PM Trudeau welcomes study into McKinsey contracts as MPs agree to launch probe

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he welcomes the work of a House committee that will be looking into the federal government's contracts with the consulting firm McKinsey and Company, 'to make sure that, indeed, Canadians are getting proper value for money.'

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he welcomes the work of a House committee that will be looking into the federal government’s contracts with the consulting firm McKinsey and Company, “to make sure that, indeed, Canadians are getting proper value for money.”

On Wednesday afternoon, the House of Commons Government Operations and Estimates Committee met and agreed to launch a study, after it came to light that there has been a surge in McKinsey’s federal contract earnings under the Liberals.

This week, the government confirmed that, since 2015, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) has awarded McKinsey 23 contracts for a total of $101.4 million, up from the $2.2 million spent under Stephen Harper’s Conservatives.

Today’s meeting was requested by opposition members of the committee with the Conservatives, Bloc Quebecois, and New Democrats.

Following calls from the opposition to study McKinsey’s relationship with the federal government — plus questions about the consulting company’s influence on government policies, and criticisms the government is wasting federal funds by contracting out what could be accomplished by the public service — Trudeau announced last week he’s asked two ministers to “look into” the contracts and ensure the rules were followed.

“I think people can understand that a professional public service needs to make sure that it's doing the things the best way, to well serve Canadians, and regularly draws on outside expertise to do that,” the prime minister told reporters during a media availability in Shawinigan, Que. on Wednesday morning, ahead of the committee meeting.

According to a statement from Procurement Minister Helena Jaczek’s office, of the contracts granted by the Liberals, three of them, valued at $55.8 million, were “awarded through open, competitive solicitations,” versus 18 contracts, valued at $45.6 million, were “call-ups against a National Master Standing Offer designed to provide access to proprietary benchmarking methodologies offered by the private sector.”