2. Accounting changes

During 2011, amendments were made to Treasury Board Accounting Standard 1.2 - Departmental and Agency Financial Statements to improve financial reporting by government departments and agencies. The amendments are effective for financial reporting of fiscal years ending March 31, 2012, and later. The significant changes to the Agency’s financial statements are described below. These changes have been applied retroactively, and comparative information for 2010-11 has been restated.

Net debt (calculated as liabilities less financial assets) is now presented in the Statement of Financial Position. Accompanying this change, the Agency now presents a Statement of Change in Net Debt and no longer presents a Statement of Equity of Canada.

Revenue and related accounts receivable are now presented net of non-respendable amounts in the Statement of Operations and Agency Net Financial Position and Statement of Financial Position. The effect of this change was to increase the net cost of operations after government funding and transfers by $945,000 for 2012 ($529,000 for 2011) and decrease total financial assets by $981,000 for 2012 ($846,000 for 2011).

Government funding and transfers, as well as the credit related to services provided without charge by other government departments, are now recognized in the Statement of Operations and Agency Net Financial Position below "Net cost of operations before government funding and transfers.’’ In previous years, the Agency recognized these transactions directly in the Statement of Equity of Canada. The effect of this change was to decrease the net cost of operations after government funding and transfers by $758,160,000 for 2012 ($793,776,000 for 2011).