Staff allowed to have side contracts, DND confirms
Rules questioned amid fallout from ArriveCan
There are no rules against serving military personnel or public servants at National Defence having contracts on the side with their own department or the federal government.
And, although such side deals are allowed, National Defence admits it doesn't know how many such contracts are in place.
“There is no prohibition against contracting for services with current and former employees at any level, and current and former CAF members at any rank,” National Defence spokesperson Frédérica Dupuis confirmed.
National Defence has found itself in the midst of the ArriveCan scandal after CTV News revealed last month that the CEO of a company that worked on the app is also a National Defence employee.
David Yeo is the CEO and founder of Dalian Enterprises, which has received multiple contracts from National Defence as well as the Canada Border Services Agency, the RCMP and other departments, CTV reported.
The Department of National Defence announced that Yeo had been suspended and it is also suspending contracts with Dalian Enterprises. The department says it cannot comment specifically on the case because it is under investigation.
But the DND spokesperson has confirmed that public servants and military personnel can have side contracts with the federal government and their own department as long as proper rules are followed.
Dupuis said in an email that it was essential the contracting “be conducted honestly and prudently to withstand public scrutiny.”
Asked how many National Defence employees are currently involved in selling products and services to their own department, Dupuis responded: “We do not have an estimate of this number.”
Dupuis noted it was the employee's responsibility to disclose any situation that might pose a conflict of interest.
Treasury Board President Anita Anand announced in late February the federal government was suspending all contracts with Dalian Enterprises. Anand, who had previously been procurement minister and later defence minister, said she had no idea Yeo was a federal public servant.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has called for a public inquiry into how such contracts were allowed to be awarded.
Dalian Enterprises said Yeo went to work for DND last September, months after the company completed its ArriveCan contract. A company spokesperson told The Canadian Press that Yeo made the appropriate conflict-of-interest filing, resigned as a director and officer of Dalian and put his company shares in a blind trust. The spokesperson also said Yeo agreed not to participate in any direct or indirect work the company was doing for DND.