Most organizations and departments affected by the Liberal government’s plan to shave $500 million in spending say the cuts won’t affect their services, according to a new report from the independent parliamentary budget officer.
The PBO, which asked all 68 affected organizations to provide a breakdown of their planned savings, published the report on Monday.
Only four reported some reduction to service levels, the report said.
Last November, the federal government unveiled plans to cut down government spending, starting with an effort to eliminate $500 million in spending on professional services and travel in 2023-24.
The federal government says “professional services” refers to expert assistance and advice, training, and operational and maintenance services.
Over the next five years, the government says, additional promised reductions in spending will save $15.4 billion.
In an interview with CBC, Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux said he’d be “very surprised” if the current cuts have any impact on services given how they are focused on travel and outsourcing costs.
In November, Treasury Board President Anita Anand tabled a document estimating more than $440 billion in spending over the 2023-24 fiscal year.
At the time, Anand said $350 million of the spending cuts would affect outsourcing and contractors. Travel costs would drop by $150 million.
One organization that did report a service cut is Correctional Service Canada, which said travel spending reductions will affect some inmate movements, including in-person court appearances.
The Treasury Board claims the spending reductions won’t affect full-time equivalent employees, known as FTEs.
Only Public Service and Procurement Canada identified a reduction of 49 FTEs “for positions that are already vacant and not being backfilled,” the report said.
Some organizations finding savings elsewhere
Three government departments — National Defence, Indigenous Services Canada and the Privy Council Office — did not report a breakdown of savings, the PBO said.
National Defence told the PBO the $211 million in savings for the department is not associated with any specific program. Instead, the money comes from reducing the amount of lapsed funding that can be carried forward and spent in the next fiscal year.
Indigenous Services reported finding $17 million in savings in its departmental reserve.
The Privy Council Office reported that its $1.3 million in savings “represents a general reduction across the organization” through such measures as streamlining management structures.
Conservative Party spokesperson Sebastian Skamski criticized the cuts in a media statement, saying that “half of Trudeau’s so-called spending reductions are accounting tricks using unspent and undelivered promises to our military and Indigenous Services.”
Anand said in a media statement that she was “encouraged by the fact that 94 per cent of departments reported no disruptions to service delivery.”
“This was an important and robust exercise that considered the financial sustainability of each proposal and ensured that future service delivery disruptions do not occur,” she added.
Source: CBC News
