Liberals under fire for botched $6.6B pension software scandal
By 2030-2031, the project is expected to cost taxpayers 6.6 billion making it the most expensive government IT modernization project in Canadian history.
The Bloc Quebecois is calling for an independent public inquiry into the Liberals’ Cúram project, software used to distribute federal payments. Launched nearly a decade ago, the project remains plagued by problems and has ballooned far beyond its original budget.
The project was estimated to cost $1.75 billion in 2017, but is now projected to reach nearly four times that amount by 2030-31. Despite that, Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu maintains the project remains within budget.
The Liberals’ plan to modernize Ottawa’s payment system for Old Age Security and other federal benefits could cost taxpayers as much as $6.6 billion, with most of the spending going to private firms involved in the IT overhaul.
