Two years of hearings and probing into rampant corruption in public contracting in Quebec generated a national panel’s 1,700-page report on Nov. 24 and some 60 recommended procurement changes to boost ethics by project owners and contractors. Industry execs say the long-awaited Charbonneau Commission report did not disclose additional ethics bombshells beyond those relayed by some 300 witnesses between 2012 and 2014, but it already has pushed a tighter contract vetting process by both public- and private-sector participants.
Quebec provincial said they will move forward with report recommendations, which include the elimination of lowest-bid requirements, a ban on gifts to public officials, added whistle-blower protections and a new independent watchdog to oversee the process.