Question Period Note: Spending on professional, special services and travel

Public Services and Procurement Canada is exploring ways to reduce its use of certain professional and special services and travel.

• The government of Canada is committed to spending less on certain professional services. Public Services and Procurement Canada is monitoring its professional and special services spending and is looking to reduce spending in management consulting services. It expects to report decreases in this area for fiscal year 2025 to 2026
  • As the department moves into groundbreaking on major infrastructure projects, the use of specialized resources (i.e., construction, engineering and architectural services) can be expected to rise, reflecting the Government of Canada’s limited internal capacity in these areas
  • We continue to take proactive measures to reduce expenditures in certain categories of professional services, such as management consulting and similar professional consultants

If pressed on travel:

• consultants’ travel expenses can be included in the overall contract cost or outlined and billed separately. Travel claims submitted for reimbursement are reviewed to ensure compliance with Government of Canada directives
• travel costs for non-public servants are monitored and ceilings are established as the Government of Canada is committed to spending less on these types of expenses

Parliamentary inquiries, audits of the Office of the Auditor General and reviews of the Office of the Procurement Ombud on federal government spending on professional services contracts have generated negative media attention and have raised concerns about taxpayer dollars that are spent on professional services.

In addition to the policy direction issued by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat in October 2023 in The Manager’s Guide: Key Considerations when Procuring Professional Services; Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) has taken action to strengthen existing controls and has implemented measures to ensure proper oversight of public funds, clear accountability and documented decision-making.

Historically, PSPC’s professional services expenditures have been concentrated in construction services, other services (primarily for remediation of contaminated sites), engineering and architectural services, business services (primarily for real estate services), and informatics services (primarily in support of the pay system). This spending pattern reflects areas where internal capacity is limited and external specialized expertise is required to support mandate delivery.

Some travel expenses related to consultants may be included within the overall professional and special services expenditures; however, the available financial data do not allow quantification of these amounts.

Total travel expenditures for the department in 2024 to 2025 amounted to $16.4 million, including $10.5 million for travel by public servants and $5.9 million for travel by non-public servants. Travel by non-public servants may include consultants, but also covers other categories, including ministers and their exempt staff.

• In Budget 2025, the Government of Canada committed to reducing spending on certain professional and special services and travel, as part of its objective to meet up to 15% in operating savings over 3 years. These reductions will be implemented progressively between fiscal years 2026 to 2027 and 2028 to 2029 as part of the Comprehensive Expenditure Review
  • In fiscal year 2024 to 2025, Public Services and Procurement Canada spent $3.04 billion on professional and special services (primarily on construction, engineering and architectural, in addition to management consulting and other services)
  • The fiscal year 2026 to 2027 Main Estimates project Public Services and Procurement Canada spending of $3.1 billion on professional services, representing a planned increase of 1.5% compared to actual expenditures from 2024 to 2025, but a 15% decrease from 2025 to 2026 Main Estimates. The planned $3.1 billion amount reflects the anticipated spending levels based on historical trends and adjusted to align with the overall funding outlined in the Main Estimates. It may differ from actual expenditures, which are only available at the time the Public Accounts are prepared
  • Some examples of large multi-year projects expected to incur professional services expenditures in 2026 to 2027 are the Centre Block major rehabilitation, Place du Portage III renewal, and Block 2 redevelopment projects. The annual expenditures fluctuate in accordance with project schedules