Ottawa funding 100 new spots to recharge in Quebec

Quebec’s Treasury Board is conducting an audit of contracts given by the English Montreal School Board as part of a sweeping investigation into the board’s activities launched by the Education Department last week.

In a press release Wednesday, Treasury Board president Christian Dubé said he has ordered a review of the board’s contract management process.

The audit is being conducted under the provincial law regarding contracting by public bodies, which allows the Treasury Board “to verify whether the tendering and awarding of contracts by a school board complies with the established rules,” Dubé said.

He said the review is being conducted “in conjunction with the investigation announced last week by the Education Ministry on the administration and governance of the EMSB.”

“The Quebec government is committed to rigorous management,” Dubé said.

The government “wants to be transparent and honest and, on behalf of the people it serves, ensure administrative integrity. As a result, it must deploy the necessary efforts and resources to correct any discrepancies and thus redress the particular situations. In addition to integrity, our management priorities are impartiality and fairness.”

Board spokesperson Mike Cohen said the EMSB has nothing to add to a statement it issued after the Education Department launched its investigation. At the time, the board said it was surprised by the move but would provide any information required.

“We are co-operating fully with the government on any information they need,” Cohen said Wednesday.

On Jan. 16, Education Minister Jean-François Roberge launched an administrative investigation into allegations of chronic mismanagement and ethical transgressions at the EMSB. Roberge called the situation “serious and troubling.”

The Coalition Avenir Québec government’s decision followed a series of allegations over several years, ranging from contracts being handed out without following proper tendering procedures to news that board chairperson Angela Mancini had been found guilty of violating the board’s code of ethics.

Roberge said the investigation will cover the EMSB’s contract tendering process. Contracts have been issued without respecting the existing rules and there have been repeated cost overruns, he said.

We are co-operating fully with the government on any information they need.