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Passport lineup: Canada searches for hundreds of chairs

Due to passport processing delays and continuing long queues at Service Canada offices, the federal government is looking to purchase 801 chairs for those standing in line this weekend.

On June 30, Employment and Social Development Canada issued a tender titled “URGENT FOR PASSPORT OFFICES”, seeking 535 seats without armrests and 266 seats with armrests.

For both types, the government wants hard-surfaced seats “to facilitate maintenance”, and requires the seats to be black, have lumbar support and be assembled.

The order specifies that the chairs must be delivered to the Canadian Passport office in the Montreal area, as well as another government building in the city.

For weeks, Canadians have reported turmoil at passport offices, resulting in people waiting in lines for hours, some bringing their own chairs and camping overnight as they attempt to cross. through the frenzy of applying for, renewing, or picking up an administrative pass.

The request for the additional seats comes just days after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the creation of a special cabinet committee “a task force to improve government services.”

Ten ministers on the committee have been tasked with dealing with “unacceptable” backlogs of immigration and passport applications, although there is no clear timeline attached to this task.

Last week, the co-chair of the ministerial task force for Women and Gender Equality and Youth Marci Ien told reporters she would like to see “tangible” improvements “in the next few weeks.”

The tender, first reported by Politico, will close midday on Thursday, with the government scheduled for delivery on Friday.

An unnamed potential supplier asked if the deadline could be extended by a week, citing the Canada Day holiday, but the government said no.

“Due to an urgent request to provide seats to the passport office, we are unable to extend the referendum,” they replied.

There are no publicly listed “vendors of interest” so far, according to the post.

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