The Conservatives had so much there in front of them. All the opposition did. They were reviewing the growing mountain of government contracts issued to consultants, including $116-million and counting to the high-priced freelance business gurus of McKinsey & Co.
But what the MPs really wanted, especially the Conservative MPs, was to centre it on Dominic Barton, the silver-haired former global managing director of the McKinsey’s gargantuan consulting business, a Canadian who was recruited by the Liberals as a dollar-a-day adviser on economic growth, and later ambassador to China.
The growth of outsourcing, now $15-billion a year, is itself a measure of bloat. There are embarrassments like ArriveCan. Carleton University professor Amanda Clarke testified this week that the consulting and outsourcing explosion is a sign of deep problems in the public service, but McKinsey is just a small part. Broad government dysfunction should be worth a look.