The Premier has thrown out proposed changes to the auditor general’s job.
A recent bill would have given the province the authority to fire the auditor general without a significant reason. It would also have given the government power to keep those reports private.
In a social media post, Tim Houston said the goal was to modernize the job with best practices from across the country, but they never wanted to “change the existing Auditor General.”
“Sometimes things become something that they weren’t intended to be and I believe this is the case with the Auditor General related amendments,” Houston wrote.
The province’s Auditor General is the government watchdog, investigating their operations to see where things could be improved. In 2010, a report from Jacques Lapointe revealed a massive misuse of government funds, which lead to the RCMP charging four politicians.
Houston said he has “nothing but respect” for the work of the auditor general, which is why the PCs increased the budget for the Office of the Auditor General in this year’s budget.
“As always, we remain focused on what is in the best interests of Nova Scotians and believe an open and accountable government is part of that,” he wrote.
Houston said he asked the legislature to withdraw proposed changes to the Auditor General Act Monday afternoon.
Auditor General Kim Adair previously said the changes would take away the independence of her office, preventing her from doing her job properly.
“The groundswell of support for the work of the office has been overwhelming and appreciated since the Bill was first tabled a week ago,” Adair wrote in a statement on Monday.
She said she appreciates that Houston withdrew the amendments, and she and her team are thankful they had the chance to sit down with the Premier and his team.
“And now we look forward to getting back to work, focusing on producing impactful audit reports for the people of Nova Scotia.”
Two former auditor generals voiced their support for Adair ahead of the changes. Carol Bellringer, the former Auditor General for B.C. and Manitoba, along with Michael Pickup, who worked as the Auditor General in B.C. and Nova Scotia—both agreed with Adair, saying the legislation would erode the independence of the office.
NDP and Liberal MLAs also criticized Houston for the proposed bill.
Claudia Chender, leader of the NDP and the official opposition, said the premier has “finally admitted he was wrong” to propose those changes.
“Clearly, threatening her independence was never about being in line with other jurisdictions as the Conservatives claimed,” she said.
She added that, when the PCs make the new amendments available to her party, they will support the changes to “ensure the Auditor General’s office remains independent.”
