A Response from Kathleen Wynne
In April 2015, Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk released a special report on winter highway maintenance that found contracting out snow clearing and road maintenance has led to more dangerous driving conditions in Ontario.
The report stated that “even though ministry staff, including engineers, raised serious concerns during the procurement process for performance-based contracts that the majority of winning contractors would not be able to meet their winter maintenance commitments because of insufficient equipment, these lowest-price contractors were still awarded contracts.”
Immediately following the report’s release, OSPE sent a letter to Premier Kathleen Wynne, outlining the ongoing problem of government ignoring the expert advice of engineers while giving preference to political motivations. OSPE also offered the Premier a solution – ensure that an engineering professional is invited to participate and provide technical knowledge for all major initiatives, panels and consultations.
We received the following response from the Ontario Premier’s office earlier this month:
There was no mention of the premier that she or the government will have steps to consult professional engineers…. this is actually not a positive response eve. She mentions contractors and government employees but not the professional engineers and their institutions
Thanks for your comment – indeed the Premier did not make a solid commitment in her letter. OSPE continues to put pressure on all levels of government to bring engineers to the table and take advantage of their expertise, and will provide progress updates on the blog.
I guess tacking advice from Professional Engineers on public safety issues might stand in the way of political priorities.
I also noticed that the Premier made no promise, or even a suggestion, that she or her government would consult OSPE or other engineering organizations.
A typical political “Non Response”. Perhaps the Premier doesn’t realize that Professional Engineers are voters. It’s disappointing that her reply reads like a form letter with the blanks filled in.