The provincial authorities is transferring 9 privately run ServiceOntario shops to Staples Canada shops this 12 months, the minister of public and enterprise service supply stated Monday.
Todd McCarthy introduced the upcoming modifications at a morning information convention in Oakville, the place he stated the transfer will imply longer working hours and higher parking for Ontarians who have to entry authorities providers.
Six places will open by Feb. 1, with three extra shops anticipated in Staples shops inside the coming months.
The primary six places are:
Oakville, 2460 Winston Churchill Blvd. Newmarket, 17810 Yonge St. Toronto (Scarborough), 1980 Eglinton Ave. E. Strathroy, 425 Caradoc St. S. Tillsonburg, Tillsonburg City Centre, 200 Broadway St. Welland, Seaway Mall, 800 Niagara St.
The three additional shops shall be in Hamilton, Keswick and the Leaside neighbourhood of Toronto, in line with the province.
McCarthy confirmed earlier reporting by CityNews that the federal government coated 100 per cent of the prices of retrofitting the Staples shops with ServiceOntario kiosks, although he wouldn’t present particular figures for these bills. He stated that the province at all times covers the one-time capital prices of retrofits in any privately-run ServiceOntario outlet to “guarantee frequent branding and consistency with protocols.”
Together with these prices, the plan is anticipated to cut back working bills between $900,000 and $1 million over three years in comparison with if the service centres had remained at their earlier places. McCarthy attributed the projected financial savings to Staples assuming duty for leasing prices.
Opposition criticizes sole-source contract
The contract with Staples was sole-sourced, McCarthy stated. He added that ministry employees reached out to dozens of potential companions however it was Staples that met key standards together with “group presence and scalability.”
Don Valley West MPP Stephanie Bowman submitted a request Monday on behalf of the Ontario Liberal Get together to the province’s Monetary Accountability Officer to think about offering evaluation of the province’s transfer to “award contracts and not using a aggressive bidding course of … to denationalise elements of ServiceOntario.”
“We ask that you simply undertake to estimate the monetary prices and advantages of those outsourcing preparations,” the letter reads.
“Your evaluation would shed much-needed gentle on the prices and advantages to the taxpayer from these preparations; the influence, if any, on unionized jobs within the civil service; and different potential implications.”
WATCH | Reporters ask minister why province hasn’t launched full particulars on Staples deal:
Ontario authorities dodges questions on new ServiceOntario deal
Minister of Public and Enterprise Service Supply Todd McCarthy introduced on Monday that 9 privately run ServiceOntario places shall be transferring into Staples Canada shops this 12 months. However as CBC’s Talia Ricci experiences, some reporters felt their questions weren’t being answered throughout the minister’s information convention.
In an announcement, the opposition NDP zeroed in on the settlement, noting that earlier than taking workplace, Ontario Premier Doug Ford was vital of the earlier Liberal authorities’s use of sole-source contracts.
“This resolution clearly has nothing to do with saving taxpayers’ cash, and all the pieces to do with discovering a technique to give public {dollars} to personal firms … leaving ServiceOntario operators and staff within the lurch,” stated MPP Tom Rakocevic, New Democrat critic for shopper safety.
Ontario Greens Chief Mike Schreiner equally referred to as out the federal government on its transfer to award contracts and not using a aggressive bidding course of.
“As a substitute of offering some badly wanted transparency, this authorities is busy defending yet one more backroom deal designed to assist rich insiders money in,” Schreiner stated in an announcement Monday.
In the meantime, McCarthy stated the pilot challenge shall be evaluated on buyer wait occasions and the effectivity of service supply. For the previous 15 years, the province has additionally operated ServiceOntario shops in some Canadian Tire shops, IDA shops and Residence {Hardware} places.
The settlement with Staples is a part of a broader push to think about new places for the entire stand-alone, privately run operations of the provincial supplier, McCarthy stated.
LISTEN | Why the province is transferring some ServiceOntario places to Staples:
Metro Morning9:37Minister Todd McCarthy on why he is transferring a number of ServiceOntario places to Staples
Todd McCarthy is the Minister of Public and Enterprise Service Supply, the ministry that oversees Service Ontario.
As contracts with remaining privately operated ServiceOntario places strategy expiry, the federal government shall be reviewing them to find out if they need to proceed to function in the identical means or if they need to be closed and moved into stores, libraries or municipal places of work.
There are some 190 privately run ServiceOntario shops within the province, making up roughly 71 per cent of all places.
No modifications are being contemplated for the greater than 80 government-run ServiceOntario centres.
