City’s inspector general tabbed to head Quebec watchdog group: report

The Quebec government is recommending that Denis Gallant, former chief prosecutor for the Charbonneau Commission and current inspector general for Montreal, be named to direct its new body overseeing all public contracts, the Autorité des marchés publics, Radio-Canada reported Tuesday.

His name will be submitted Wednesday or Thursday to the National Assembly. Two-thirds of the MNAs will have to approve of the government’s choice.

If he obtains the post of president and director-general of the Autorité, he could hold the post for a maximum of seven years.

The bill calling for the creation of the Autorité was proposed in June 2016, but wasn’t adopted until last fall. The law was put into effect last December, but a full team has not been formed yet.

The installation of the Autorité was a key recommendation from the Charbonneau Commission into collusion in Quebec public construction contracts, which called for a body to oversee all public contracts.

The Autorité’s mandate would be to ensure all contracts granted by government ministries and municipalities conform with norms and exhibit fair competition. In the case of irregularities, the Autorité can recommend changes or that the project be cancelled.

A watchdog committee formed to look into the government’s record on implementing the commission’s recommendations, however, warned the new body “will have neither the independence nor the powers and functions necessary to act effectively as a centre of expertise in the field of public contracts.” Gallant plays a similar role as inspector general of Montreal.