IRCC Minister Transition Binder 2025-05

Communications at IRCC: Public and Parliamentary Affairs

People and Communications Sector May 2025

Overview

• Communications at IRCC
• Communications leadership
• Media Relations and Ministerial Services
• Parliamentary Affairs and Speeches
• Strategic Communications
• Marketing and Public Opinion
• Social Media and Visual Communications
• Internal Communications and Web
• Connect with us

Communications at IRCC

What we do: We work with you directly to tell Canadians and people around the world about what IRCC is doing to make a difference in their lives.

How we do it: We develop communications products and strategies that promote the Government of Canada’s agenda and our departmental priorities, working closely with IRCC program and policy specialists. This includes

• press conferences and announcements
• media enquiries, interviews and analyses
• strategic communications and issues management
• marketing and public consultations
• digital communications (social media, web, visuals)
• parliamentary affairs

Following the Policy on Communications and Federal Identity

Communications leadership

Murray Jones, Assistant Deputy Minister of People and Communications
Cell: [Redacted]
Email: [Redacted]

Frédéric Baril, Director General, Public Affairs and Strategic Communications
Cell: [Redacted]
Email: [Redacted]

Cristina Bianchi, Director General, Corporate, Marketing and Digital Communications
Email: [Redacted]

Media Relations and Ministerial Services

Comms Ministerial Liaison Unit (MLU)

• Serves as the main point of contact between the Minister’s Office (MINO) and IRCC Comms
• Triages comms requests and approvals between MINO and IRCC and redirects to the Departmental Liaison Team in DMO for any policy-related tasks
• Sends MINO nightly reports of ongoing approvals and coordinates meetings between the Minister’s Office and IRCC Comms

Media Relations

• Manages media enquiries and coordinates approvals between MINO and IRCC Comms
• Provides proactive, targeted outreach to select media for high-profile or high-priority events
• Provides media training for interviews and technical briefings

Media Analysis

• Monitors news media and produces daily news clippings
• Analyzes media and provides reports on trends, emerging issues and ongoing hot topics daily, weekly and upon request (for example, for targeted events or campaigns)
• Orders and distributes transcripts of ministerial announcements and interviews

Ministerial Events and Regional Comms

• Coordinates and executes public-facing events across Canada (logistics, white-glove support on site, audiovisuals, and liaison with hosts, attendees and media)
• Regional team (Western Canada, Ontario, Quebec and the Atlantic): Strategically identifies event venues and opportunities with significance to the subject and region

Parliamentary Affairs and Speeches

Parliamentary Affairs

• Provides strategic advice and coordinates support for committee appearances, debates, the legislative process and tabling information in Parliament
• Performs parliamentary outreach activities with MPs, senators, central agencies and other governmental departments
• Sends daily morning updates on all parliamentary business of House and Senate, tablings and committees related to IRCC’s mandate
• The House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) is specifically designated to oversee issues related to IRCC.
• Coordinates question period notes, undertakings (deadline of 30 days), parliamentary returns (45 days) and order paper questions

Speeches

• Prepares remarks for the minister for media events, conferences, parliamentary committee appearances, late-show debates, citizenship ceremonies and other ministerial activities, as needed
• Drafts congratulatory messages, scripts and ministerial greetings

Our products and services are non-partisan. Therefore, they are not limited to caucus.

Strategic Communications

• Provides advice on communications approaches and strategies for major announcements and to address emerging issues
• Drafts communications products for government announcements and activities, including
  • communications plans
  • statements
  • news releases
  • web notices
  • key messages and Qs & As
• Coordinates consultations with other government departments on joint initiatives and files
• Proactively identifies and proposes communications opportunities on key departmental files and programs

Marketing and Public Opinion

Marketing and Outreach

• Develops marketing strategies, advice and products, with support from partners in the program and policy branches as well as external contractors
• Manages advertising campaign deliverables (such as external contracts, strategies, creatives and approvals)

Public Opinion Research

• Conducts public opinion research (POR) using internal resources or external providers to support and inform IRCC’s work and priorities (including telephone and online surveys as well as levels consultations with provinces, territories and private stakeholders)
• Analyzes and reports on POR findings and surveys, proactively and upon request from the Minister’s Office

Social Media and Visual Communications

Social Media

• Manages IRCC’s official social media accounts and channels
• Develops social media content and strategies for departmental announcements, programs and key initiatives

Video and Motion Graphics

• Records and produces videos for the minister, the parliamentary secretary and the deputy ministers, as well as citizenship ceremonies (including digital remarks or greetings at events)
• Produces educational videos with graphic design elements for social media

Creative Design and Publications

• Verifies federal identity compliance for IRCC visual communication products
• Coordinates volume printing and promotional items for IRCC
• Designs and creates motion graphics, brochures, publications, posters, published material, web visuals and infographics
• Designs and coordinates the production of exhibits and displays (podium signs, posters, backdrops)

Internal Communications and Web

Internal Communications:

• Delivers effective and engaging internal communications (internal newsletters, events, web content and more)
• Advises IRCC’s leadership about communicating sensitive and corporate information that employees need to deliver on their work
• Supports an accessible intranet for employees that is easy to use and understand

Web:

• Is responsible for making online information about IRCC’s programs and services easy to find, use and understand
• With over 300 million visits annually, the IRCC website is the 2nd most visited in the Government of Canada.
• This traffic represents over 24% of all visitors to Canada.ca, with 43% of users being international. About 54% of the site’s visitors use a mobile device, and 54% enter the site through a search engine.

Top tasks on IRCC’s website include

• checking your application status
• signing in to your account
• checking processing times
• Express Entry ranking information

Connect with us

COMMS Support

To:
IRCC.COMMLIAISON-LIAISONCOMM.IRCC@cic.gc.ca
CC:
IRCC.COMMLIAISON-LIAISONCOMM.IRCC@cic.gc.ca

Media Request

To:
Media@cic.gc.ca
CC:
IRCC.MINOCommsApprovals-ApprobationsMINOComms.IRCC@cic.gc.ca

Parl Affairs

To:
IRCC.DMO21Advisors-ConseilleresBSM21.IRCC@cic.gc.ca
CC:
IRCC.MINOCommsApprovals-ApprobationsMINOComms.IRCC@cic.gc.ca