The media pointed out last year that the value of federal contracts awarded to McKinsey had risen rapidly since the Liberals took power in 2015.

The prime minister then asked Treasury Secretary Mona Fortier and Procurement Minister Helena Jaczek last January to review the process for awarding those contracts.

The 10 departments that contracted with McKinsey “conducted internal reviews conducted by each organization’s independent internal audit unit and prepared individual reports,” according to the Treasury Secretary.

These “independent reviews by ministries and agencies” found “no evidence of political interference or damage to the integrity of the federal procurement process,” the final report said.

However, the audits found that “certain administrative requirements and procedures were not systematically followed,” confirming preliminary findings released in March.

“For example, documentation in some procurement files was inadequate or missing, and errors were found in reporting contracts in accordance with proactive disclosure requirements,” the final report reads.

The government says McKinsey has received at least 116.8 million federal contracts since 2015. This represents a small fraction of the contracts Ottawa has awarded to consulting firms.

But those deals have come under particular scrutiny because of the company’s former global chief executive officer’s connection to the Liberal government, raising questions about McKinsey’s influence on world public policy. Canada.

Dominic Barton was appointed to chair an economic growth advisory council in 2016 to advise then-Treasury Secretary Bill Morneau. He was later also appointed Canadian Ambassador to China before resigning in late 2021.

Last February, Mr Barton was ordered to appear before a House of Commons committee to review contracts at McKinsey. He insisted he and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau were not friends and said he was saddened by the heated allegations about his alleged links with the federal Liberals.

“Since moving to Asia in 1996, I have not been involved with the federal government granting McKinsey any paid work,” Barton said.

He also said he was no longer affiliated with the company and had not benefited from McKinsey’s financial successes. “It has now been over three and a half years since I left McKinsey and sold all of my holdings. »