OTTAWA – Federal Procurement Ombud Alexander Jeglic has released his Annual Report for 2023-24.
The report was tabled in Parliament by the federal Minister of Public Services and Procurement Jean-Yves Duclos on Oct. 7.
The report summarizes the Office of the Procurement Ombud’s activities from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024, and highlighted long-standing procurement issues, a federal government release said.
The issues included favouritism towards specific bidders, the complexity of federal procurement, overly restrictive evaluation criteria, the lack of documentation and gaping holes in the quality of contract information made public by departments.
“There is no sugarcoating the fact that changes are needed. This year the need for change was further recognized by Parliamentarians and Canadian taxpayers. Recent reviews on government procurement practices have further exposed many of the long-standing problems my office has been highlighting year after year. It is time to start to address these issues directly to make sure they do not impact our future the way they have impacted our past,” Jeglic said.
The report suggests the creation of a government-wide vendor performance management program to track and share information on supplier performance across federal departments and regions and take past performance into account in the award of future contracts.
It also suggests the creation of a federal chief procurement officer position to lead the creation, interpretation and implementation of procurement policies, and to lead a capacity building and professionalization initiative, the release said.
The procurement ombud also requested three regulatory changes to enhance his abilities to effectively perform his duties:
- the authority to recommend compensation to suppliers exceeding 10 per cent of a contract’s value;
- the ability to review complaints related to contracts awarded under the Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Businesses set-asides program; and
- the power to compel (rather than request) federal departments to provide the documentation necessary to conduct reviews and investigations.
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