Centralizing Procurement: creating a culture of efficiency across government

Growing up, my parents made it a priority to get the best value for every dollar they spent. I would often see them shopping around for the best deal or buying anything from household items to groceries in bulk.

When a family purchases in a strategic way, it allows for additional investing for their children’s future, or saving money for a rainy day.

Government procurement – the practice of goods and services purchased by the Ontario Public Service and broader public sector on behalf of the people of Ontario. Also known as government purchasing, it plays an important role in how we deliver core public services. A successful government procurement strategy can unlock enormous savings and achieve better value-for-money for each public dollar spent.

My colleague, Minister Bill Walker and I recently announced our government’s new centralized procurement approach. It is aligned with the independent, line-by-line review of government spending, which revealed opportunities for efficiencies and cost savings through the modernization of Ontario Public Service and broader public sector procurement. Our goal is to make it easier and more efficient to do business with the province while updating government programs and services in a way that always puts the citizen at the centre of everything we do.

As President of the Treasury Board, the most important part of my job is to ensure respect for taxpayer dollars and to protect the core services that matter most to the people of Ontario. That is why we are instituting proven business practices into the day-to-day operations of government, and transforming public services.

As a starting point, Minister Fedeli and I announced Ontario’s third quarter finances (Q3) last month, and we were pleased to share a $1 billion reduction in the province’s deficit, which was largely driven by increased economic activity from consumers and businesses.

Since announcing the Q3 results, Treasury Board has taken further steps to reinforce our government’s commitment to end discretionary spending. This includes the kind of spending that government often sees towards the end of their fiscal years – what we like to call March Madness. 

March Madness is the practice of ministries spending all their remaining budgets on unnecessary items before March 31st. Ministries must now seek Treasury Board approval before entering any new funding commitments, including spending within their allocated budget. That includes things like cell phones and computer upgrades. The annual flurry of spending that takes place and that type of disregard for taxpayer dollars is not consistent with our government’s values and beliefs, and we are changing the way government behaves.

These bold actions are transforming the way we do government, putting structures in place that create a culture of productivity and efficiency. At the same time, it gives us an opportunity to rethink the way we approach government procurement.

Centralizing the Ontario Public Service and broader public sector procurement will build on the progress made to date in reducing procurement spend to achieve economies of scale. Additionally, it will drive innovation, and improve access to data to support evidence-based decision making.

Through the centralization of the province’s public sector procurement and by creating lean delivery services, we are projecting savings of more than $1 billion annually – this is just another example of how we are finding efficiencies and exercising responsible fiscal management so we can continue to invest in hospitals, roads, schools, and protect the priorities that matter most to the people of Ontario.

We are determined to create a modern, centralized process that will help us be more effective in how we buy products and services for the people of Ontario. We look forward to working closely with all ministries, provincial agencies and the broader public sector to ensure our plan delivers the most value for the people of Ontario.