Canadian federal departments spent nearly $240 million on Big Four consulting contracts in 2024 despite government pledges to reduce external consulting, public contracting data showed on Wednesday.
Deloitte secured the largest share at $136.4 million, followed by KPMG at $75.9 million, Ernst & Young at $21 million, and PricewaterhouseCoopers at $6.1 million.
The spending marks a 12% decline from 2023’s $272 million but contradicts the Liberal government’s 2023 budget promise to cut consulting expenses by 15%.
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“What’s bizarre is the repeated awarding of contracts to the same firms for the same types of expertise year after year,” Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux told The Hill Times on January 17.
Employment and Social Development Canada emerged as the biggest spender among federal departments, awarding $49.4 million to Deloitte alone. The Canada Border Services Agency followed with $37.5 million in Deloitte contracts.
The spending continues even as the federal public service workforce has expanded by 30% since 2010 to 367,772 employees, raising questions about the need for external expertise.
Public sector union leaders warn of a growing “shadow public service” of consultants operating without standard government oversight. These contractors are not subject to merit-based hiring, budget constraints, or public service accountability measures, according to Sean O’Reilly, president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada.
Beyond the Big Four, Accenture secured $261.5 million in federal contracts in 2024, despite recent criticism from the Auditor General over its management of pandemic loan programs.
Former Privy Council clerk Michael Wernick said reducing contractor reliance would require significant investment in public service training and new compensation tools to attract specialists.
The government had aimed to save $500 million through reduced consulting and travel spending as part of a broader $15.4 billion cost-cutting initiative.
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