Quebec's Transport Department is being criticized by the auditor general for major cost overruns, poor management of contracts and a questionable tendering process.
Renaud Lachance highlighted a number of irregularities in his annual report released Wednesday, including one case in which competing bids on a project were intentionally eliminated. Lachance said the Competition Bureau and the Public Security Department should have been alerted in that case.
The Transport department is the largest source of employment in the Quebec government, awarding contracts valued at $1.6 billion per year.
The auditor analyzed 191 contracts worth $209 million and made the following findings:
- The management of risks associated with contracts was unsatisfactory "in many instances":
- In 20 of 23 cases, contracts were awarded without calls for tenders after being inappropriately flagged as emergency work:
- In two-thirds of sampled cases, infrastructure repairs were flagged as emergency work when in fact the work began 2 to 6 months later:
- In 23 cases, the value of bids exceeded budget estimates by more than 10 per cent. This included a $1.1 million overrun on a $11.4 million contract.
The overruns in that case were "due in large part to ... incomplete site surveys and design errors," said Lachance.
The auditor recommends that the Transport Department "show more initiative" in tightening up its procedures.
He also says the department must more accurately analyze projects to ensure money is well spent and that risks are minimized.
Response
The Transport Department says that it will implement Lachance's recommendations, but it also took a dig at his methodology.
"The sample size used by the Auditor-General of Quebec does not allow one to draw conclusions about all of the contracts," said the department.
Boulet under fire
The Parti Quebecois has demanded the resignation of Transport Minister Julie Boulet in the wake of the audit.
They're also calling on the junior transport minister, Norman MacMillan, to quit.
