44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 16, 2024 10:00AM
- Feb/16/24 11:29:21 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, this question has already been answered a number of times over the past few days, and again today. The answer is the same. The Auditor General deserves our appreciation. She has done solid and important work over the past few months, leading to the tabling of a troubling report on Monday.
The good news is that many of her recommendations were implemented some time ago now. However, the work continues to move forward. It is important to ensure that the public service is doing its job properly, even in times of crisis.
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- Feb/16/24 11:30:00 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, 60 million taxpayer dollars wasted, fraud, forgery and corruption; that is arrive scam and the Liberals have tried to cover up the scandal every step of the way. They obstructed parliamentary committees, they attempted to obstruct an investigation by the Auditor General and now they are obstructing an RCMP criminal investigation.
When will the Liberals stop the obstruction and turn over the documents to the RCMP?
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- Feb/16/24 11:30:33 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, as I have said before, there is no obstruction here. On the contrary, the Auditor General must have all the documents she needs to do her job, because the Auditor General's work is critical to the integrity of our democratic and parliamentary system. That is why she was given access to all necessary documents over the past few months, and why she is able, as she clearly stated, to provide these documents to any other partner, including the RCMP, upon request.
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- Feb/16/24 11:31:07 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the RCMP needs access to the documents so that people can be held to account for this waste. The NDP-Liberal government's waste of at least $60 million on the arrive scam app, which wrongly put 10,000 people into mandatory quarantine, was so bad that the RCMP are investigating, and it needs access to these documents. After eight years, Canadians deserve better. They deserve accountability and transparency.
Why have the Liberals not released these documents and what are they trying to hide?
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- Feb/16/24 11:31:39 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is a little disturbing to hear the Conservative MPs question the integrity of the Auditor General.
The Auditor General has said very clearly over the past few days that she was not only willing and able to work with the RCMP, but she was already doing so and providing the RCMP with all the information it wants.
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- Feb/16/24 11:32:05 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, to be clear, I am not questioning the integrity of the Auditor General. I am questioning the integrity of the government that is hiding these documents from the RCMP. Canadians deserve accountability. Somebody needs to be held to account for the waste of $60 million that went to a shady IT company that had two people working in a basement.
Why have the Liberals not released these documents? Release them now.
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- Feb/16/24 11:32:56 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are sure that the opposition member is not also suggesting that the RCMP is incapable of doing its work.
The RCMP and the Auditor General operate at arm's length from the government; they can work very well together without any political or partisan influence.
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- Feb/16/24 11:33:20 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, Canadians are in shock. They paid 750 times more for the ArriveCAN app than planned. The Auditor General is also shocked. She said it is probably some of the worst record-keeping she has ever seen.
After eight years of this incompetent government, ArriveCAN is another example in a long list of abuses. The ArriveCAN app is just like the Prime Minister: It is not worth the cost.
Will he join us in calling on the RCMP to expand its investigation based on the revelations in the Auditor General's report?
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- Feb/16/24 11:33:53 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, there are two points that I believe have already been explained well, yet are important to reiterate.
Just a few months ago, Canada experienced the worst pandemic in a century, the worst economic crisis since the 1930s. The public service had to respond quickly and effectively to save the lives of thousands of Canadians; costs were in the billions of dollars per week.
Unfortunately, this work was not done by the book. As the Auditor General stated on Monday, it is unacceptable that people in the public service and at the Canada Border Services Agency in particular failed to do—
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- Feb/16/24 11:34:31 a.m.
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The hon. member for Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis.
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- Feb/16/24 11:34:35 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the government has to answer for this. Were it not for the Conservatives, Canadians would not have found out anything about the ArriveCAN app scandal. It has been chaos since this government took office eight years ago. This Prime Minister is not worth the cost.
The ArriveCAN scandal involves two men in the basement of a bungalow who received millions of dollars to develop an app that should have cost $80,000. This company received a large share of contracts, many without a bidding process.
It is a free-for-all with the Liberal Party. The Conservative Party wants the RCMP to broaden its investigation in light of the Auditor General's troubling revelations.
Do you have the courage to ask for that?
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- Feb/16/24 11:35:07 a.m.
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I would remind the hon. member that she must address her questions through the Chair and not directly to the government.
The hon. minister.
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- Feb/16/24 11:35:21 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, our colleague is quite right in pointing out the essential work of the Auditor General.
We need the Auditor General to do the kind of investigation that she was able to do over the past few months in co-operation with CBSA officials. She did her work. She tabled her report on Monday. Her findings are shocking and alarming. Her recommendations must be taken into account. Most of her recommendations have already been in place for a few weeks.
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- Feb/16/24 11:35:53 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Auditor General's report is an endless chain of scandals.
That an app estimated to cost $80,000 should end up costing at least $60 million is already unacceptable. That the real cost will never be known because of missing documents makes it even more unacceptable. That GC Strategies was in a position to draft the call for proposals itself, to make sure it would win, makes it more unacceptable still.
However, that this two-person company, which delivers no services, has received at least 140 other contracts since 2010 is utterly outrageous.
When will an independent investigation into each of these contracts be launched?
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- Feb/16/24 11:36:31 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the key word in the Auditor General's report is “documentation”. That documentation was flawed, incomplete, improperly stored and unsharable.
Indeed, it forms the central focus of the Auditor General's findings, and that is why we are continuing to move forward with the work that now needs to be done.
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- Feb/16/24 11:36:55 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, apparently the bookkeeping has been bad since 2010. Maybe this should have been addressed sooner.
The wasteful spending on ArriveCAN continued after the pandemic under the CBSA's new president. At least $12 million more was invested in contracts with consultants, just for ArriveCAN. Clearly there is still a complete lack of accountability at the CBSA today.
Will the government put the CBSA under third-party management?
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- Feb/16/24 11:37:28 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank our colleague for the question.
Every day, the Canada Border Services Agency plays an essential role in facilitating and allowing the flow of hundreds of thousands of travellers and billions of dollars in goods.
This was even more important during the pandemic, when Canadians were relying on the arrival of vital drugs, personal protective equipment, and equipment parts that were absolutely essential for businesses, including in the opposition member's riding.
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- Feb/16/24 11:38:02 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the arrive scam app is just like the Prime Minister, not worth the cost and not worth the corruption.
The RCMP is investigating this $80,000 app which cost more than $60 million. The Auditor General said it will take a court order for the RCMP to get access to all the documents in this Liberal corruption.
Will the Prime Minister stop his cover-up, not make the police seek a court order, and hand over all the documents, voluntarily, to the police and to Parliament, so Canadians can learn the truth?
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- Feb/16/24 11:38:37 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the member is correct when he points to the ability and expertise of the RCMP, the Auditor General and other institutions to work together. They know how to do their jobs.
They do not need political processes that politicians use to do their jobs. The RCMP, the Auditor General and all of the other independent organizations on which Canadians have the fortune to depend know what to do.
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- Feb/16/24 11:39:06 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the institution that is covering up is that Liberal cabinet and that Liberal minister. If the Prime Minister has nothing to hide, why does the RCMP need a court order? Release the documents voluntarily. A government with nothing to hide would produce these documents for the police without a court order. The arrive scam app is not worth the cost and the Prime Minister is not worth the corruption.
Will the Prime Minister end this cover-up, release all the arrive scam documents voluntarily, stop the cover-up and turn it over to the police and Parliament, so Canadians can get the truth?
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