A report from the Privy Council expresses alarm over decreasing confidence in Canada’s democracy and states federal managers should be disciplined for incompetence or corruption. According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the document by deputy ministers cited “decreasing confidence in Canada’s democracy” since the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Privy Council recommending “consequences for violations regardless of level or position” for managers who breach a federal Ethics Code, without elaborating what those measures should be. The Code was first established in 2003 following a sponsorship scandal that uncovered a $100 million fraud ring in the Department of Public Works, where one federal manager and three contractors were sent to jail.“Measures of decreasing of confidence in Canada’s democracy are cause for concern,” said the Value And Ethics Report to The Clerk Of The Privy Council. “Citizens rightfully expect publicly funded institutions to deliver services effectively and efficiently.”The report noted a “lack of consequences and accountability” for corrupt or incompetent managers. “There is a perceived lack of accountability or a ‘double standard’ between senior leadership and employees when it comes to compliance and enforcement of the Value And Ethics Code For The Public Sector,” it said.“We know the playbook,” one contributor wrote in the report. “If an executive gets their hand slapped they are moved into a special project, promoted or moved. We see this so often. It’s well understood.”“The pandemic dramatically changed how the public service works, impacted citizens’ trust in public institutions, increased their expectations and diminished their overall satisfaction with government services,” said the Report to The Clerk, without citing specific examples.“There appear to be few if any consequences for senior leaders who act in contravention of values or ethics as compared to consequences imposed upon employees,” wrote deputies, adding public cynicism had “far-reaching implications for governance, public trust and the well-being of our society."Procurement Ombudsman Alexander Jeglic, along with a team of auditors, found numerous irregularities surrounding COVID-related contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars. “This year stakeholders contacted my office 30 times with concerns about the behaviour of federal officials being inconsistent with the Values And Ethics Code For The Public Sector,” Jeglic wrote in a November 14 Annual Report to Parliament. “Concerns about questionable federal procurement activities have negatively impacted public trust.”“I remain concerned regarding negative trends related to the lack of competitive processes and deficient documentation practices that continue to pose problems and undermine transparency in federal procurement,” wrote Jeglic.In October, Liberal MPs on the Commons health committee rejected a public inquiry into federal pandemic management including sweetheart contracting, according to Blacklock's Reporter. “Confidence has been tested and it has been shaken,” New Democrat MP Don Davies told the committee. “The only way to restore confidence in the public is to have the courage to have a full, broad, root to branch, transparent and searching public inquiry into how the COVID-19 pandemic was handled.”
A report from the Privy Council expresses alarm over decreasing confidence in Canada’s democracy and states federal managers should be disciplined for incompetence or corruption. According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the document by deputy ministers cited “decreasing confidence in Canada’s democracy” since the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Privy Council recommending “consequences for violations regardless of level or position” for managers who breach a federal Ethics Code, without elaborating what those measures should be. The Code was first established in 2003 following a sponsorship scandal that uncovered a $100 million fraud ring in the Department of Public Works, where one federal manager and three contractors were sent to jail.“Measures of decreasing of confidence in Canada’s democracy are cause for concern,” said the Value And Ethics Report to The Clerk Of The Privy Council. “Citizens rightfully expect publicly funded institutions to deliver services effectively and efficiently.”The report noted a “lack of consequences and accountability” for corrupt or incompetent managers. “There is a perceived lack of accountability or a ‘double standard’ between senior leadership and employees when it comes to compliance and enforcement of the Value And Ethics Code For The Public Sector,” it said.“We know the playbook,” one contributor wrote in the report. “If an executive gets their hand slapped they are moved into a special project, promoted or moved. We see this so often. It’s well understood.”“The pandemic dramatically changed how the public service works, impacted citizens’ trust in public institutions, increased their expectations and diminished their overall satisfaction with government services,” said the Report to The Clerk, without citing specific examples.“There appear to be few if any consequences for senior leaders who act in contravention of values or ethics as compared to consequences imposed upon employees,” wrote deputies, adding public cynicism had “far-reaching implications for governance, public trust and the well-being of our society."Procurement Ombudsman Alexander Jeglic, along with a team of auditors, found numerous irregularities surrounding COVID-related contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars. “This year stakeholders contacted my office 30 times with concerns about the behaviour of federal officials being inconsistent with the Values And Ethics Code For The Public Sector,” Jeglic wrote in a November 14 Annual Report to Parliament. “Concerns about questionable federal procurement activities have negatively impacted public trust.”“I remain concerned regarding negative trends related to the lack of competitive processes and deficient documentation practices that continue to pose problems and undermine transparency in federal procurement,” wrote Jeglic.In October, Liberal MPs on the Commons health committee rejected a public inquiry into federal pandemic management including sweetheart contracting, according to Blacklock's Reporter. “Confidence has been tested and it has been shaken,” New Democrat MP Don Davies told the committee. “The only way to restore confidence in the public is to have the courage to have a full, broad, root to branch, transparent and searching public inquiry into how the COVID-19 pandemic was handled.”
