The contracting process used for construction can arrive The app seems “illogical” and “inefficient” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau it is said.
the globe and mail First reported on Monday that ottawa it firm GCstrategieshired by the government to build ArriveCan App For $44 million, Indeed subcontracted the job of building it to six other companies, including international firms. kpmg And BDO – who actually hired IT staff to build the application.
During a press conference on Monday, Trudeau was asked why the government didn’t cut out the middleman and contract directly with companies hiring IT teams.
Trudeau replied, “That’s the question I just asked the public service.”
“Clearly, this is an exercise that seems highly illogical and inefficient.”
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Trudeau said he has “made sure” that the clerks of the Privy Council are “looking into procurement practices” to “make sure that we are getting value for money, and that we are working smart and logical.” Have been.”
contracts placed in the documents Presented by The House of Commons Government Operations and Estimates Committee, reviewed by Global News.
Documents show GC Strategies paid other companies to provide IT “resources,” charging nearly all employees daily rates of more than $1,200 — but many had a day rate of $1,500,
Speaking before the committee in November Christian Firth, managing partner at GCStrategies, said they would charge the government the industry standard, which he described as “anywhere from 15 percent to 30 percent”.
Firth also confirmed that GCStrategies billed the government $9 million over the two years it contracted to work on the application.
An initial estimate for the initial development of the app Put the cost at just $80,000 — but the total price tag has since swelled to more than $54 million.
Use of the ArriveCan app, which was introduced at the start of the pandemic, becomes mandatory at air and land borders in February 2021. The government announced that it would phase out this requirement in September 2022.
The app provided a screening process for incoming travelers during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing them to track their vaccination status. During the mandate, refusing to use the app to provide the required information could result in a fine of up to $5,000 under the Quarantine Act.
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But the ArriveCan app proved to be a controversial device riddled with technical setbacks.
Last year a glitch in the app sent an incorrect message to fully vaccinated travelers saying they needed to quarantine. According to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the disturbance affected more than 10,000 people.
Global News learned that it took the government 12 days to inform travelers about the error.
The glitch prompted concerns from both opposition politicians and privacy advocates. The app collected personal data, such as name, telephone number, address and vaccination status, which was then used to help public health officials enforce the government’s quarantine rules.
concerns about how long this information is stored, and how data is shared between different government agencies Raised over the past two years by privacy and legal experts,
In June 2020, a group of federal conservatives also asked the Privacy Commissioner to investigate ArriveCan due to concerns about the potential misuse of data.
The Privacy Commissioner replied two months later, saying they had reviewed the app’s privacy terms and had no concerns at that time. However, the watchdog launched a new investigation in late July after fresh complaint,
Despite all the setbacks, Transport Minister Omar Alagbara has defended the ArriveCan app.
“ArivCan is a useful tool to help verify a person’s vaccination status before they arrive at our borders,” he said at a committee meeting last summer.
– With files from The Canadian Press, Global News’ Brian Hill
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