This release is also available in French.
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OTTAWA — The Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources, commented on the decision by the new Board of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) to release the report of a special examination of the Crown corporation prepared by the Auditor General for Canada.
Under the Financial Administration Act, all Crown corporations must undergo a special examination of this type at least once every five years.
“AECL is an important public asset, and releasing this report gives Canadians an opportunity to understand more about how the company works and some of the challenges it is facing,” said Minister Lunn. “I’m proud that the Government of Canada is already taking care of these challenges.”
The report of the Auditor General focussed on the need to address long-standing strategic challenges relating to the Advanced CANDU Reactor program, the Dedicated Isotope Facility and the aging infrastructure at Chalk River Laboratories.
“We are in complete agreement with this finding. That is why I announced in November that my department will lead a comprehensive review of AECL,” said Minister Lunn. “This is what good governance is about. We want to make sure we have the information we need before we make any decisions that will affect AECL’s long-term future.”
Minister Lunn also noted that the Government has made a number of appointments to fill vacancies on the AECL Board of Directors, which helped to address another of the concerns of the Auditor General’s special examination on the issue of leadership at AECL.
The report of the Auditor General was completed well in advance of the licensing issue that led to the prolonged shut-down of the National Research Universal (NRU) Reactor that arose in late November 2007.
Media may contact:
Louise Girouard
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister
Natural Resources Canada
Ottawa
613-996-2007
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