(Ottawa) The federal government wants to try to recover the money overpaid for the development of the application ArriveCAN, whose bill ended up approaching 60 million. This is what the Bloc Québécois is calling for. But what are the chances of success? Rather mixed, if we rely on the recovery efforts after the sponsorship scandal.
The steps taken by Ottawa in 2005 before the Superior Court of Quebec allowed it to recover a little more than $8 million from the communications firms and advertisers involved, according to a report from the Ministry of Public Services and Supply.
However, 332 million were spent as part of the sponsorship program, launched after the 1995 referendum in order to increase the visibility of the federal government in numerous events in Quebec. Part of this sum was embezzled by advertising agencies and ultimately redirected to the coffers of the Liberal Party of Canada, as the Gomery commission demonstrated.
The Press reported in 2011 that the government initially hoped to recover up to $49 million through its civil suit. The last amounts were recovered in 2017 from Jacques Corriveau, 12 years later. The government subsequently canceled its recovery request.
Mr. Corriveau, a former federal Liberal organizer, was convicted of influence peddling, manufacturing false documents and laundering the proceeds of crime. He appealed the conviction, but died the following year at the age of 85. The government had recovered just over $1.3 million, including $650,000 after his house was confiscated by authorities and sold.
In all, Ottawa recovered 6.75 million from 27 people or entities thanks to out-of-court settlements, including more than 1.1 million from Jean Brault, former president of Groupaction Marketing, who had also been convicted. The rest comes from the Liberal Party of Canada, which voluntarily handed over $1.1 million following the findings of Judge John Gomery and $248,000 by court order.
Another more recent recovery effort was launched in November 2023 by the Attorney General of Canada to recover a $122,000 grant awarded to the Community Media Advocacy Center (CMAC). Funding was withdrawn after anti-Semitic and Francophobic comments posted on social media by one of its main consultants, Laith Marouf, were brought to the government’s attention. The proceedings are continuing before the Superior Court of Quebec.
Is the game worth it?
In the case of application ArriveCAN, the recovery of overpaid amounts does not appear to be the best avenue for full professor at the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa Geneviève Tellier. “In any case of legal proceedings, the question of cost-benefit arises: do we continue with legal proceedings, how much will it cost us, how much will it bring us and what message does it send,” summarizes She.
PHOTO KARENE-ISABELLE JEAN-BAPTISTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Full professor at the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa, Geneviève Tellier
I’m not that enthusiastic about this idea because, first of all, it’s not a lot of money compared to the government’s total budget. I think we might be better off looking elsewhere where it would be more effective and correcting the situation.
Geneviève Tellier, full professor at the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa
She believes that the government must ask itself “serious questions about external consultants” who received a commission on federal contracts simply to recruit IT workers. The firm GC Strategies, which obtained the largest share of contracts for ArriveCANreceived 2.5 million in two years to play intermediary.
As in the case of the sponsorship program, the Auditor General reported certain irregularities in invoicing. The investigation opened by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police has been broadened, its commissioner recently indicated in an interview with the CTV network.
“We are going to thoroughly investigate this matter and make sure that if there are charges to be filed, we will lay the appropriate charges,” added Michael Duheme.
The Bloc urges the government to act
Criminal prosecution or not, the recovery of amounts overpaid for ArriveCAN is worth a try, according to the leader of the Bloc Québécois, Yves-François Blanchet.
PHOTO BLAIR GABLE, REUTERS ARCHIVES
The leader of the Bloc Québécois, Yves-François Blanchet
It is absolutely necessary. If we try, we are not sure we will succeed. If we don’t try, we’re sure we won’t succeed.
Yves-François Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Québécois, in an interview
“And not trying means telling people who make scams and who put their hands in the pockets of the government, and therefore in the pockets of taxpayers, that they can run away with our money and no one will to disturb. »
ArriveCAN is an application for smartphones created in 2020 in the emergency of the pandemic. Travelers had to indicate their vaccination status and contact details upon arrival in Canada, before quarantining.
With William Leclerc, Vincent Larouche, Joël-Denis Bellavance, The Pressand The Canadian Press