the ministère de l Environnement (MENV). Two objectives are associated with this audit. On the one hand, we wanted to gauge the extent to which the Department s activities ensure a public drinking water supply that meets quality standards on an on-going basis. Moreover, our work sought to verify if the Department s planning promotes the improvement of the quality of raw water and aquatic ecosystems. Our work extended from February to August In the drinking water field, it is the combination of several barriers that makes it possible to maximize the overall efficiency of controls. A weakness in one of these barriers does not necessarily mean that there will be a direct impact on the public s health, but this weakness creates an opening that can increase the level of risk associated with the quality of the water distributed. That is why it is important that the Department direct its supervision and control interventions in such a way as to minimize these risks. Certain aspects of the Department s interventions need to be improved upon. 3.4 First, the MENV does not know the extent to which operators maintain their knowledge of the quality of the water entering treatment facilities. Indeed, except at the time when a process to design facilities or bring them up to standard is undertaken, the MENV has not determined other requirements concerning the control of the quality of the water entering the facility, which is left up to the discretion of the operator. 3.5 Moreover, the Department still needs to take a number of steps to obtain a comprehensive portrait of the distribution networks. A status report prepared by the MENV in 2002 reveals that there are more than 3,000 subject networks that are not listed, such as private networks, campgrounds, Zecs and vacation camps. These non-listed networks escape the Department s supervision. In addition, the Department still does not know the competence of the persons in charge of operating these networks. 3.6 The MENV is also having difficulty enforcing compliance with the requirements of the Regulation respecting the quality of drinking water. Over an 18-month period, 18,270 departures from the minimum monthly sampling frequency were recorded, which represents just over one-third of the cases. These shortcomings concern 2,572 different drinking water distribution networks among the 3,163 networks surveyed by the Department. More specifically, the persons in charge of 776 of these networks serving 1.1 million people violated the regulation at least 9 months out of the18 examined. 3.7 Generally, the Department responds diligently when a case of non-compliance is brought to its attention. Indeed, with respect to 87 percent of the files audited, the Department took action in the three days following the maximum deadline for obtaining results or it had already taken charge of the file owing to past problems. In the other cases, although a reduction in the response times would have been desirable, it is important to point out that there was no situation that required the issue of a notice to the public, pursuant to the

15 regulation. However, the efficiency of the Department s actions is limited. Among the 110 cases of non-compliance analyzed, half were still not settled and had lasted on average nine months. 3.8 Moreover, in a context where a mentor approach is privileged, the follow-up on unsettled cases by the Department s regional offices takes place at an intervention frequency that is insufficient in one-third of these cases. As for those cases considered settled, although the return-to-compliance process stipulated in the regulation had not been completed for 34 percent of them, the follow-up was discontinued. 3.9 To ensure the sustainability of the resource, it is equally essential that the Department s interventions promote over the long term the maintaining of the quality of raw water and aquatic ecosystems First, the MENV has an insufficient knowledge of watersheds. Of the more than 400 watersheds found in Québec, 33 have been targeted for monitoring on a priority basis. That being the case, one would expect that these watersheds would be included among those that the Department monitors on an on-going basis, to ensure that information is up-to-date. However, such is not yet the case, as the Department does not have a continuous water quality measurement station for 9 of these 33 watersheds Similarly, the preservation of buffer strips is an important element that helps to maintain good quality raw water. Over the years, the Department has collected several indicators of a failure to respect the principles found in the Policy on the protection of banks, littoral zones and floodplains. In light of the fact that the requirements of this policy represent minimal conditions for ensuring the protection of banks, the Department must see to it that these principles are respected, for these indicators are cause for concern Finally, the adoption of a National Water Policy is certainly a step in the right direction for the future of this resource However, at the end of our audit, few tangible measures on the part of the MENV were observable, which indicates that its implementation could be behind schedule. It will be important that the Department complete the detailed action plan to promote the policy s implementation. Given the importance of such a policy, we intend to pay special attention to this question in the years to come.

16 4. BRIDGE CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT 4.1 Currently, there are over 12,000 bridges on Québec s territory. The ministère des Transports du Québec (MTQ) assumes responsibilities for more than 9,200 of them, either by providing technical or financial assistance or by ensuring their complete management. It is important to inspect bridges on a regular basis to ascertain their level of deterioration. In so doing, the necessary activities may be implemented to preserve their useful life and to maintain them in satisfactory condition. By basing itself, among other things, on the data collected at the time of the inspection, the Department calculates various indices that provide an overall description of a bridge s condition. 4.2 One must not conclude that a bridge is unsafe on the basis of these indices. Indeed, when an MTQ representative establishes, notably following an inspection, that safety may be compromised, steps are taken, such as posting signs, monitoring the bridge carefully, closing it down or making emergency repairs. Besides, during our audit, nothing indicated that safety was compromised. 4.3 The aim of our audit was to evaluate if the way in which the MTQ plans its activities pertaining to the maintenance and major rehabilitation of bridges is optimal. We also wanted to determine if it carries out an effective follow-up on repair and major rehabilitation projects that have been approved concerning the bridges for which it assumes the complete management, with an on-going improvement perspective. Finally, we sought to obtain the assurance that the Department s reporting makes it possible to evaluate its performance in the field of bridge conservation management. 4.4 The MTQ has put in place systems and processes to manage this component of its mission. However, our work reveals shortcomings related to the information on the bridges that it inspects. Among these shortcomings, the controls intended to ensure the quality or the protection of data are insufficient. In some cases, the MTQ has not made the obligatory annual inspections; in other cases, it does not have the assurance, in our opinion, that they have all been held. 4.5 Moreover, the activity planning process that the Department has adopted regarding the conservation of the bridges of the primary road network (PRN) is not applied properly. Among other things, the MTQ does not establish global strategies to determine the optimal combination of activities to be carried out, which would include preventive maintenance, routine maintenance, repairs and major rehabilitations. The reason for this is that the MTQ does not have the system required to do so. In the absence of such strategies, the Department uses a compartmentalized approach to planning, namely it plans repair and major rehabilitation works on the one hand, and preventive maintenance and routine maintenance on the other. 4.6 As there are deficiencies in the planning strategies related to repair and major rehabilitation works, there is a risk that the amount of the budget recommendation will be underestimated. In addition, the selection criteria used by the regions are not documented for each project they propose; this documentation is all the more necessary in that the priority needs are not all met. It should also be pointed out that the determination of the budget earmarked for preventive maintenance and routine maintenance consists more of renewing the budget of past years than of covering the needs surveyed. As a consequence of the preceding problems, the activities of the last three years in the field of repair and major rehabilitation works related to conserving bridges of the PRN have been insufficient to cover all the priority needs. Furthermore, the MTQ does not have the assurance, in our opinion, that the right activities are

17 planned to ensure the conservation of these bridges or that they are carried out at the most appropriate time and place. All of these deficiencies, coupled with a preventive maintenance and routine maintenance deficit, make the situation worrying from the standpoint of monies that will have to be spent in the future to preserve the bridges of the PRN. 4.7 Problems were also detected in the follow-up done by the MTQ on repair and major rehabilitation projects approved for the bridges of this same network. There is room too for improvement regarding other elements that impact on the smooth unfolding of these projects. Indeed, there are times when the plans and specifications are not ready when one would like to have them, when the information found in these documents is incomplete or inaccurate, when the work does not start in a timely manner and when worksite supervision shows weaknesses. Another element requiring improvement is the technical history of the bridges, which is incomplete and disorganized. As a result, the carrying out of projects gives rise, in particular, to unforeseen or different work, that could have been avoided, to postponed deadlines and to additional costs. It should also be stated that the analysis of both the costs and the progress of completed projects is insufficient to contribute, among other things, to better planning. 4.8 Moreover, communications between MTQ representatives and those of the municipalities with less than 100,000 inhabitants are deficient. Yet more sustained exchanges are essential if one wants to improve the management of bridge conservation with regard to the municipal road network (MUNRN) and also to evaluate the effects of the Bridge and other infrastructure rehabilitation assistance program. 4.9 Finally, the MTQ s reporting permits only a partial evaluation of its performance in the bridge conservation management field.

18 5. FOLLOW-UP ON VALUE-FOR-MONEY AUDITS INTRODUCTION After an interval of a few years, we do a follow-up on our audit work. Our objective is to see if the recommendations originally made have been taken into account and if the audited entities have remedied the shortcomings that we had identified This exercise, which completes the initial audit, allows us to inform parliamentarians about the actions that have been taken to remedy the difficulties that we reported. When problems subsist, we briefly reiterate their causes and consequences Table 1 presents the follow-ups covered in this volume, with the reference to the initial audits As part of this work, we did a follow-up on 86 recommendations. Table 2 informs readers on their application by follow-up. We are satisfied with the progress achieved, namely they have been applied or satisfactory progress has been recorded, in 24, 80, 50 and 60 percent of the cases respectively. Further details are provided in the other sections of the chapter LMost of these rates fall short of our expectations; what is more, one of them is markedly unsatisfactory. The entities will have to intensify their efforts to implement our recommendations and in so doing correct the shortcomings that continue to cast a shadow over the management of the activities that we examined.

19 ACT TO FOSTER THE DEVELOPMENT OF MANPOWER TRAINING We did a follow-up on the value-for-money audit conducted in with the Commission des partenaires du marché du travail and Emploi-Québec, agency of the ministère de l Emploi, de la Solidarité sociale et de la Famille. Our work ended in August The purpose of the initial audit, the results of which were published in chapter 5 of Volume I of the Report of the Auditor General to the National Assembly for , was to make sure that Emploi-Québec and the Commission had adopted the necessary foundations to achieve the objectives of the Act. The latter seeks to improve Québec s manpower qualification and thereby foster employment, manpower adjustment, employment integration and labour mobility Our work also sought to determine if the orientations, the grants made available, the activity of collector organizations and the apprenticeship scheme promoted the realization of the objectives of the legislator. Moreover, we wanted to obtain the assurance that Emploi-Québec and the Commission had mechanisms to measure objectively and regularly the results obtained and that following this evaluation corrective actions were taken, where necessary. Finally, we wanted to check if the ministère de la Solidarité sociale which has since become the ministère de l Emploi, de la Solidarité sociale et de la Famille and Emploi-Québec reported on their activities by showing that they met the objectives of the Act On October 8, 2003, in a draft regulation, the government made known its intention of increasing from $250,000 to $1 million, effective January 1, 2004, the payroll of employers beyond which they are required to participate in the development of manpower training. Consequently, the contributions collected, which are used to pay grants, will decline significantly according to the Commission. It is too early to gauge the impact of this reduction on the investment in training made by enterprises that will no longer be subject to the Act. That is why the conclusions of this follow-up do not take this change into account, in particular with respect to the promotion of the Act and the orientations of the asset allocation plan of the Fonds national de formation de la maind œuvre (National manpower training fund). General conclusions

20 5.2.5 All of our recommendations, with the exception of two which were not applied, gave rise to Tangible actions. We are satisfied with the progress achieved in 80 percent of the cases. Indeed, of the 41 recommendations made initially, 20 percent have not given rise to sufficient corrective measures Substantial improvements have been made, among other things, to the apprenticeship scheme and the follow-up on grant files. However, some subjects have not received the desired attention, in particular the Fund s asset allocation plan and the production in a timely manner of good-quality management information Table 1 presents the situation with respect to the application of each of the recommendations according to each of the entities referred to.

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22 ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPLOI-QUÉBEC We conducted a value-for-money audit in with the ministère de la Solidarité sociale, which has since become the ministère de l Emploi, de la Solidarité sociale et de la Famille, and with Emploi-Québec, an agency within that department. Our work ended in June The aim of the initial audit, the results of which were published in chapter 6 of Volume I of the Report of the Auditor General to the National Assembly for , was to evaluate the extent to which the department had planned and implemented the establishment of Emploi-Québec. We sought to determine if the Department had taken the necessary steps to integrate the resources from the Société québécoise de développement de la main-d œuvre and Human Resources Development Canada. In addition, we wanted to examine the Department s management framework in the employment and manpower field, particularly with respect to operational and budgetary planning, the follow-up on activities and accountability Certain shortcomings identified in that report concerned the planning of the establishment of Emploi-Québec, in particular the determination of the optimal number of local employment centres (LEC), training and supervision of personnel, the adaptation of computer systems and the availability of a few services. Other observations concerned the first two years of activity of Emploi-Québec and dealt, among other things, with the computer systems, service delivery, the planning of and follow-up on activities, as well as

23 accountability To ensure its operation, Emploi-Québec relies on some 3,000 employees spread out among the central processing units, the 17 regional branches and the 154 LEC, which group the services offered by the two modules of the Department s network, namely Income Security and Emploi-Québec. We did our follow-up work with central processing units of the Department and Emploi-Québec. Moreover, in three regions served by the agency, which manage close to 32 percent of the total budget devoted to employment assistance measures, we examined the activities of the regional branch and of two LEC by region. Conclusions The Department has taken several tangible actions. Some have borne fruit and 50 percent of our recommendations have given rise to satisfactory progress (Table 1). Emploi-Québec has enhanced its service delivery and has made major improvements to its annual action plans, the follow-up on its activities as well as its accountability.

24 5.3.6 However, there has been no satisfactory follow-up on 6 of the 12 recommendations. In particular, the Department has not responded to the work dealing with the optimal number of LEC, its actions concerning the number of microcomputers and the conformity of the surface areas occupied have not addressed the problems raised initially, the computer systems are still not user-friendly enough and the information that they generate is still incomplete. MANAGEMENT OF THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACT OF GAMBLING We did a follow-up on the report on the management of the social and economic impact

25 of gambling done in with seven entities, namely Loto-Québec, the ministère des Finances (MFQ), the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux (RACJ), the ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS), the regional health and social services boards of Montréal-Centre and the Outaouais, as well as the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ). Our work ended in September The objective of the initial report, published in chapter 12 of Volume I of the Report of the Auditor General to the National Assembly for , was to draw a portrait of the management of the social and economic impact of gambling in Québec. We wanted to make sure that the various stakeholders assumed, in a concerted fashion, their respective roles and responsibilities in this regard. Moreover, we wanted to obtain the assurance that the government obtained in a timely manner, sufficient, reliable and ongoing information allowing it to make enlightened decisions about gaming and the organization of the services that it offered to pathological gamblers The roles of the various stakeholders contacted at the time of the initial report have remained the same. Indeed, Loto-Québec is a corporation whose shares, which are part of the public domain, are held by the Minister of Finance. The function of Loto-Québec is to conduct and administer the lottery systems and run businesses that contribute to the operation of a State casino. The Minister of Finance is in charge of the application of the Act respecting the Société des loteries du Québec For its part, the RACJ is the regulatory authority responsible in particular for the administration of the Act respecting racing and the Act respecting lotteries, publicity contests and amusement machines. It oversees the application of the regulations relating to the lottery systems of the State casinos or video lotteries, regulations passed under the Act respecting the Société des loteries du Québec. Moreover, it must provide the Minister of Public Security with opinions on the social impacts of video lottery and casino activities, and the ensuing security measures. The RACJ can also hold public consultations for this purpose. It also can adopt rules concerning these same activities and various related subjects: publicity, promotion, educational program, categories of establishments, location of video lottery terminals, etc The MSSS, for its part, is mandated to establish orientations and objectives in the health and welfare field, which have been set out in a policy. Stakeholders of the health and social services network are directly dependent on the latter. The regional boards must implement the policy by organizing and coordinating the services on their territory as well as by allocating the necessary resources according to their respective needs To conclude, the mission of the INSPQ is to support the MSSS and the regional boards in the carrying out of their specific mission from a public health standpoint. Among other things, the INSPQ must inform the public on its state of health and welfare, emerging problems, their causes and the effective means to prevent or solve these problems. General conclusions Our follow-up work shows that 80 percent of our recommendations gave rise to Tangible actions on the part of the managers concerned. We are satisfied with the progress achieved in 60 percent of the cases, while being aware that the impacts of several steps taken recently must still be evaluated. Moreover, we encourage the stakeholders to continue their efforts. Table 1 presents the status of each of the recommendations made to the government Following our report, the main stakeholders took prompt action. Overall, the various players fully assumed their respective roles and responsibilities. The creation of an interministerial cooperation group chaired by the MSSS had made possible a dialogue

26 and greater cooperation between the departments and agencies Measures have been taken concerning the services to be offered to pathological gamblers, in particular the Experimental program on pathological gambling , the Government Action Plan on Pathological Gambling and the thematic research program on the socioeconomic impact of gambling However, the government does not yet have a definition to evaluate the supply of gambling activities in Québec. Moreover, it still does not have sufficient and reliable information allowing it to make enlightened decisions regarding gambling.