A new report reveals that federal IT contracting is significantly more expensive than in-house services, raising concerns about government spending.
Ottawa: So, it turns out the federal government is shelling out a lot more cash for IT services than if they just had their own folks do the work. A report from the parliamentary budget officer spills the beans on this.
In 2022-23, the government dropped a whopping $18.6 billion on professional services, with $2.6 billion of that going straight to IT. That’s a big chunk of change!
The Canada Border Services Agency, Department of National Defence, Employment and Social Development Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada, and Shared Services Canada were the biggest spenders. Together, they made up over half of the total IT contractor costs.
According to the report, hiring outside contractors for IT services in these departments cost taxpayers between 22% and 25.7% more than if they had done it in-house. That’s a pretty eye-opening figure!
Interestingly, the CBSA didn’t provide enough data to be included in the final numbers. So, there’s a bit of a gap there.
This info was first shared by The Canadian Press on January 16, 2025. Just goes to show how important it is to keep an eye on where our tax dollars are going!
