PACP – Committee & Appearance Overview – December 2, 2025

About the Committee

Committee Mandate

Pursuant to Standing Order 108(3)(g) of the House of Commons, the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (PACP) has a mandate to, among other matters:

review of and report on the Public Accounts of Canada and all reports of the Auditor General of Canada, which shall be severally deemed permanently referred to the Committee immediately after they are laid upon the table [...]

Motion for this Study

That all organizations that have been subject to a performance audit or a special examination by the Office of the Auditor General of Canada provide a detailed action plan to address the audit recommendations which have been agreed to—including specific actions, timelines for their completion and responsible individuals—to the committee and the Office of the Auditor General of Canada within six months of the audit being tabled in the House of Commons;

That organizations that are invited to appear before the committee to discuss the findings of an audit should provide an action plan to the committee no later than 48 hours prior to the hearing;

That action plans and progress reports received by the committee be published on the committee’s website.

Past Reports

Committee Report No. 44 - PACP (44-1)—House of Commons of Canada
Committee Report No. 43 - PACP (44-1)—House of Commons of Canada
Committee Report No. 42 - PACP (44-1)—House of Commons of Canada

About the Appearance

Environmental Scan

It is expected that opposition MPs will focus their questions on the perceived misuse of taxpayers’ dollars by hiring outside contractors. Opposition MPs will likely ask for updates on whether contracting within the Department is in fact competitive, if it is more transparent and if the Department is following proper procurement rules. Members may bring up past high-profile issues, for example ArriveCAN and digital transformation contracts, to broaden the narrative of systemic procurement mismanagement.

Questions from the Conservative Party are likely to be framed around allegations of improper use of taxpayers’ dollars and insider connections, raising concerns about the transparency of the procurement process and existing safeguards to ensure competitiveness

The Bloc Quebecois will focus on the respect for rules and integrity of public finances. The Bloc often criticizes the federal government for outsourcing expertise instead of strengthening the public service and will likely frame questions around that idea.

During the appearance, IRCC should emphasize oversight, accountability, and improvements, demonstrating showing that IRCC took the Auditor General’s recommendations seriously.

Appearance Details

IRCC is not specifically targeted in any of the Auditor General’s recommendations in this report. The Department is part of the report because it was one of the top users of professional services contracts in the Government of Canada. It is unknown if there will be room at the table for a supporting official with the Deputy, however, we recommend the following official to support the DM at the appearance: 

• Matthew Oommen, General Counsel, lead for the Tech and Digital Law Team.

We know the following departments/agencies will also be in attendance:

• Employment and Social Development Canada
• Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
• Canada Border Services Agency
• Business Development Bank of Canada
• Office of the Auditor General of Canada

Membership

Conservative Party of Canada

John Williamson
Saint John—St. Croix, NB
Chair of PACP

Gérard Deltell
Louis-Saint-Laurent—Akiawenhrahk, QC
Shadow Minister for Revenue
Member

Ned Kuruc
Hamilton East—Stoney Creeek, ON
Member

Stephanie Kusie
Calgary Midnapore, AB
Shadow Minister for the Treasury Board and the King’s Privy Council
Member

Bloc Quebecois

Sébastien Lemire
Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC
Vice-Chair of PACP
Critic for Aboriginal Relations, Northern Development, Sports, and Public Accounts

Liberal Party of Canada

Jean Yip
Scarborough—Agincourt, ON
Vice-Chair of PACP

Anthony Housefather
Mount Royal, QC
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience
Member

Tom Osborne
Cape Spear, NL
Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board
Member

Kristina Tesser Derksen
Milton East—Halton Hills South, ON
Member

Conservative Party of Canada

Top party Issues

Refugees

• Processing refugee claims faster on a last-in, first-out basis and implementing departure tracking to determine how many people are overstaying their visa.

Temporary Foreign Workers

• The CPC would make the Temporary Foreign Worker Program more restrictive, with additional requirements to hire Canadians and to limit the program to in-demand industries and farming. They have committed to collaborating with businesses facing labour shortages to help them access TFWs.

Processing Times and Client Service

• Processing refugee claims faster on a last-in, first-out basis.

Border / Asylum Issues

• The CPC have drawn a distinction between “fake” and “real” asylum seekers and have committed to deporting the former.

French Immigration

• The CPC have released a “Quebec platform,” in which they commit to respecting the spirit of the Canada-Quebec Accord vis-à-vis Quebec’s powers over immigration and opposing the century initiative. The leader has remarked he will work with Quebec to halve the number of temporary immigrants in Quebec.

Settlement and Integration

• The CPC leader has remarked that newcomers should leave problems abroad at home.

Levels

• Cap immigration levels and tie them to housing, labour market, and healthcare capacity.

Recent Party Activity

• October 29 – Debates: Claimed the Prime Minister increased spending on consultants by 37% within six months (Kusie).
• October 9 – PACP: Inquired if departments were tailoring their competitive contract procurement processes to suit McKinsey (Kuruc).
• September 25 – Debates: Noted the GC Strategies scandal showcased that federal departments frequently disregarded policies meant to ensure work was done and proper security clearances were issues in relation to services contracts (Block).
• September 16 – X: Tweeted a highlight from PAPC committee on the Auditor General report about federal contracts with failed value-for-money standards (Kuruc).
• September 16 – PACP: Voiced interest in the Auditor General’s 2024 Report 5 about McKinsey and the broader study of professional services such as McKinsey and GC Strategies (Kusie)
• August 4 – X: Tweeted a highlight from PACP claiming the Auditor General finds government mismanagement not limited to GC Strategies; claims 31 federal departments are in the wrong (Kuruc).
• June 19 – PACP: Highlighted the Office of the Auditor General’s report demonstrating issues in almost all contracts such as McKinsey and GC Strategies (Deltell).
• June 17 – Debates: Pointed to the conservative motion demanding that the government returns the $64 million handed to GC Strategies and ArriveCAN (Arnold).
• June 12 – Debates: Noted the current government GC Strategies and ArriveCAN scandal is reminiscent of the previous sponsorship, WE, and McKinsey scandals (Kuruc).
• June 12 – Debates: Criticized the $60 million cost of ArriveCAN, the projects mismanagement, and the faulty contracting practices noted by the Auditor General (Cooper).
• June 12 – Debates: Voiced concern of the fraud committed by 76% of contractors within GC Strategies (Cooper).
• June 7, 2024 – X: Tweeted about the government’s use of the McKinsey firm while the company was also advising Beijing on efforts to strengthen their army (Williamson).
• June 6, 2024 – PACP: Highlighted the government’s constant use of the McKinsey firm and noted the firm working with militaries of strategic adversaries (Genuis).
• June 4, 2024 – PACP: Noted that there is a problem when it comes to the awarding of contracts in the government (Berthold).

Bloc Quebecois

Top party issues

Temporary Foreign Workers 

Open sectoral and regional permits for temporary foreign workers.

Border / Asylum Issues

• Create a Minister of the Border.
• Stronger border security measures.
• Will introduce a bill on asylum claimants to improve processing times for asylum files.

French Immigration and Quebec

• The BQ is opposed to the Century Initiative.
• All immigration powers should be transferred to Quebec.

Settlement and Integration

• The BQ have committed to a policy for integrating immigrants into Quebec society.
• The Party would remove all references to the British Monarchy in citizenship ceremonies.

Levels

• The BQ is opposed to Century Initiative, which they believe will exceed Quebec’s integration capacity.
• Federal government must discuss levels with provinces and consider their capacity.
• Asylum influx puts pressure on Quebec health care services.

Recent Party Activity

• October 21 – OGGO: Questioned if the government has enough rules currently to avoid another consultant scandal before the reform and defense investment agency are put in place (Gaudreau).
• October 9 – PACP: Claimed the issue of government departments awarding contract after contract to McKinsey caused the firm to have a strong influence over the government (Lemire).
• September 25 – Debates: Noted that contracts awarded to private firms to conduct studies or make decisions on behalf of the government has increase by 26% (Perron).
• June 12 – Debates: Demanded for the money given to GC Strategies to be returned (Fortin).
• June 12 – Debates: Inquired what can be done to prevent firms such as GC Strategies, previously known as Coredal Systems Consulting, to change their names to win other contracts (Larouche).
• June 4, 2024 – PACP: Highlighted violations related to professional services contracts, such as in relation with the McKinsey firm and the ArriveCAN application (Sinclair-Desgagné)
• November 25, 2024 – Debates: Voiced concern of the $60 million given to GC Strategies scam for ArriveCAN, as well as the secondary company Dalian who pocketed $7.9 million (Sincair-Desgagné).

Liberal Party of Canada

Top Party Issues

Refugees

• The LPC will support legal aid for asylum seekers and refugees and expand the Rainbow Refugee Assistance Partnership.

Temporary Foreign Workers 

• The LPC commits to cap the total number of temporary workers and international students to less than 5% of Canada’s population by the end of 2027.

Processing Times and Client Service

• The LPC has expressed concerns about resource and productivity issues within the Department leading to delays in processing asylum and refugee files.
• The LPC have committed to enhance cooperation between governments, agencies, and organizations for real-time information sharing to improve efficiency and service delivery.

Border / Asylum Issues

• The LPC has noted the Safe Third Country Agreement allows Canada to return asylum seekers to the United States and that this practice remains appropriate, especially given a potential increase of asylum seekers at the border.
• The LPC plans to strengthen border integrity by increasing resources for security screenings, tightening visa requirements, and enhancing enforcement against fraud.

Family Reunification

• The LPC has committed to having an immigration plan that will allow for the reunification of families.

Digitization

• The LPC will leverage digital tools to reduce processing times and eliminate backlogs.

French Immigration

• The LPC committed to increasing French immigration outside Quebec to 12% by 2029.
• The LPC Platform recognizes that immigration is a shared responsibility with the Government of Quebec.
• The LPC leader said it is important to improve the distribution of immigration between provinces.

Levels

The LPC has committed to stabilize permanent resident admissions at less than 1% of Canada’s population annually beyond 2027 and to cap immigration until it can be returned to a sustainable trend.

Recent Party Activity

• September 25 – Debates: Noted the government is aware of past problems with respect to contracts and payments and are implementing measures to strengthen federal procurement (Ramsay).
• June 19 – PACP: Voiced that there is a problem with the use of professional services contracts in relation the report by the Office of the Auditor General (Derksen).
• June 18 – Debates: Claimed PSPC has taken steps surrounding GC Strategies scandal such as improving evaluation requirements, increasing transparency from suppliers around pricing and use of subcontractors, and improving contract documentation (Sudds).
• June 12 – Debates: Highlighted the office of supplier integrity has banned GC Strategies from bidding on contracts with the Government of Canada, terminated all contracts with GC Strategies, and has taken legal actions against the company (Lightbound).
• November 6, 2024 – Debates: Noted that independent audits of McKinsey found no evidence of political interference (Maloney).
• October 29, 2024 – Debates: Claimed the government is committed to finding the best value for money in all aspects of procurement within the proper framework in place (Sousa).
• September 19, 2024 – OGGO: Inquired if there was favouritism in awarding contracts to the McKinsey firm, and if so, how is it being addressed (Kusmierczyk).
• September 19, 2024 – OGGO: Questioned the actual engagement the McKinsey firm has in Canadian procurement with the Government of Canada (Sousa).
• June 4, 2024 – PACP: Noted rules were not followed adequately during the awarding of professional services contracts, leading to questions surrounding McKinsey contracts (Yip).