The man who into the expenses of former Fraser Health CEO Dr. Nigel Murray and other senior administrators says the results weren鈥檛 scandalous and merely turned up the need for tighter rules.
Wynne Powell, who was tasked with turning around the beleaguered organization when he was appointed acting chair of Fraser Health, says that while the audit turned up some receipts that didn鈥檛 abide by policy, nothing suggested the widespread misuse of expense accounts.
The audit was made public this week after a freedom of information request by The News. It looked at 12 senior administrators鈥� expenses over five years. A subsequent report said that while most spending was accounted for, more than 400 detailed receipts were missing for some $22,000 worth of meals. That made it impossible for auditors to determine who was eating or whether alcohol was being claimed as an expense. The audit also revealed that executives used a company credit card to buy $1,600 worth of electronics, including Bose headphones and an iTunes card. Most of the purchases were made by then-CEO Nigel Murray, the audit said. Murray is now at the centre of an expenses scandal in New Zealand, where he returned after being fired by Powell in May of 2014.
Powell, the former CEO of London Drugs, said said he ordered the audit as part of a regular process to ensure all regulations were being followed. He said the audit was thorough and 鈥渆xtremely well done.鈥�
Powell, who has a background in accounting, said the normal mindset is 鈥渢rust but verify.鈥�
Despite the scandal in New Zealand, Powell said his views on the audit鈥檚 outcome hasn鈥檛 changed.
Based on the figures included in the report, each meal claimed would have been for a little more than $50. Powell said that while protecting the public purse was important, 鈥淚n the grand scheme of things, the overall expenses didn鈥檛 seem excessive.鈥�
Powell said interviews with job applicants are frequently conducted over dinner. While rules were 鈥渢ightened鈥� to ensure administrators complied with Fraser Health鈥檚 expense policy, no major alarm bells went off. Those expense claims for which Murray did not provide receipts were approved at the time by the chair of the health board.
Powell also recalled the circumstances of Murray鈥檚 2014 dismissal. He said the board 鈥渉ad identified [Murray鈥檚] best role in the health system,鈥� and that it wasn鈥檛 heading Fraser Health. In a May meeting, Murray was instead told he was being removed as CEO of Fraser Health, but could take a job as 鈥淧rovincial Senior Executive lead鈥� in Victoria.
鈥淗e would have had the same challenges he had at Fraser,鈥� Powell said.
Powell said the meeting wasn鈥檛 confrontational, and that the suggested position of 鈥淧rovincial Senior Executive lead鈥� was not 鈥渁 made-up opportunity.鈥� But he said it became 鈥渁 mute point鈥� when Murray turned it down, citing a sick father in New Zealand. With Murray out of the picture, Powell said the province had to find another qualified high-level candidate for the position.
In New Zealand, Murray is repaying around $70,000 worth of improper expenses incurred during his three years as head of the Waikato District Health Board. Bob Simcock, the health board chair who approved those expenses, was forced to resign, and . An inquiry also found that Murray spent half of his last year travelling, and billed his employer for more than $200,000 in travel expenses.
Fraser Health has not asked Murray to repay any money because, a spokesperson said, all his expenses had been approved by the health authority鈥檚 chair at the time.
tolsen@abbynews.com
Like us on and follow us on .
