Federal departments and agencies spent $1,812,162.60 on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) contracts in a single year. That’s according to the government’s response to an order paper question from Conservative MP Vincent Neil Ho.
Ho, the MP for Richmond Hill South, filed question Q-1252 on June 2, 2026. He asked every department to list its DEI contracts from June 1, 2025 to June 1, 2026, including the vendor, date, amount, service and how each contract was awarded. The government tabled its answer on Sept. 21.
Thirty-two institutions responded. Rebel News went through every table and added up the totals, then checked them against the itemized contracts. The final bill came to $1,812,162.60.
The Anti-Hate Network, on the taxpayer’s dime
On March 18, 2026, Environment and Climate Change Canada paid the Canadian Anti-Hate Network $2,260 for a workshop titled “State of Hate – Understanding the Landscape.” It was sole-sourced, with no competition.
The group has been chaired by Bernie Farber. Ottawa’s own officials had already flagged concerns about it.
Public Safety Canada officials warned that the Canadian Anti-Hate Network “has been accused of creating products that were not free from bias.” Blacklock’s Reporter obtained that warning through an access to information request. But the Liberals went ahead and approved another $200,000 grant anyway, for research on the “far-right landscape in Canada.”
That brought the group’s federal funding to about $908,000 since 2020.
A 2025 Canadian Heritage memo also cited complaints about “anti-Catholic messages.” It noted that the allegations were “about spreading hate regarding religion and beliefs and further polarization.”
Heritage investigated and cleared the group, but it did the review in-house. It used no outside experts or independent reviewer, only public information and internal consultations.
The group’s federal grant expired on March 31, 2026, just 13 days after Environment Canada paid it to train staff.
Paying the CBC twice
On Dec. 16, 2025, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada paid CBC/Radio-Canada $350 to screen “The Elders,” a CBC Gem documentary. The screening was for its Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee’s Indigenous Elders event. That contract was sole-sourced too.
Canadians already give the CBC more than a billion dollars a year. Ottawa then paid the CBC again so bureaucrats could watch something taxpayers had already funded.
Svend Robinson’s panel fee
The National Film Board paid former NDP MP Svend Robinson $250 on Aug. 28, 2025 to sit on a panel after a documentary screening. It paid Syrus Marcus Ware, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Toronto, the same amount for the same thing.
National Defence leads the pack
National Defence spent $628,091.43, more than a third of the total.
The single largest item was $451,202.31 to Calian Ltd. for an “Inclusion and Respect in Defence” training workshop. Calian got another $11,618.40 for a literature review on equity, diversity and inclusion.
National Defence also paid:
- $22,600 to the Michaëlle Jean Foundation for a speaker at the Canadian Armed Forces apology for racial discrimination
- $5,650 to Pride at Work Canada for a 2SLGBTQI+ e-learning portal
- $10,500 for a membership in the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion
Pins, menopause and critical minerals
Other departments listed these as DEI spending:
- The Canada Border Services Agency spent $11,793 on 10,500 pins with themes like “Positive Space,” gender equity, disability and anti-racism.
- The Treasury Board Secretariat spent $8,475 on a Menopause Foundation education series.
- Prairies Economic Development Canada included a $37,800 critical-minerals procurement study.
- The CRTC included an audience-measurement database ($19,507.87) and a $28,250 sponsorship for Women in Communications and Technology.
- The Immigration and Refugee Board paid Egale Canada $6,000 for a diversity workshop.
The real number is higher
But that $1.8 million is the floor, not the ceiling.
Several big departments gave no figure at all. They said the information isn’t tracked centrally. They include Global Affairs Canada, Health Canada, Natural Resources Canada, the RCMP, Correctional Service Canada, Parks Canada and Statistics Canada.
CSIS and the Communications Security Establishment refused to answer, citing security. The Canada Border Services Agency and Crown-Indigenous Relations reported only part of their spending.
So the government is spending your money on DEI, and many departments either don’t know how much or won’t say.
