Summary
PROUD TO HAVE CARRIED THE TORCH IN THE FIGHT FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY
For the very first time, I am taking the liberty of writing at the first person, since this is my last message as Inspector General of Ville de Montréal, a position I have held for nearly six (6) years.
In April 2017, Denis Gallant appointed me as First Deputy Inspector General in his office, and in July 2018, I was appointed Acting Inspector General. Canada’s very first Inspector General left me with a team committed to making Montréal a city with exemplary contract integrity. And I thank him for that.
When I was appointed Inspector General, I pledged to make the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) a respected organization and a benchmark for contractual integrity, particularly in the eyes of the people of Montréal, who contribute billions of dollars to municipal contracts. Today, I’m proud to say I have accomplished my mission. To get there, I had to get through a pandemic while the whole office was teleworking, sustain (or sometimes spark) public interest in fighting for contractual integrity and defend some of our public reports before the courts.
Throughout my tenure, and in collaboration with my team, I have continued to do everything in my power to protect the identity of people who have the courage to report breaches, whether in a call for tenders or the execution of a municipal contract. In that regard, I have noticed that more and more municipal officials are raising the red flag when they see a situation that contravenes the regulatory framework. Part of this vigilance stems from our training program, whose expanded scope allows us to share best practices to maximize competition and market openness.
Furthermore, the OIG has been proactive in monitoring the contract awarding and execution processes by Ville de Montréal and its paramunicipal agencies. My office has been rigorously monitoring the Electronic Tendering System (SEAO) for the past two years. As Inspector General, I have always been driven by the desire to maintain a line of sight on the actual execution of a contract. Our work site monitoring program is a prime example of that. The program goes beyond our sometimes repressive role and helps establish lasting collaborations and useful information sharing. Work site monitoring in summer 2023 was no exception. We helped develop an innovative contaminated soil management plan and hope to keep working towards an exemplary management plan for residual materials left behind at these work sites.
One initiative we’ve been undertaking since my arrival as head of the OIG is to update the profiles of sectors subject to a public report, as was the case for the towing industry, for example, where we now see that the recommendations made at the time have been successfully implemented. We are currently finalizing our review of the sidewalk industry. Without revealing the conclusions, it’s clear that we must maintain our presence in that sector.
Since the OIG was created, my predecessor and I have definitively shown that the fight for contractual integrity is a constant and crucial task in making sure Montrealers continue to have confidence in their public administration.
It has been a pleasure and a privilege to serve as Inspector General of Ville de Montréal, the second-largest provider of public contracts in Quebec. As I look back on everything we have accomplished, I am proud of my office and deeply grateful for the opportunity to represent it. I would like to thank each and every member of the OIG. It’s not every day you get to work with such dedicated and trustworthy colleagues. I have the utmost respect for all of you.
I would also like to thank the members of the Permanent Commission of the Inspector General of the Ville de Montréal for their dedication.
It is with a sense of accomplishment that I pass the torch to my successor. I am confident that with such a capable and committed team, and the collaboration of our many partners, the OIG will continue its fight for public integrity in Ville de Montréal.
Your Inspector General,
Brigitte Bishop