SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 301

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 17, 2024 02:00PM
Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola (Beauport—Limoilou, BQ)
  • Apr/17/24 3:57:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will begin this question period by reminding members of some of the things I said in my speech last week. Sadly, we are dealing with an historic situation caused by various issues. One of those issues is the inconsistencies in some of the information we received from the witness, as well as the inconsistencies between that information and the information we received from other sources. Then, there is the time it took to receive written responses and requested documents, which was unusual and, in some cases, took as long as 18 months. Having said that, I must point out that the responses were received, although they were delayed, and it took some time and urging. As I was saying, the purpose of my questions today will be to understand the processes, and to identify flaws in the public service, how it operates and its procedures. I am not a court, and have no intention of being one. I urge members not to become a people's court or be taken in, and focus on our role: find flaws in the system, organization and processes in order to correct those flaws. It is important to specify that these flaws have been around for a while. Several processes were put in place years ago, including by Ms. Ambrose, the Conservative minister at the time. Here is my first question: I would like to know what skills and training are needed to become a talent recruiter.
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 3:58:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is hard to make a name for oneself, to become known in the huge government machinery. I would like to know how the witness' company has managed to establish itself as a key player in recruiting talent for the Government of Canada.
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 3:59:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I was talking about what happened long before ArriveCAN. I was talking about what happened at the very beginning, when GC Strategies first became a company recognized by the Government of Canada. How did that happen? How did the company make its mark?
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 4:00:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, so, if I understand correctly, the first contracts he received, he received them before he even knew exactly how it all worked. If I remember correctly, these first contracts were awarded back in 2015, when GC Strategies was founded. Despite not knowing exactly how it all worked, he managed to get contracts. I would like to understand that.
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 4:01:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, does the witness believe that civil servants in general, and those working on ArriveCAN in particular, followed the rules, procedures and policies related to their strategic and privileged position within the government apparatus when negotiating the contracts his company won?
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 4:02:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, does the witness believe that public servants complied with the rules, procedures and policies related to their strategic and privileged position within the government apparatus in negotiating contracts for GC Strategies?
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 4:02:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I understand that the witness is not familiar with the rules of the public service. However, did any public servant with whom he had contact tell him, at any time, that they could not do certain things that did not abide by the rules that apply to public servants?
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 4:03:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it has been noted, particularly by the Auditor General, that people from GC Strategies helped develop the criteria for a contract that they ultimately won. Does the witness believe that any company that participates in developing criteria should withdraw from a call for tenders?
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Context: House Hansard - 301 - Apr/17/24
Mrs. Julie Vignola
  • Apr/17/24 4:04:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, based on what I understand from the answers to my last questions, the public service is currently forced, or feels obliged, to seek out the expertise of certain consultants because it cannot even identify or formulate criteria related to its own needs. That indicates a lack of expertise, and a lack of training. In particular, I would add that it makes no sense for a company that worked on selecting the criteria for a bidding process to be allowed to submit a bid. It creates the appearance of collusion, something that public servants, and companies, must absolutely avoid. That should be avoided. I recommend that the process be reviewed.
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