Article content“Clearly, the government should have had a better plan,” said Wakeham. Article contentWakeham said that if a PC government were in power, he would ensure all public procurement processes are followed, would report when spending public money and ensure transparency and accountability in all public spending.Article content Jim Dinn, NDP leader, has called on the RNC to launch an investigation into potential billing fraud for the rental of electric vehicles by Agency A. Photo by Cameron Kilfoy/The TelegramArticle contentNDP WANTS POLICE TO INVESTIGATEArticle contentJim Dinn, NDP Leader, said that if government had provided the correct oversight, this likely wouldn’t have happened. Article contentDinn also has concerns about the cost annually for a travel nurse and believes that money could have been better spent to enhance recruitment, retention and working conditions. He has even called on the RNC to launch an investigation into potential billing fraud for the rental of electric vehicles by Agency A. Article contentThough he is calling for an investigation he said that, more importantly, he is calling on the government to put forth a plan to address the issues that health-care professionals face. Article contentArticle content“The key thing here is you still have to address the issue that’s causing this reliance on agency nurses, this increasing reliance,” said Dinn. “They haven’t addressed that.”Article contentDinn believes that there needs to be a “sunset clause” on agency nurse dependency. He said that the NDP would do things differently and address burnout, and pay issues, work with unions to improve conditions and invest more money into the health-care system instead of outsourcing to “for-profit agencies.”Article content‘GROSS MISMANAGEMENT’: RNUArticle contentYvette Coffey, president of the Registered Nurses Union of NL (RNUNL), called the findings a “gross mismanagement,” and said there needs to be accountability and consequences.Article contentCoffey said that the findings confirm the serious concerns raised by nurses for over a year, and it’s because of this that the RNUNL is calling on the government and NL Health Service (NLHS) to admit to these failures and take ownership, commit to every recommendation and recover the public funds.Article contentArticle content“This is a crisis of integrity, not just finances. It demands more than policy memos. We need independent oversight, public transparency, and legal accountability,” said Coffey.Article content Health Minister Krista Lynn Howell. Photo by Keith Gosse /Keith Gosse/The TelegramArticle contentWANTS TO ENSURE IT DOESN’T HAPPEN AGAIN: MINISTERArticle contentKrista Lynn Howell, Minister of Health, said that the lack of oversight and management of these contracts is something that brings great alarm to the government, and they are working to ensure something like this never happens again.Article contentBefore the audit’s release, Howell met with NLHS CEO Pat Parfrey and board members on June 25, 2025 to discuss directives identifying priorities to ensure they don’t find themselves in that place.Article contentThe Department of Health issued a release on June 26, with those directives, which include expediting a full audit, reporting fraud, recovering funds, and assessing accountability at NLHS, including possible dismissals.Article contentHowell has directed that all directives be completed by the end of August.Article content
‘Scandal, ‘Gross Mismanagement’: Auditor General’s findings on agency nursing contracts setting off alarms
