Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I welcome the opportunity to present and discuss with the committee the measures that Public Services and Procurement Canada has put in place to uphold the public's trust in our operations. Accompanying me is Biagio Carrese, director of special investigations.
PSPC plays a key role in the operations of the federal government as its treasurer, accountant, central purchasing agent, linguistic authority, and real property manager. I could talk about all the things the department does, but I'll just skip that part of the presentation.
The department has been working diligently over time to protect and safeguard the use and expenditure of public funds, to ensure strong stewardship and transparency, and to uphold the public confidence in relation to its contracts and real property agreements.
To prevent and respond to potential wrongdoing, PSPC has a strong framework in place. We have embedded measures into everything we do, from our corporate culture, which is at the very core of our approach, to our management practices, systems, and processes involving daily operations. It starts with the tone from the top and includes values and ethics, our code of conduct, training, investigations, etc. This includes ensuring that departmental values are reflected in the orientation for new employees and on-boarding newly appointed executives. PSPC also reduces the opportunities for fraudulent business activities through security screening of contractors and an integrity regime for Government of Canada contracts. There is also a procurement code of conduct that applies to contractors as well as employees.
The department seeks to ensure that its employees act in the public's best interest at all times and ensure transparent, accountable, and responsible management; that its employees act in compliance with the letter and spirit of all applicable laws; that its employees prevent, avoid, and report situations that could give the appearance of a conflict of interest or result in a potential or actual conflict of interest; and that its employees disclose potential wrongdoing.
As the department's senior officer under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act, I am very proud of our internal disclosure program. We have carried out extensive outreach to ensure that employees know their obligation of coming forward with potential wrongdoing. This responsibility has been embedded in our code of conduct. We have explained the protections offered under the PSDPA as well as the methods we employ internally to protect the discloser's identity as well as that of the alleged wrongdoer.
I believe that our number of disclosures over the years indicates that our employees do come forward with allegations and have confidence that we look into each one and do not tolerate reprisals against disclosers. When allegations are founded, disciplinary and corrective measures are taken. When systemic issues arise, recommendations are made to address process and procedure deficiencies.
Investigations under the PSDPA are but one mechanism to identify and address wrongdoing. Other mechanisms include internal investigations; routine audits undertaken by our human resources, acquisitions, and finance branches; and complaints that come in related to procurement, including proactive ones where the department feels there is a high risk.
Our investigative team also conducts investigations related to system vulnerabilities that may lead to privacy breaches and/or fraud. These are all rigorously investigated by a dedicated, multidisciplinary team of investigators. The team receives an average of 100 complaints per year, of which about a third are under the PSDPA.
I'll close by saying that PSPC is committed to the efficiency of its internal disclosure program, as this program is a critical component of ensuring confidence in the overall management of our organization.
Thank you.