Photo: The Canadian Press

British Columbia's auditor general rapped the province Thursday for dropping its public progress reports on a commission of inquiry that reviewed the disappearances of 67 women — some of them victims of serial killer Robert Pickton — from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.

Carol Bellringer said the tragedies continue to affect families and communities, and the government must keep British Columbians informed of its progress in meeting more than 60 recommendations from the inquiry.

She said the government stopped public reporting in 2014, two years after former attorney general Wally Oppal tabled his report.

"Given the seriousness of the underlying causes that were definitely commented on in the inquiry's report, having some further information to know exactly what has been done is critical," Bellringer told reporters on a conference call.

"I don't know when the ending date is, but two years just doesn't seem enough to us."

Bellringer said the government told her investigators it had publicly delivered its key messages and results from the inquiry.

Attorney General Suzanne Anton said the government accepted Bellringer's report and will resume public reporting next year, three years after its last report.

"We've heard the auditor general and she has expressed an interest we do more comprehensive reporting, so we will be doing that," she said.

Anton said the work to implement the commission's recommendations is ongoing.

"It was a dreadful time and the report the commissioner did in 2012 and the recommendations were very important to all of us and continue to be important," she said.

Anton said the next public report will likely also include information about the national inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.

Oppal's report detailed systemic police failures that allowed Pickton to target sex workers and recommended support for families of victims.

Bellringer's report said the government has established a compensation fund for the children of victims, but has made little progress helping their families.

The government has yet to appoint a new chairman of an advisory committee on the safety and security of vulnerable women since the resignation of former lieutenant-governor Steven Point three years ago, she said.