In an unprecedented move, Premier Dennis Fentie released an interim financial update this morning.

Neither Fentie nor Deputy Finance Minister Bruce McLennan could pinpoint a time such a release has been provided in the past.

The move comes following the publication of an article in the Yukon News on June 30 that suggested the territory is running a $13-million deficit position.

The article was based on a report by Statistics Canada, which showed numbers at odds with the $793-million budget tabled by Fentie last spring.

The Yukon's main estimates at that time showed the territory would have a $38.6-million surplus connected to its net financial resources.

'(The release of the interim report is) related to what I would call, and I mean no offense to anybody, irresponsible reporting in making a bold statement that the Yukon Territory is in deficit. That is not the case,' Fentie told reporters.

'When statements are made, such as the deficit position of the Yukon, those kinds of statements challenge and put into question the credibility of those individuals in the Department of Finance who are charged with the responsibility of keeping Yukon's books.

'It's my responsibility to correct the public record and that's what I'm doing,' he said.

The interim update shows the territory's financial situation has improved since the budget was tabled on March 30.

The net financial resources for 2005/2006 fiscal year are now being placed at $69 million.

The projections for this year's end are at $40.7 million, with an accumulated surplus expected to hit $475.7 million.

By 2008/2009, the accumulated surplus is projected to hit the $500.4-million mark.

The projected revenue for this fiscal year is forecast to be $657.6 million, while expenditures are currently booked at $696.4 million.

With the $44.8 million the Yukon had left in the bank at the end of the 2005/2006 fiscal year, the territory is still expected to have $17.4-million surplus at year-end, despite the spending.

'Yukon's finances are in a very healthy shape and we show through our fiscal framework that this territory is finally headed toward balanced budgets in the very near future,' said Fentie.

'When we came into office in 2002, there was no cash. Today we have millions of dollars in the bank, because we, upon taking office, applied cash management principles. Instead of being cash poor, we have significant cash available today.'

The difference between the numbers released in the Yukon's budget and those contained in the Statistics Canada report, released in June, are a result of two different methods of accounting, said Fentie, who is also the territory's Finance Minister.

The Government of Canada, along with the provinces and territories, switched to the full accrual accounting method in late-2004. It spreads out the value of all assets, including buildings and roads, and spreads them over their expected lives.

Statistics Canada instead uses a modified cash basis system, includes the expenses of boards, such as the Yukon Workers' Compensation Health and Safety Board, and adopts the use of estimates not used in the territory, said McLennan.

'It's not that it's an incorrect number. It's a different number, that doesn't really represent our financial position,' said McLennan. 'They use a methodology that doesn't capture all the elements of our financial statements.'

Comparing the two methods is like comparing apples to oranges, said Fentie.

'It's been evident in the past Statistics Canada has been wrong in counting heads here in the Yukon. Obviously, in this situation, they are wrong in counting dollars,' he said.

Statistics Canada doesn't have to adopt the policies and practices that are directed by the Auditor General of Canada, said Fentie, but the Yukon does.

'They are using a methodology that is outside the parameters that the provinces and territory manage their finances. Rightly or wrongly, that is the process they use, but it does not in any way, shape or form represent the reality of the situation in the Yukon. Period.'

The information collected by Statistics Canada is meant to be viewed by more of an international audience, said McLennan, adding globally there are still regions that have not adopted full accrual. It, however, he said, is quickly becoming the accepted method worldwide.

Statistics Canada can be a good source of information for economists, he said, and is also valuable for historians.

'It's just not a really accurate snapshot of the situation today.'

Fentie said releasing the interim report on the territory's finances will also be important in light of the pending territorial election, which he must call by November.

'What I think is very positive about the announcement today is that we're a government that is fully disclosing to Yukoners where we are at before an election,' he said.

'(It's a) good challenge to the opposition if they want to start making oodles and oodles of promises with respect to expenditure of taxpayers' money here in the territory. This is where we're at.'