A new report from the province’s auditor general says the government is not doing enough to fund universities or to hold them accountable for spending, which means they could spend some public funds on whatever they would like.

The 10 universities in Nova Scotia have received $2.5 billion from the government over the past five years, according to a new report from Auditor General Kim Adair published Tuesday.

The Education Department said it was concerned about the long-term financial stability of some schools in May of 2023, but schools still did not have to be accountable for their spending to get the money when Adair and her office began the Audit, she said.

Part of the university funding, $1.9 billion, is for unconditional grants, which means the universities can use that money for whatever they choose.

“As there are no restrictions on this funding, the universities could freely decide to spend it on areas such as student aid, routine maintenance, staff salaries or executive compensation,” Adair said.

The province introduced legislation in February related to university accountability, but it was not part of the audit.

Adair said the government needs to improve funding agreements so universities can be held accountable for how they spend public funds.

She makes several recommendations as part of the report, and the government has accepted all the recommendations.

For a full list, check out the audit report.

More to come…