Question Period Note: Outsourcing of Professional Services

There has been recent media attention on federal government spending on professional services contracts, noting a 40% increase between fiscal year 2015-16 and 2020-21. This information was sourced from the Public Accounts of Canada, tabled in the House of Commons on December 14, 2021. The House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) is currently carrying out a study on this issue. Budget 2023 proposes to reduce spending on consulting, other professional services, and travel by roughly 15 per cent of planned 2023-24 discretionary spending in these areas. This will result in savings of $7.1 billion over five years, starting in 2023-24, and $1.7 billion ongoing. The government will focus on targeting these reductions on professional services, particularly management consulting.

• Public Services and Procurement Canada and Shared Services Canada are committed to open, fair and transparent procurement processes
  • As common service provider, it provides procurement tools to support other departments in advancing policy and program objectives and the departments and agencies are responsible for identifying and defining their requirements
  • The decision to hire public servants or to pursue professional services contracts is made by departments and agencies based on multiple factors including the nature and duration of the activity and the availability of specialized skills or knowledge
  • The vast majority of Public Services and Procurement Canada contracts for goods and services are for work that cannot and has not been traditionally carried out by public servants such as construction services, renovation work, or ship building

If pressed on the growth in expenditures on professional services:

• Over the past decade, government expenditures on professional services have remained consistent relative to both total government expenditures and the total payroll for public servants

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