(OTTAWA) Defense Minister Anita Anand says her department’s contracts with McKinsey pose no security risk.
Mme Anand told a parliamentary committee on Monday afternoon that the Defense Ministry had signed contracts worth around $30 million with the consulting firm.
She said, however, that these contracts were intended to help defense and military officials solve human resources and data management problems, and that they did not involve “state secrets”.
McKinsey was criticized last year for working with the US military while also under contract to Russia and China.
His contracts in Canada have come under scrutiny amid revelations that his work has expanded rapidly since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government came to power in 2015.
Minister Anand says McKinsey has helped the Canadian military in its culture change efforts, which included organizing and reporting on recent consultations with members of the Armed Forces.