Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is asking Canada’s top bureaucrat to look into the controversial ArriveCAN app. Trudeau this week said it was “illogical and inefficient” for the public service to give millions of dollars in contracts to a two-person firm that subcontracted out its work on the app, which was used to keep track of Canadians and visitors coming over the border during the COVID-19 pandemic. Published reports say the app could end up costing taxpayers $54 million. Critics have said the app could’ve been developed for a tiny fraction of that amount. The CBC reports that “GCstrategies subcontracted out Read more
ArriveCAN
Opposition MPs joined forces on Wednesday to pass a motion calling for an audit into the federal government’s border application ArriveCan. CTV News reports that the motion, which passed 174 to 149, with the backing of Conservative, Bloc Quebecois, and NDP MPs, calls on the Auditor General of Canada to “conduct a performance audit, including the payments, contracts and sub-contracts for all aspects of the ArriveCan app, and to prioritize this investigation.” Federal politicians have been in a tizzy since news leaked out that Ottawa had spent $54 million on the app, which required Canadians and visitors to report their Read more
Canadian residents returned from over 3.7 million trips abroad in August 2022, more than four times as many trips as were taken in August 2021. StatsCan says Canadian trips abroad were up 340.4% in August compared to last year. Still, the August 2022 figure was only 63.4% of the level in August 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. In the month of August 752,900 Canadian residents returned from visiting overseas, more than double from the same month in 2021 (341,700). During the same month, travel to U.S. increased six-fold over AUG 2021. StatsCan said the number of international arrivals to Canada Read more
The Trudeau government is on pace to reach more than $54 million in spending on the controversial ArriveCAN app; more than double what has been spent so far. The Globe and Mail reports that the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) recently submitted documents to the Canadian Parliament that list 27 contracts involving 23 unique companies all working on the app. This was after the CBSA told media outlets over the summer that only five companies had received contracts, the newspaper said. The CBSA originally said it has spent $19.7-million on developing the app and $4.9-million on app maintenance, but reports Read more
Canada can party like its 1999 again. Canada’s tough travel restrictions end just after midnight tomorrow, October 1; ending some of the most stringent rules in the world. As of Saturday, travellers coming into Canada no longer need to show proof of vaccination against COVID-19 and no longer have to worry about random testing at the airport or the border. There’s also no quarantine in effect for sick travellers, and no more mask requirement on planes or trains in Canada. The tourism industry also is thrilled that the pesky ArriveCAN app, which some experts said was overly difficult for some Read more
