Auditor general says CRA's 'lack of rigour' in CERB and other pandemic benefits recovery efforts means majority of overpayments not likely to be recovered
Canada’s auditor general says a “minimum” of $27.4 billion in suspicious COVID-19 benefit payments need to be investigated because the government did not manage the aid programs efficiently, and it will likely fail to recover “significant” amounts in overpayments.
That’s in addition to $4.6 billion in confirmed government overpayments solely in double-dipping applications for the various COVID-19 aid programs launched within the first months of the pandemic, according to a new report by Auditor General Karen Hogan published Tuesday.
The 92-page report highlights the government’s success in setting up six aid programs that doled out a total of $210 billion to individuals and companies quickly in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing lockdowns.
