Good afternoon.
Last fall, I received a complaint from Botler AI with respect to its experience in establishing a contract with the CBSA to provide a chat program that would assist employees in understanding workplace harassment.
The complaint outlined allegations relating to the potential procurement of a product by Botler AI. I was not familiar with any of the engagements that had taken place with the company, nor was I familiar with its product. I learned that the CBSA had done some pilot work of the Botler AI product from February to December 2021, but there was no ongoing relationship or contract with it.
Given the nature of the allegations—specifically, allegations of misconduct by officials at the CBSA in the context of procurement—I referred the matter to the agency's professional integrity division, which, following its initial review and consultation with me, referred it to the RCMP. Should there be findings of criminality, I would expect the RCMP to pursue them. If misconduct is found, the CBSA will take appropriate action.
In January 2023, the Auditor General launched a performance audit of ArriveCAN. We have facilitated the Auditor General’s work, and we will continue to do so.
But let me assure you that I am not waiting for the outcomes of these processes to take action. It was clear that improvements were required with the procurement function at the agency. In fact, when I appeared before this committee in November 2022, I stated that “we will continue to look at ways that we can be fair, open and transparent in our procurements and that we will try to provide the most responsive procurements possible”.
In January 2023, I asked our internal auditors to launch an audit of contracting—that work is still under way—and increased managerial oversight over the procurement process. Employees with financial delegation and with contracting authorities at headquarters have been directed to retake procurement and financial management courses.
I have given direction to rebalance our use of internal and external IT. The CBSA maintains more than 180 IT systems. They are critical systems that ensure the movement of people and goods across the border.
We are the second-largest revenue collector in the government after the Canada Revenue Agency.
Like many critical systems across government, some of our systems are old. As such, we need to make sure that in decreasing our use of contractors, the CBSA does not open up a gap in the technical knowledge required to service these systems.
Sound stewardship is critical to our success in modernizing the border service experience for our officers, for travellers and for businesses.
In summary, we have and will continue to strengthen the internal management of contracts at CBSA.
I look forward to the results of our internal audit and, particularly, the performance audit being conducted by the Auditor General. We will act on their recommendations and, needless to say, we will take all appropriate action relating to any founded allegations of wrongdoing.
Merci.
