Auditor General of British Columbia
623 Fort Street
Victoria, B.C.
V8W 1G1
Dear Michael A. Pickup,
Thank you again for the opportunity to meet with you today to discuss the recovery effort in Lytton, and the possibility of an investigation by your office into various aspects of that effort.
We believe that a report is needed to review the public monies that have been spent thus far; to look into whether or not procurement processes were rigorous; and to determine who may be accountable for any failures or missteps in this important process.
We feel this request is well within the purview of your office, as outlined in the Auditor General Act:
- Sections 4-6, which grant your office the ability to audit government organizations, and more specifically sections regarding the transfer of money, loans and guarantees. This applies here, given that Lytton has received large amounts of funding from the Province.
- Section 13(3), which permits your office to conduct an investigation that is not at the request of the Legislative Assembly, if it is felt to be in the public interest. Since the rebuild of Lytton has seen little progress despite the large sums expended, we feel this is in the public interest.
As discussed in our meeting, please take some time to consider our request and we thank you in advance for your consideration. We care deeply about the people of Lytton, but remain concerned about the lack of progress more than two years after the devastating fire that destroyed this wonderful community. We must do everything we can to ensure this process is being conducted with integrity, so we can expedite the rebuild of this community and get residents home.
We must also ensure we learn from any mistakes that may have been made. If lessons are to be learned from the fire and from the rebuild of Lytton, a full and transparent report from your office is the only true way to uncover what worked and what didn’t and inform how we move forward to fill those gaps.
Sincerely,
Jackie Tegart, MLA
Fraser-Nicola
Peter Milobar, MLA
Kamloops-North Thompson
