Letter from Canada’s Conservatives to the Procurement Ombudsman regarding Liberal government’s sole-sourced contracts to WE Charity.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JULY 2, 2020
OTTAWA, ON – Today, Kelly Block, Shadow Minister for Public Services and Procurement Canada, Dan Albas, Shadow Minister for Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, and Raquel Dancho, Shadow Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Youth, wrote a letter to the Procurement Ombudsman asking him to review the Trudeau government’s decision to award a $900 million sole-sourced contract for the administration of the Canada Student Service Grant to WE Charity, as well as the five sole-source contracts that WE Charity has previously received from the Liberal government.
The following is an excerpt of the letter:
Outsourcing a $900 million-dollar program designed to pay students and recent graduates for volunteer work to a third party raises justifiable concerns and a number of questions. In addition, the connections between WE Charity, the Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister’s relatives are well documented.
Prior to this massive $900 million contract, various government departments have contracted with WE Charity for contract amounts that fall within the jurisdiction of your office’s mandate to review and receive complaints.
The letter continues:
The Liberal government’s pattern of providing untendered and sole-sourced contracts to an organization with close personal ties to the Prime Minister, who is head of the government, is deeply concerning to many Canadians. We believe that it would be greatly beneficial to Canadians and to the principle of “open and transparent government” if your office were to review these contracts.