HALIFAX — For the fourth year in a row, Nova Scotia’s auditor general is recommending stronger oversight on how the provincial government spends money not included in the budget.

Kim Adair’s annual report released today says there was $1.6 billion in spending in the 2024-25 fiscal year that wasn’t first authorized by a majority vote in the legislature.

She says that since the 2020-21 fiscal year the government has spent more than $6.7 billion outside the budget process.

And Adair’s report suggests that extra money didn’t go to paying down the province’s $20.8-billion net debt, a figure she says weakens Nova Scotia’s financial position.

Despite an operating surplus in the 2024-25 fiscal year of $265 million, Nova Scotia’s net debt grew for a fifth consecutive year.

She says the province has run an operating surplus for four of the past five years — totalling $5.8 billion — adding that it appears the government used that money to increase spending.

The province’s annual spending for 2024-25 hit $18 billion — up by $5.4 billion or 43 per cent — since 2021-22.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 13, 2026.

The Canadian Press