Audit finds oversight of public sector board appointments is mostly effective

Press Release

February 25, 2025

VICTORIA – The provincial office that oversees appointments to public sector boards provided effective oversight, with two shortcomings found after an independent audit by the Office of the Auditor General.

The audit examined the Crown Agencies and Board Resourcing Office (CABRO) and the support it provides to around 230 public sector boards. There are about 2,000 board chairs and directors appointed by government to oversee organizations such as Crown corporations, health authorities, and universities.

CABRO works with boards and ministries to make recommendations to government about board appointments and ensure boards have members who are qualified, dedicated, and diverse.

The audit focused on whether CABRO ensured:

⦁ boards or ministries had plans to mitigate conflicts of interest;

⦁ appointments and reappointments were done in a timely way;

⦁ boards identified competency and diversity needs; and

⦁ boards assessed the performance of members seeking reappointment.

“We found that, generally, CABRO had good oversight processes for board appointments,” Acting Auditor General Sheila Dodds said. “There are a couple of areas for improvement, but they didn’t impact CABRO’s overall effectiveness.”

CABRO has accepted the audit’s two recommendations to improve the support it gives to boards to assess competency and diversity needs and to mitigate declared conflicts of interest.

B.C. public sector organizations deliver important services, programs, and infrastructure. Their boards are mandated to ensure organizations use resources appropriately and serve the public interest.