Federal managers continue to escape scrutiny despite billions spent on indigenous programs, Conservative MPs warned Tuesday, as cabinet refused to discuss any consequences for officials who fail to deliver results.“Has anybody been fired?” asked MP Jamie Schmale (Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes, Ont.) during a Commons Indigenous and Northern affairs committee session. “We get the reports that come out and many times the department fails to meet its own standards that it set. We’re growing here, we’re getting bigger in the department, but no one is being held accountable.”Blacklock's Reporter says since 2015, spending on indigenous programs has skyrocketed from $10.3 billion to $46.5 billion, according to Public Accounts. The old Department of Indian Affairs was replaced by two new departments — Crown-Indigenous Relations and Indigenous Services — resulting in 1,683 new federal employees over five years. .When the departments were created in 2017, then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said it was a step toward ending the Indian Act.Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty defended the departments but emphasized that Canadians expect results. “Those are the services and programs that residents expect us to deliver, that they want their tax dollars to go to,” she said. “That is the way I am approaching our department’s budget as well as reviewing all of our current systems and processes.”Schmale pressed on accountability. “Is there any kind of accountability?” he asked. Alty responded, “It is a continuous review of the process.”.“Has anybody been fired or anything, reprimanded, or told they have to come to the office five days a week?” Schmale continued. “Any personnel issue I wouldn’t be able to discuss,” Alty replied.The Conservative MP argued results remain lacking, citing slow responses to emergencies and insufficient monitoring of programs. A 2023 Commons committee testimony from then-Budget Officer Yves Giroux confirmed the concern, noting that increased spending had not produced a proportional improvement in outcomes.“Most of the increase in funding relates to the agenda of the current government which has made a point of increasing funding for services and programs,” Giroux said. “However, it was uncommon to spend so much and get so little. It’s not common to see a level of increase of that magnitude that is not accompanied by a significant improvement of performance indicators.”
