Secretary of the Treasury Board - Transition 2024: Briefing Book 1
On this page
- Role of the Secretary of the Treasury Board
- The roles and powers of the Treasury Board and the President
- Treasury Board of Canada at a glance
- Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat at a glance
- People management in the federal public service
- Primer: people management in the federal public service
- Office of the Chief Information Officer at a glance
- Primer: digital government
- Office of the Comptroller General at a glance
- Office of Public Service Accessibility at a glance
- Centre for Greening Government at a glance
- The business of supply: voted appropriations
- Primer: the business of supply
- Federal regulations
- Primer: The Government of Canada’s regulatory system and regulatory policy initiatives
- The Treasury Board policy suite
Role of the Secretary of the Treasury Board
Outline
- The President of the Treasury Board
- Supporting the President of the Treasury Board
- Treasury Board and its Secretariat
- Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) deputy head legislative authorities
- TBS
- Ministerial portfolio
The President of the Treasury Board
- The Treasury Board was established in 1867 as the first Cabinet committee and is the only one enshrined in legislation. It takes the final decision on expenditures and regulations.
- The Treasury Board President is the Chair of the Treasury Board and oversees TBS, setting the management agenda for the Government of Canada in the areas of people, money and technology.
- The President serves as the gatekeeper to the Board and sets its agenda, supporting the management and implementation of initiatives across government.
- The President is supported by TBS, which provides integrated advice from across the department.
Supporting the President of the Treasury Board
Treasury Board
The President of the Treasury Board chairs Treasury Board meetings, and:
- acts as gatekeeper, deciding what is brought to the Treasury Board
- guides discussions to maintain focus on due diligence and impact
- plays a central role in Cabinet, bringing the Board’s focus on implementation and impact to Cabinet meetings
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
The Secretary supports the President in their mandate to:
- establish the management practices that dictate how finances, human resources and information technology operate across government
- approve the form and approach to tabling the Estimates in Parliament
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Portfolio
The President of the Treasury Board is the Minister responsible for a portfolio of four organizations:
- Canada School of Public Service
- Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada
- Public Sector Integrity Commissioner
- Public Sector Pension Investment Board
The Treasury Board and its Secretariat
Treasury Board
- Authority is derived from the Financial Administration Act
- Treasury Board ministers make the final decision on expenditures and regulations
- Sets the rules for the management of people, finances, information technology and administration
- The Treasury Board is the Cabinet committee designated by the Prime Minister to make recommendations to the Governor General
- This means it functions as the Governor in Council for regulations and most orders-in-council (the Privy Council Office is responsible for orders-in-council for senior appointments)
- Typically meets weekly while Parliament is in session
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
- Key responsibilities are to provide integrated advice to Treasury Board ministers in the management and administration of government, and to fulfill the statutory responsibilities of a central government agency
- To fulfill its mandate, TBS organizes its business and resources around four core responsibilities:
- spending oversight
- administrative leadership
- employer
- regulatory oversight
The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
Key facts
- 2,693 employees and 254 executivesFootnote 1
- $4.2 billion in expendituresFootnote 2
- Senior officials:
- Secretary: Catherine Blewett
- Associate Secretary: Dominique Blanchard
- Chief Human Resources Officer: Jacqueline Bogden
- Associate Chief Human Resources Officer: Francis Trudel
- Comptroller General: Roch Huppé
- Chief Information Officer: Dominic RochonFootnote 3
Core responsibilities
As the administrative arm of the Treasury Board, TBS provides leadership to help departments effectively implement government priorities and meet citizens’ evolving expectations of government.
TBS’s four core responsibilities mirror those of the Treasury Board, which are:
- spending oversight
- administrative leadership
- employer
- regulatory oversight
President’s responsibilities
- Provides policy direction to TBS
- Brings forward Treasury Board submissions related to TBS’s mandate
- Approves and presents proposals to Cabinet related to TBS’s mandate
- Establishes the form and tabling of the Estimates
- Establishes the form and tabling of the Public Accounts
- Receives and tables a wide range of reports under legislation or Treasury Board policies
TBS deputy head legislative authorities
- Section 6 of the Financial Administration Act provides authority for the appointment of the Secretary, Comptroller General, Chief Human Resources Officer and the Chief Information Officer of Canada each of whom ranks as and has the powers of a deputy head.
- Subsection 6(4) and 6(5) of the Financial Administration Act also provides that the Treasury Board may delegate any of its powers or functions authorized under any Act of Parliament to the President, the Secretary or the Comptroller General of Canada except its power to delegate or make regulations.
- Furthermore, the Treasury Board may delegate any of its powers or functions related to employment that the Treasury Board is authorized to exercise under the Public Service Employment Act as well as any powers or functions related to human resources management, official languages, employment equity, and values and ethics to the Chief Human Resources Officer. The Treasury Board may also delegate any of its powers or functions to the Chief Information Officer of Canada including powers or functions in relation to information technology.
Ministerial portfolio
The President has oversight responsibilities for four portfolio agencies. This includes responsibility for the legislation governing these bodies and tabling any amendments in Parliament.
Canada School of Public Service: departmental corporation
Taki Sarantakis, President
- Reappointed July 2023
- Provides training and learning for the federal public administration
- Reports to Parliament through the President of the Treasury Board
Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada: Agent of Parliament (arm’s length)
Nancy Bélanger, Commissioner
- Appointed December 2017
- Establishes and maintains the Registry of Lobbyists, the Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct, and conducts investigations
- Reports directly to Parliament on matters under the mandate
- Reports to Parliament through the President on accountability and budgetary matters
Public Sector Integrity Commissioner: Agent of Parliament (arm’s length)
Harriet Solloway, Commissioner
- Appointed June 2023
- Provides an independent mechanism for public servants to disclose potential wrongdoing in the workplace
- Reports directly to Parliament on matters under the mandate
- Reports to Parliament through the President on accountability and budgetary matters
Public Sector Pension Investment Board: Crown corporation (arm’s length)
Deborah K. Orida, President and Chief Executive Officer
- Appointed September 2022
- Manages employer and employee contributions to public service pension plans
- Reports to Parliament through the President of the Treasury Board
The roles and powers of the Treasury Board and the President
Treasury Board
The Treasury Board was first established as a committee of the King’s Privy Council for Canada on July 2, 1867, and was made a statutory committee in 1869. It is the only Cabinet committee recognized in legislation.
The Treasury Board consists of the President of the Treasury Board (the President), the Minister of Finance and four other members of the King’s Privy Council for Canada that are designated as members by an order-in-council. The composition of the Treasury Board is provided for in the Financial Administration Act, which also provides for the appointment of alternates who can serve in the place of members. The Treasury Board’s quorum is three members (including alternates)., which also provides for the appointment of alternates who can serve in the place of members. The Treasury Board’s quorum is three members (including alternates).
The Treasury Board exercises authority over a range of issues, and its role can generally be classified into powers of supervision, recommendation, decision, approval, reporting and regulation-making. While the primary statute setting out the role of the Treasury Board is the Financial Administration Act, there are over 20 other statutes that also establish its roles and authorities. The Treasury Board’s powers and responsibilities are also set out in regulations, orders-in-council, policies, guidelines and practices.
The Treasury Board has three principal roles:
- It acts as the government’s “Expenditure Manager”:
- preparing the government’s expenditure plans (the Estimates) and monitoring program spending by government departments
- approving the use of new money that has been set aside in the Budget, including for major procurements, assets, new programs, and grants and contributions
- It acts as the government’s “Management Board”:
- setting the rules that establish how people, public funds and government assets are managed
- reviewing departmental investment plans in support of accountability of government operations
- It acts as the “Employer” of the core public administration (including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police):
- approving collective bargaining for the core public administration
- determining terms and conditions of employment
- setting rules on human resources management
Treasury Board (Governor in Council)
Since December 2003, the members of the Treasury Board have also been asked to serve as members of the Committee of the Privy Council advising the Governor in Council. This role is often referred to as “Treasury Board, Part B.” The principal role of Treasury Board, Part B, is to:
- Provide “Regulatory Oversight”: reviewing and approving most regulations and orders-in-council
When advising the Governor in Council, Treasury Board, Part B’s quorum is four members. The composition of the Treasury Board, Part B, is not governed by the Financial Administration Act. In the absence of a sufficient number of Treasury Board members, other Cabinet ministers may be invited to participate.
President of the Treasury Board
Responsibilities and key accountabilities
The responsibilities assigned to the President as Chair of the Treasury Board are implicitly inseparable from the Treasury Board’s mandate: the management, expenditure and employer responsibilities that fall to the Treasury Board are also the President’s own responsibilities and form the basis for their key accountabilities. Appendix A provides further information about the legislative mandate and responsibilities of the Treasury Board and the President.
Specific responsibilities assigned directly to the President include:
- coordinating the activities of the Secretary of the Treasury Board, Comptroller General of Canada, Chief Human Resources Officer and the Chief Information Officer of Canada and delegating responsibility to the Secretary or other officials accordingly
- recommending external members of Departmental Audit Committees
- establishing the form and tabling of the Public Accounts
- publishing a consolidated quarterly report on Crown corporations
- receiving and tabling a wide range of reports under legislation or Treasury Board policies
The Treasury Board may delegate to the President (in addition to other officials) any of the powers or functions it is authorized to exercise under any Act of Parliament or by any order made by the Governor in Council. The Treasury Board may make the delegation subject to terms and conditions it considers appropriate. In turn, the Financial Administration Act provides that such delegated powers can be further delegated. Any sub-delegation is subject to the terms and conditions of the original delegation.
Other statutes assign specific authorities to either the President or the Treasury Board. For example, the President has the authority to:
- establish policies and forms with respect to the administration of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act
- coordinate the implementation of the Official Languages Act
- administer components of the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act
The Treasury Board’s authority to act as the Employer for the core public administration is established under various statutes. As the Chair of the Treasury Board, the President supports the Treasury Board’s employer responsibilities. Legislation gives the Treasury Board the authority to:
- engage in collective bargaining under the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act
- make rules respecting deployments, probation and promotion under the Public Service Employment Act
- set pay levels for Canadian Armed Forces members under the National Defence Act
Legislative portfolio
The President maintains overall responsibility for the statutes within their legislative portfolio. Should the government decide to amend these statutes, the President would be responsible for sponsoring any bills introduced in the House of Commons and tabling any required Government Response. Appendix B contains a list of statutes that fall under the President’s legislative portfolio.
Ministerial portfolio
The President is the minister responsible for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and the Canada School of Public Service. The Canada School of Public Service provides a common, standardized curriculum to support the learning and development of public servants.
Operating at arm’s length and reporting to Parliament through the President of the Treasury Board are the Public Sector Pension Investment Board, the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada and the Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada.
The President’s ministerial portfolio is subject to change based on ministerial or machinery decisions by a new government.
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS)
TBS was established as a department in 1966 as the administrative arm of the Treasury Board. It supports the Treasury Board by making recommendations and providing advice on program spending, regulations, and management policies and directives, while respecting the primary responsibility of deputy heads in managing their organizations and in their roles as accounting officers before Parliament. In this way, TBS helps to strengthen government performance, results and reporting and supports good governance and sound stewardship.
The business lines of TBS are expressed through its Departmental Results Framework. The Departmental Results Framework sets out the core responsibilities for the organization, which are:
- spending oversight
- administrative leadership
- employer
- regulatory oversight
- internal services
The Departmental Results Framework also focuses on the results the department is aiming to achieve in these core areas as well as how progress will be assessed. This information helps support TBS’s reporting to Parliament through its Departmental Plan and Departmental Results Report. The Departmental Plan, tabled in the spring, describes what TBS will do over the next three years to achieve results for Canadians and the resources that are required to do so. The Departmental Results Report, tabled in the fall, describes TBS’s actual performance and the resources it used during the previous fiscal year.
The Secretary of the Treasury Board
The Secretary of the Treasury Board is the deputy head of TBS. The Secretary is appointed by the Governor in Council.
Subsection 12(1) of the Financial Administration Act sets out the powers assigned to deputy heads in the core public administration, which include, among others:
- determining the learning, training and development requirements of public service employees
- establishing standards of discipline and setting penalties (including termination of employment, suspension, demotion or financial penalties)
- providing for the termination of employment or demotion of public service employees for disciplinary reasons, unsatisfactory performance or other non-disciplinary reasons
The Secretary, as are all other deputy heads and chief executive officers, is an accounting officer pursuant to sections 16.1 through 16.4 of the Financial Administration Act. Accounting officers are senior officials that can be called to testify before a parliamentary committee regarding the management of their department and the performance of their duties.
Under section 16.5 of the Financial Administration Act, the Secretary has a role in providing guidance on the interpretation of policies, directives or standards issued by the Treasury Board in disputes between deputy heads (as accounting officers) and ministers.
Although the Secretary oversees TBS, three other senior officials within TBS, established under the Financial Administration Act and appointed by order-in-council, have specific government-wide leadership responsibilities:
- the Comptroller General of Canada provides leadership, direction and oversight of financial management, internal audit, and the management of assets and acquired services
- the Chief Human Resources Officer:
- provides leadership on people management through policies, programs and strategic engagements
- centrally manages labour relations, compensation, pensions and benefits
- contributes to the management of executives
- the Chief Information Officer of Canada provides leadership, direction and oversight of information management, information technology, government security, access to information, privacy and internal and external service delivery
The Treasury Board may delegate to the Secretary any of the powers or functions it is authorized to exercise under any Act of Parliament or by any order made by the Governor in Council (section 6(4) of the Financial Administration Act). The Treasury Board may also delegate some of its powers to the three other senior officials listed above, in addition to other officials (sections 6(4), (4.1) and (4.11) of the Financial Administration Act). Such delegated powers can be further delegated. Any sub-delegation is subject to the terms and conditions of the original delegation (section 6(6) of the Financial Administration Act).
Appendix A: overview of the legislative mandate of the Treasury Board and the President
The Financial Administration Act is the primary statute that outlines the role of the Treasury Board and the President. Other federal laws also contain provisions that implicate the Treasury Board and the President.
Financial management and administrative policy
1. General
The Financial Administration Act provides that the Treasury Board may act for the King’s Privy Council for Canada in specified areas, including general administrative policy in the federal public administration, the organization of the federal public administration, financial management, and the review of departmental spending plans and programs. The Act also provides for various powers of delegation.
The Financial Administration Act also provides important rules for the financial administration of the Government of Canada, the establishment and maintenance of the accounts of Canada and the control of Crown corporations. A variety of other statutes also grant authorities to the Treasury Board on financial matters such as presenting financial statements to the Auditor General for audit and approving rates of remuneration, travel expenses and other allowances.
The appropriation acts implement the Main Estimates and Supplementary Estimates. They are approved by the Treasury Board and tabled in the House of Commons by the President.
2. Management of assets
The Federal Real Property and Federal Immovables Act provides for the authorization and regulation of the acquisition, administration, and disposition of real property by or on behalf of the Crown. Under that Act, the Treasury Board is given authority to establish financial or other limits, restrictions or requirements respecting any real property transaction or class of transactions. Policies have been adopted ensuring proper stewardship of Crown property and maximization of value for any property acquired or disposed. Although the Act has delegated full authority to ministers to complete most transactions, certain transactions are subject to Cabinet approval (Governor in Council) on the recommendation of the Treasury Board. The President acts as the minister responsible for this Act.
3. Access to information and privacy
The Access to Information Act provides a right of access to records under the control of government institutions, requires a range of institutions to proactively publish specified information, and establishes the Office of the Information Commissioner. The President is one of the ministers designated by the Governor in Council for the purposes of the Act. As such, the President is responsible for:
- initiating a review of the Act every five years
- providing direction and guidance (for example, through administrative policies) to government institutions regarding the operation of the Act and for reviewing the management of records under the control of government institutions to ensure compliance with the Act
- publishing the following annually:
- a list containing the names of government institutions, their responsibilities and the classes of records kept by them
- a summary report of statistics on institutional compliance with the Act
The Privacy Act establishes rules to protect personal information held by government institutions, provides individuals with a right to access and correct their personal information that is held by government institutions, and establishes the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. The President is the minister designated by the Governor in Council for the purposes of certain provisions of the Act. As such, the President is responsible for:
- providing direction and guidance (for example, through administrative policies) to government institutions regarding the operation of the Act
- reviewing the use of personal information banks and for reviewing the management of such banks to ensure compliance with the Act
- publishing annually an index of:
- personal information banks, including the names of government institutions controlling the banks and the purposes for which the personal information was collected
- classes of personal information that are not contained in personal information banks
4. Official languages
The President is responsible for exercising leadership within the Government of Canada in relation to the implementation of the Official Languages Act and, in consultation with the other ministers of the Crown, for coordinating the implementation of the Act and ensuring good governance of the Act.
The Treasury Board is responsible for the general direction and coordination of the policies and programs relating to the implementation of Part IV (Communications with and Services to the Public), Part V (Language of Work) and Part VI (Participation of English-Speaking and French-Speaking Canadians), subsection 41(5) (Positive Measures) and paragraph 41(7)(a.1) (Inclusion of linguistic clauses in agreements with provincial or territorial governments) of the Official Languages Act within all federal institutions except:
- the Senate
- the House of Commons
- the Library of Parliament
- the Office of the Senate Ethics Officer
- the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner
- the Parliamentary Protective Service
- the Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer
The President must submit an annual report to Parliament concerning the implementation of these programs. The President may also be designated by the Governor in Council to undertake public consultations on proposed regulations.
5. Auditor General
The Auditor General Act establishes the position of Auditor General, who is responsible for verifying the accuracy of the government’s financial statements and providing Parliament with independent information, assurance and advice regarding the stewardship of public funds. With respect to the Auditor General, the President:
- Tables the Public Accounts of Canada in the fall, which contain the Auditor General’s opinion on the government’s financial statements. The Auditor General also issues a Commentary on the Financial Audits, which includes the observations from the financial statement audit.
- Leads the Government of Canada’s public response to performance audits conducted by the Auditor General, which determine whether the government is appropriately managing its activities and resources. The findings of performance audits are summarized in the Auditor General’s reports, which are generally tabled in Parliament twice per year (spring and fall). Prior to tabling, the Auditor General typically offers to meet with the President to provide an overview of the audits implicating TBS. The President briefs Cabinet on the findings of the Auditor General’s performance audits and discusses communications strategies. If an audit implicates TBS, the President will also issue a specific response relating to its findings.
- Receives copies of the Auditor General’s special examinations, which determine whether Crown corporations are managed efficiently and effectively, and whether their assets are reasonably safeguarded. Special examinations must be conducted at least once every 10 years for each Crown corporation, and the results are generally tabled in Parliament annually as part of the Auditor General’s spring reports.
6. Red tape reduction
The Red Tape Reduction Act provides that the President may establish policies or issue directives respecting the way the One-for-One Rule is applied. The One-for-One Rule requires federal government regulators to offset the cost increases of administrative burdens on businesses and remove one regulation for every new regulation added that imposes an administrative burden. The President is also responsible for publishing a report each year and causing a review of the Act to be conducted five years after its coming into force. A review of the Act is currently underway. The Regulations provide that the Treasury Board may exempt a regulation from the One-for-One Rule in certain circumstances.
7. Service Fees Act
The Service Fees Act requires responsible authorities, before certain fees are fixed, to develop fee proposals for consultation and to table them in Parliament. It also requires that performance standards and procedures for refunding certain fees be established in accordance with Treasury Board policies or directives. It adjusts certain fees on an annual basis in accordance with the Consumer Price Index. Furthermore, it requires responsible authorities to table a report on their fees in Parliament in accordance with Treasury Board policies and directives. Finally, the President is required to publish a report that consolidates the information set out in the reports tabled in Parliament.
Human resources management
1. General
The Treasury Board acts as the Employer for the core public administration and, as such, the Financial Administration Act gives it general responsibility for the organization of the public service and personnel management within the public administration, including the determination of the terms and conditions of employment of persons employed in it. It further allows the Treasury Board to delegate to the Chief Human Resource Officer any of its powers and functions – other than its power to make regulations – in relation to human resources management, official languages, employment equity, values and ethics and its authorities under the Public Service Employment Act.
The Financial Administration Act also provides direct authority for certain aspects of personnel management in the hands of deputy heads, subject to policies and directives of the Treasury Board. Deputy head responsibilities include determining learning and developmental requirements, providing for awards and setting standards of discipline and imposing penalties (up to and including termination) and the termination or demotion of employees for unsatisfactory performance or other non-disciplinary reasons.
2. Staffing
The Public Service Employment Act provides for the appointment of public servants in the public service and other related matters.
Under the Act, staffing in the public service is based on the core values of merit, excellence, non-partisanship, representativeness and the ability to serve members of the public with integrity in the official language of their choice. The Act defines merit, assigns certain functions directly to the employer and creates arrangements for staffing recourse. The Public Service Commission of Canada has the authority to make appointments, and this authority can be delegated to deputy heads. The Commission can also conduct investigations and audits on matters within its jurisdiction.
The Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board is responsible for the resolution of staffing complaints related to internal appointments and layoffs in the federal public service.
3. Labour relations
The Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act establishes a labour relations regime within the public service, provides for the negotiation of collective agreements with unions representing public servants and establishes a grievance process for public servants. The Act provides for a labour relations regime based on cooperation and consultation between the employer and bargaining agents, notably by requiring labour-management consultation committees, enabling co-development of workplace improvements and enhancing collaboration. The Act also establishes an essential services regime whereby, although the employer determines the level at which services are to be provided during a strike, an essential services agreement must be entered between the employer and the bargaining agent prior to the bargaining agent being in a strike position. The Act provides for the establishment of informal conflict resolution system within departments and for comprehensive grievance resolution provisions.
The Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act was amended in 2017 to include a new collective bargaining and labour relations regime for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
The Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board is responsible for administering the collective bargaining and grievance adjudication systems in the federal public service.
4. Employment equity
The Employment Equity Act aims to ensure that members of designated groups (women, Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities, and members of visible minorities) are equitably represented in both the federal public service and the federally regulated private sector (which includes airlines, interprovincial rail, ship or ferry operations, radio broadcasting stations and banks). While the Minister of Labour is the responsible minister, the Act specifies that the Treasury Board and the Public Service Commission of Canada are responsible for carrying out obligations in the Act, as employer. Moreover, the Treasury Board plays an important role in the implementation of the Act for the Canadian Armed Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. The President is responsible for tabling in Parliament an annual report on the state of employment equity in the public service.
5. Disclosure of wrongdoing and reprisal protection
The Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act establishes a regime to enable public servants to make disclosures of information that they believe could show that a wrongdoing has occurred in relation to the public sector. The regime includes access to the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner. The Act also provides protection from reprisal to public servants who have made a protected disclosure or have cooperated in an investigation into a disclosure under the Act.
The Treasury Board, as required by the Act, has created a code of conduct for the public sector. The Treasury Board is also responsible for approving the procedures for handling disclosures that must be set up by certain public sector organizations that are excluded from the Act (the Canadian Armed Forces, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and the Communications Security Establishment).
Under the Act, the President is responsible for:
- promoting ethical practices in the public sector, fostering a positive environment for making disclosures of wrongdoing by disseminating information about the Act, its purposes and its processes
- tabling annually in each House of Parliament a report prepared by the Chief Human Resources Officer that provides an overview of activities regarding certain disclosures made under the Act
6. Health and safety
Part II of the Canada Labour Code creates a regime of requirements and recourse to prevent work-related accidents and illness that is applicable to employers and employees subject to federal jurisdiction. The Treasury Board is currently the largest employer subject to Part II of the Code. The Treasury Board is also subject to Part IV of the Code, which establishes an administrative monetary penalty regime for violations of Part II of the Code.
7. Pensions
The Treasury Board and the President have responsibilities in relation to a number of legislated pension plans.
The President is the responsible minister for:
- the Public Service Superannuation Act, which provides pension benefits to public service employees and their survivors; it is compulsory for all members of the public service (including some Crown agencies and Crown corporations) and provides a defined benefit plan based on years of pensionable service and salary
- the Members of Parliament Retiring Allowances Act, which provides pension benefits to Senators and Members of the House of Commons and their survivors
- the Diplomatic Service (Special) Superannuation Act, an Act to provide superannuation benefits for senior appointees of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development serving outside of Canada
- certain sections of the Public Pensions Reporting Act, which require the Chief Actuary to conduct actuarial reviews and issue valuation reports in respect of prescribed pension plans
- the Public Service Pension Adjustment Act, which provides a framework to adjust for persons in receipt of more than one public service pension
- the Special Retirement Arrangements Act, which authorizes the establishment of retirement compensation arrangements
- the Supplementary Retirement Benefits Act, which provides for pension indexing
- the Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act, which establishes the Public Sector Pension Investment Board; since March 31, 2000, contributions made by the government and employees are invested in securities markets under the Public Service Superannuation Act, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act and the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act plans
The Canadian Forces Superannuation Act, Defence Services Pension Continuation Act, Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Pension Continuation Act provide pension benefits to all Canadian Armed Forces personnel, to members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and their survivors, and to retired officers of the military or Royal Canadian Mounted Police who were part of the old Defence Services Pension Act and Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act and their survivors. The Minister of National Defence and the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness are responsible for each of their respective plans. However, the President is accountable to Parliament for funding and financial policies for these plans and thus has a shared responsibility.
8. Pay equity
The Pay Equity Actcame into force on August 31, 2021. The Act creates a proactive pay equity regime that applies to the federal public service as well as to federally regulated businesses in Canada. The Act requires employers to establish and maintain a pay equity plan and to identify and correct differences in compensation between predominantly male and predominantly female job classes where the work performed is of equal value. Under the Act, the Treasury Board of Canada is the employer for the core public administration, the Canadian Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and will be responsible for developing and maintaining the pay equity plans for these workplaces. TBS may be called on to provide guidance to separate agencies in the establishment of their plans.
Government ethics and lobbying
1. Conflict of Interest Act
The Conflict of Interest Act establishes ethical rules for public office holders to protect the integrity of government decision-making. The Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner administers the Act by reviewing confidential reports submitted to their Office, investigating possible contraventions of the Act and tabling reports to Parliament. Although the Act does not assign any specific legislative responsibilities to the President, the Act falls under the President’s legislative portfolio.
2. Lobbying Act
The Lobbying Act establishes the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying and provides for the appointment of the Commissioner of Lobbying. The Commissioner of Lobbying is mandated to establish and maintain the registry of lobbyists, which includes information about all registered lobbyists as well as their activities. Although the Act does not assign any specific legislative responsibilities to the President, the Act falls under the President’s legislative portfolio
Appendix B: legislative portfolio of the President
Statutes for which the President is named as responsible minister:
- Access to Information Act(note: the President’s responsibility is shared with the Minister of Justice)
- Alternative Fuels Act
- Auditor General Act
- Canada School of Public Service Act
- Conflict of Interest Act
- Diplomatic Service (Special) Superannuation Act
- Federal Real Property and Federal Immovables Act
- Government Services Act, 1999
- Government Services Resumption Act
- Lieutenant Governors Superannuation Act
- Lobbying Act
- Members of Parliament Retiring Allowances Act
- Privacy Act (note: the President’s responsibility is shared with the Minister of Justice)
- Public Pensions Reporting Act(note: the President’s responsibility is shared with the Minister of Employment and Social Development)
- Public Sector Compensation Act
- Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act
- Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act
- Public Service Employment Act(note: the President’s responsibility is shared with the President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and the Minister of Canadian Heritage)
- Public Service Pension Adjustment Act
- Public Service Superannuation Act
- Red Tape Reduction Act
- Special Retirement Arrangements Act
- Supplementary Retirement Benefits Act
Treasury Board of Canada at a glance
About the Treasury Board
Established in 1867, the Treasury Board is the only statutory Cabinet committee.
It has two distinct functions:
Part A: Management Board
Makes decisions about:
- funds (expenditure manager)
- authorities, rules and compliance (management board)
- people (employer)
Treasury Board responsibilities are delegated by the Financial Administration Act, which creates the Board’s public service support: Secretary, Comptroller General, Chief Human Resources Officer and Chief Information Officer
Part B: Governor in Council
Since 2003, the Treasury Board has been designated as the Cabinet Committee responsible for considering Governor in Council matters.
Makes recommendations to the Governor General about:
- regulations
- most orders-in-council (that is, non-appointment orders-in-council)
In addition to the Financial Administration Act, over 20 other statutes establish the Treasury Board’s roles and authorities. Powers and responsibilities are also set out in regulations, orders-in-council, policies, guidelines and practices.
Where the Treasury Board fits
Between the genesis of a policy idea and its implementation by a department, ministers must secure certain approvals to ensure policy alignment, affordability and feasibility.
Combined, these key decisions help ensure the government can implement its agenda.
How Treasury Board helps implement the government’s agenda
Cabinet focuses on the what
For example:
- helps formulate government agenda and set priorities and strategy (for example, parliamentary, communications)
- approves policy and legislative proposals
- manages government-wide issues and communications
- approves most Governor in Council appointments (judicial and non-judicial)
- reviews progress against certain major commitments
Treasury Board focuses on the how
For example:
- ensures all initiatives respect the Financial Administration Act and Government of Canada policies
- ensures departmental implementation plans and resource requests are reasonable and likely to achieve identified results
- approves changes to departmental budgets via the Estimates process
Treasury Board lenses
Alignment
Does the proposal align with the government’s policy goals?
Design
How is the program or regulation designed?
Value
Does the proposal represent good value?
Risk
Are solid risk mitigation plans in place for the overall risks of the proposal?
Implementation capacity
Does the proposal work within the department’s existing administrative capacity?
Impact
Will it achieve outcomes? How will these be measured?
The roles of the Treasury Board
Part A
Expenditure manager
- Oversees government expenditure plans and the stewardship of public funds (2023–24 Main Estimates presented $432.9 billion in planned budgetary spending)
- Ensures that government decisions with financial implications are included in Estimates and supply bills for parliamentary approval
- Sets policies and rules for departments on how they spend money
Management board
- Sets rules on how government is managed (the Treasury Board is responsible for 28 policies)
- Provides authorities for new programs, projects, transfer payments, and contracts
- Sets policies to support prudent and effective management and comptrollership
Employer
- Sets rules for employee management, oversees collective bargaining and labour relations (total of about 271,000 employees)
- Sets policies to support the public service (for example, performance management, learning and training)
- Sets terms and conditions of employment (which are the basis of collective agreements)
Part B
Regulatory oversight
- Oversees most orders-in-council and regulations, and promotes regulatory cooperation within Canada and (increasingly) with the United States
- Regulations in areas such as food and drug safety, environmental protection, and transportation safety
- Orders-in-council can include authority to enter into an international agreement and bring legislation into force
Treasury Board takes a wide range of decisions
- Implementation of new initiatives (approval of funding, project authorities, contracting authorities, terms and conditions for new programs)
- Ongoing implementation of major projects (shipbuilding, information technology systems supporting Old Age Security and Employment Insurance)
- Real property transactions (new buildings, major renovations, major leases)
- Major procurements (competitive service contracts above $3.75 million for most departments and $37.5 million for Public Services and Procurement Canada)
- Collective agreements with public service unions
- Corporate plans for Crown corporations
- Access to funding litigation settlements
- New and significant changes to Departmental Results Framework
- Debt write-off, remission orders
- Certain transactions to be included in the Estimates
Key features of the Treasury Board
Ministers play a corporate role as opposed to representing their own departmental priorities.
Highest-volume Cabinet committee with a wide scope of decision-making authority:
- the Treasury Board takes more than 1,000 decisions per year
TBS officials present proposals, unlike at Cabinet, where Ministers present their proposals:
- officials’ advice is provided to all Treasury Board ministers, not just the Chair
- Treasury Board material is not shared or reviewed by Treasury Board ministers’ departments
Quorum for Part A is three ministers and for Part B is four ministers.
Annex A: how the Treasury Board works
Due diligence
Submissions reviewed for:
- clarity, completeness and quality
- business case and value for money
- compliance with existing legal and policy requirements
- program operations and viability
- risk and mitigation
- design and implementation
- international alignment
- regulatory quality and adherence to the Cabinet Directive on Regulation
TBS provides advice
Treasury Board ministers receive materials in advance of the meeting that contain:
- sponsoring ministers’ signed submissions
- TBS’s advice
- regulatory proposals and order-in-council submissions
Cases are presented at the Treasury Board
Process:
- not all cases are formally presented or discussed
- TBS officials present the cases flagged for discussion
- members can ask for any case to be presented
TBS officials answer questions on any item.
Treasury Board ministers challenge and decide
For Part A, members either:
- approve as proposed
- approve with conditions
- defer the decision
- do not approve
For Part B, members:
- consider draft regulations for public comment (beginning of process)
- consider regulations for final approval (end of process)
Part B decisions are only to approve or not approve.
Annex B: assessment of impact and implementation risks
High impact
Submission is considered to have a high impact when it has one or more of the following:
- has a significant impact on a large number of Canadians/stakeholders or a specific group of stakeholders or regions
- high level of public interest
- high level of involvement/ dependencies on other levels of government
- sets a precedent
- has a large service component
- significant financial investment
High implementation risk
Submission is considered to have a high implementation risk when it includes one or more of the following elements:
- highly complex plan
- novel or untested approach to delivery
- transformational or requiring significant change management
- department has limited capability to deliver or enforce
- department has poor past performance
- cyber or security concerns
- high legal risk: high likelihood of successful challenge
- results are not well articulated or there is concern that the plan will not achieve the results
- challenges with costing certainty: not clear that results can be achieved with the available funding
For Part A only: In circumstances where risks haven’t been appropriately mitigated by the department, the Assistant Secretaries may recommend conditions or adjustments to the authorities to be provided (for example, less money, requirement to return to the Board, and so on)
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat at a glance
Outline
- Overview of TBS
- Central agency and departmental functions
- Senior management team
- The Secretary and Associate Secretary
- Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
- Office of the Comptroller General
- Office of the Chief Information Officer
- Office for Public Service Accessibility
- Centre for Greening Government
- Supporting the Treasury Board directly
- Enabling functions
Overview of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
TBS plays a central coordinating function for the Government of Canada, promoting coherence across programs and services.
Central agency | Department |
---|---|
Sets the government-wide management agenda and provides guidance to departments on a wide range of management issues |
As a department, it is subject to this agenda and guidance |
Performs a challenge function and advises Ministers on proposals brought forward by departments (for example, on Memoranda to Cabinet, Budget items, and Treasury Board submissions) |
Submits proposals to Cabinet for the President’s own initiatives |
Central agency and departmental functions
Central agency
The central agency function supports the Treasury Board’s mandate. This role is generally carried out by the following groups:
- Office of the Comptroller General
- Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
- Office of the Chief Information Officer
- Expenditure Management Sector
- Regulatory Affairs
- Program Sectors
- Centre for Greening Government
- Canadian Digital Service
Department
Enabling functions support the smooth operation of the Treasury Board Secretariat. These functions are carried out mainly by the following groups:
- Priorities and Planning Sector
- Strategic Communications and Ministerial Affairs
- Legal Services
- Human Resources Division
- Corporate Services Sector
- Internal Audit and Evaluation Bureau
TBS organizational chart
The Honourable Anita Anand
President of the Treasury Board
Anthony Housefather
Parliamentary Secretary
Dominique Blanchard
Associate Secretary
Catherine Blewett
Secretary of the Treasury Board
Matthew Partridge
Acting Chief of Staff to the Secretary
Program sectors
Jen O’Donoughue
International Affairs, Security and Justice
David Peckham
Social and Cultural
Heather Sheehy
Government Operations
Anuradha Marisetti
Economic
Policy sectors
Annie Boudreau
Expenditure Management
Tina Green
Regulatory Affairs
Nick Xenos
Centre for Greening Government
Enabling functions
Mallika Nanduri Bhatt
Priorities and Planning
James Stott
Strategic Communications and Ministerial Affairs
Karen Cahill
Corporate Services
Marie-Pierre Jackson
Human Resources
Manon LeBrun
Internal Audit and Evaluation
Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
Jacqueline Bogden
Chief Human Resources Officer
Francis Trudel
Associate Chief Human Resources Officer
People and Culture
Mireille Laroche
Assistant Deputy Minister
Heidi Kutz
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister
Strategic Directions and Digital Solutions
Jean-François Fleury
Assistant Deputy Minister
Pankaj Sehgal
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister
Employee Relations and Total Compensation
Carole Bidal
Acting Assistant Deputy Minister
Carole Bidal
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister
Office of the Comptroller General
Roch Huppé
Comptroller General
Monia Lahaie
Financial Management
Sheri Ostridge
Internal Audit
Samantha Tattersall
Acquired Services and Assets
Christine Walker
Financial Management Transformation
Office of the Chief Information Office
Dominic Rochon
Chief Information Officer of Canada
Po Tea-Duncan
Chief Information Security Officer
Minh Doan
Chief Technology Officer
Stephen Burt
Chief Data Officer, Digital Policy and Performance
Mike MacDonald
Security Policy Modernization
Len Bastien
Special Advisor to the Chief Information Officer / Digital Community Development
Office of Public Service Accessibility
Alfred MacLeod
Assistant Deputy Minister
Department of Justice Canada
Carol McLean
Legal Services
The Secretary and Associate Secretary
Catherine Blewett, Secretary of the Treasury Board
Deputy head of TBS supported by an Associate Secretary and four other deputy ministers
Dominique Blanchard, Associate Secretary
Works with the Secretary, providing leadership on the management of the Treasury Board Cabinet committee
The Secretary and Associate Secretary lead TBS, which is divided into seven thematic areas:
- human resources
- comptrollership
- information (including digital)
- accessibility
- greening government
- direct support to the Treasury Board
- enabling functions
Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
Jacqueline Bogden, Chief Human Resources Officer
Francis Trudel, Associate Chief Human Resources Officer
The Chief Human Resources Officer is responsible for government-wide direction and leadership on people management to recruit and retain talent, support a work environment in which employees can thrive, and manage human resources using the best possible tools and evidence.
The Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer supports the Treasury Board’s mandate by:
- developing policies and providing strategic direction, and its enabling systems and processes, for people and workplace management in the public service
- leading negotiations with bargaining agents and managing total compensation to ensure fair and sustainable terms for collective agreements, pensions and benefits
- establishing terms and conditions of employment, including the management of talent and performance for the executive cadre
- monitoring the conditions of the workplace and workforce through data acquisition and analysis
- leading the heads of the human resources community to foster collaboration, innovation and coherence across the Government of Canada
Key policies
- The Policy on People Management sets expectations for deputy heads and managers in the core public administration to create a high-performing workforce and a modern, healthy and respectful work environment
- The Policy on the Management of Executives sets the expectations specific to the management of the executive cadre in the core public administration
- Policies for Ministers’ Offices provides coherence and transparency for financial, personnel and administrative management
Office of the Comptroller General
Roch Huppé, Comptroller General
The Comptroller General is responsible for government-wide direction and leadership on comptrollership, in the areas of financial management, management of assets, and internal audit.
The Office of the Comptroller General supports the Treasury Board’s mandate by:
- developing policies and providing government-wide coordination and strategic direction for comptrollership in the public service, including internal audit, financial management, project management and the management of procurement and real property
- providing strategic direction and oversight for chief financial officers and chief audit executives across the Government of Canada
- providing proactive analysis and recommendations on management and policy issues such as departmental management and spending authorities and contributing to government-wide oversight by providing assurance and advice
- providing analysis and advice on Treasury Board submissions, including on cost estimates and financial risks
Key policies
- The Policy on Financial Management provides key responsibilities for deputy heads, chief financial officers, and other senior managers in exercising effective financial management
- The Policy on Transfer Payments explains the roles and responsibilities for the delivery and management of transfer payment programs
- The Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments sets the direction for the planning and management of assets and acquired services to ensure that these activities provide value for money and demonstrate sound stewardship in program delivery
- The Policy on Internal Audit sets out the responsibilities for deputy heads, chief audit executives and departmental audit committees, in demonstrating responsible stewardship through sound risk management, control and governance processes
Office of the Chief Information Officer
Dominic Rochon,Footnote 4 Chief Information Officer
The Chief Information Officer is responsible for the planning and management of technology and the stewardship of information and data for the Government of Canada.
The Office of the Chief Information Officer of Canada supports the Treasury Board’s mandate by:
- developing policies and strategic direction on digital transformation, service delivery, security, information management and information technology in the public service
- providing analysis and advice on Treasury Board submissions, including on the use of digital technology and issues related to privacy
- working with departments and agencies to improve their digital service capacity, support the use of digital approaches in government operations and develop tools and resources to meet users’ needs
- leading the Government of Canada chief information officers’ community to advance the adoption of best practices for information management and digital and service delivery
Key policies
- The Policy on Service and Digital serves as an integrated set of rules on how the Government of Canada manages service delivery, information and data, information technology and cyber security.
- The Policy on Government Security, which provides direction to manage government security in support of the trusted delivery of Government of Canada programs and services and the protection of information.
Office for Public Service Accessibility
Alfred MacLeod, Assistant Deputy Minister
The Assistant Deputy Minister of Public Service Accessibility is responsible for supporting the Canadian public service in meeting the requirements of the Accessible Canada Act.
The Office for Public Service Accessibility supports TBS’s mandate by providing strategic advice to government departments and agencies regarding issues related to accessibility and inclusion through:
- equipping public servants with knowledge on how to better design and deliver accessible programs and services
- providing practical guidance and tools for removing barriers through initiatives such as the Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund and online via an Accessibility Hub
- providing strategic advice, informed by engagement with persons with disabilities, to government departments and agencies
- improving recruitment, retention and promotion of persons with disabilities
- enhancing the accessibility of the physical workspace
- making technology usable by all
Centre for Greening Government
Nick Xenos, Executive Director
The Centre for Greening Government works to ensure the Government of Canada is a global leader in government operations that are net-zero emissions, climate-resilient, and green.
The Centre for Greening Government supports TBS’s mandate by:
- providing strategic advice to other federal departments and agencies regarding net-zero, resilient and green operations through:
- providing practical guidance and tools for net-zero, resilient and green real property, fleet, and procurement
- convening interdepartmental working groups and external stakeholder communities of practice to share expertise, successes, and best practices among departments
- tracking and publicly disclosing government environmental performance information, including greenhouse gas emissions reductions for federal operations
- administering the Greening Government Fund to reduce emissions and support projects that can be replicated within and across departments, including the new Low-Carbon Fuel Procurement Program
- working with Public Services and Procurement Canada on common procurement tools that incorporate greening criteria
Supporting the Treasury Board directly
Expenditure Management Sector
The Expenditure Management Sector (EMS) plays a central role in the planning and coordination of federal spending.
EMS supports the Treasury Board by:
- ensuring that Parliament has oversight and approval of how money is spent following the funding decision
- providing transparency in expenditures to Parliament and Canadians
EMS is also responsible for refining and strengthening the Quality of Life Framework and advancing its implementation across government.
Program sectors
Program sectors are the interface with departments preparing proposals for the Treasury Board.
There are four program sectors:
- Government Operations
- Social and Cultural
- Economic
- International Affairs, Security and Justice
Program sectors support the Treasury Board by:
- reviewing Memoranda to Cabinet and Treasury Board submissions from federal organizations
- providing advice, guidance and support to federal organizations in their implementation and application of policies
- providing advice on and presenting proposals to Treasury Board Ministers
Regulatory Affairs Sector
The Regulatory Affairs Sector (RAS) establishes policies and strategies to support the federal regulatory system by:
- supporting and coordinating efforts to foster regulatory cooperation with key domestic and international partners
- leading horizontal regulatory modernization efforts
- undertaking targeted regulatory reviews
RAS supports the Treasury Board in its role as a Committee of the Privy Council by:
- providing advice on and presenting regulatory submissions and non-appointment orders-in-council to Treasury Board Ministers
Enabling functions
Enabling functions support the internal operations of TBS. In some cases, they may also work with other organizations to advance the department’s mandate for good management.
Strategic Communications and Ministerial Affairs
Responsible for departmental communications and government-wide communications policy direction, secretariat support for meetings of the Treasury Board, Cabinet and Parliamentary Affairs, departmental Access to Information and Privacy, and correspondence.
Human Resources
The Human Resources Division is responsible for providing strategic human resources advice, guidance and services to TBS’s senior leaders, managers and supervisors, and employees.
Corporate Services and Chief Financial Officer
Provides support to the Secretary of the Treasury Board in financial management, security, information management and technology, facilities and materiel management, and Phoenix-related damages claims processing.
Internal Audit and Evaluation
Provides independent, neutral and objective assurance and evaluation services to support the departmental mandate and priorities.
Priorities and Planning
Provides an integrated lens to TBS policy and planning activities that underpin both government-wide management excellence, as well as corporate governance within the Secretariat. Priorities and Planning also provides leadership on management priorities of strategic importance to the President and the Secretary of the Treasury Board, as well as provide support to the rest of TBS to ensure coherence in priorities, aligned progress on key files, clear accountabilities, and continuous improvement.
Departmental Legal Services
Provides legal advice to the Treasury Board and TBS.
People management in the federal public service
Overview of the federal public sector
Public service employees impact the lives of Canadians every day through an array of services and programs. The federal government is the largest employer in Canada with total compensation cost of $84.9 billion (2022–23).
Federal public sector: 611,874 employees | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Federal government | |||||
Federal public service | |||||
Federal public sector organizations | Core public administration | Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceFootnote * | Separate agencies | Canadian Armed Forces | Crown corporations & other |
Number of employees (as of March 2023) | 270,798 | 21,504 | 86,449 | 85,781 | 147,342 |
Human resource authorities | The Treasury Board has overarching responsibility for human and financial resources management within the core public administration (CPA) (69 departments) |
Uniform and Civilian Members are employees of the Treasury Board. The Treasury Board has authority under the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act to set members’ pay and benefits |
Employers in their own right, are responsible for classification, staffing, and amending changes to terms and conditions of employment for their employees. Separate Agencies must have their collective bargaining mandates approved by the President of the Treasury Board (21 separate agencies) |
Canadian Armed Forces members serve at the pleasure of the Crown and are not employees of the Treasury Board. Treasury Board’s authority to establish Canadian Armed Forces members’ pay and benefits is provided by the National Defence Act |
As separate legal entities, Crown corporations have authority over internal human resources. The Governor in Council may require a Crown Corporation to obtain Treasury Board approval of their collective bargaining mandates in advance of bargaining |
Federal public sector profile
Quick facts
The size of the federal public sector is unmatched by any other public or private institution in the country
The federal public service contains two distinct populations within the federal public sector:
- the core public administration
- separate agencies
Treasury Board as the employer oversees and approves the human resources (HR) policies, providing guidance to deputy heads in managing the core public administration population.
*RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) public service employees are included in core public administration.
Figure 3 - Text version
Pie chart describing the population of the federal public service and its relationship with the Treasury Board as the employer.
- The Treasury Board is the employer of the core public administration, which has 270,798 employees from 69 organizations.
- The Treasury Board sets the pay and benefits for uniformed members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The Treasury Board is the employer of civilian members. In total, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police has 21,504 employees.
- The Treasury Board is not the employer for the Canadian Armed Forces but does set pay and benefits. The Canadian Armed Forces have 85,781 employees.
- The Treasury Board is not the employer for Crown corporations and others, which have 147,342 employees.
- The Treasury Board is not the employer for separate agencies, which have 86,449 employees from 21 agencies. Separate agencies are employers in their own right.
In total, there are 611,874 employees in the federal public sector.
RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) public service employees are included in core public administration.
The core public administration by the numbers
Figure 4 - Text version
Line graph showing population growth in the core public administration from 2000 to 2023. There are three groups observed: knowledge workers, executives and non-executives.
The graph is based on the index year of 2000, which was set to 100. The graph shows the growth of the three observed groups since the index year of 2000.
In 2023, the growth index values observed were as follows:
- 261 for knowledge workers, which indicates growth of 161% since 2000
- 222 for executives, which indicates growth of 122% since 2000
- 177 for non-executives, which indicates growth of 77% since 2000
Knowledge workers include Actuarial Science (AC), Auditing (AU), Commerce Officers (CO), Economics and Social Science Services (EC), Financial Management (FI), Information Technology (IT), Law (LP, LA, LC), Mathematics (MA) and Personnel Administration (PE).
The number of knowledge workers within the core public administration has more than doubled in the past twenty years.
2022–23 Public Service Employee Survey
Employee engagement
- Satisfied with job: 80%
- Satisfied with organization: 71%
- Feel valued: 71%
Diversity and inclusion
- Treated with respect: 82%
- Everyone accepted as equal: 80%
- Organization supports diversity: 70%
- Organization respects differences: 74%
- Organization supports anti-racism: 67%
Subject of harassment: 12%
Subject of discrimination: 8%
Note: The information provided is for the core public administration, a subset of the federal public service. It includes all employment tenures and active employees only (employees on leave without pay are excluded), and it is based on effective employment classification (acting appointments are included).
Snapshot: core public administration
There are 72 classifications of employees ranging from air traffic control to engineering and scientific support, program and service providers, and policy analysts.
Figure 5 - Text version
Pie chart showing the number and percentage of employees by occupational category in the core public administration as of March 31, 2023.
Occupational category | Number of employees | Percentage of the core public administration |
---|---|---|
Program and service delivery | 70,347 | 26 |
Internal services | 66,841 | 25 |
Scientific and professional | 52,553 | 19 |
Operational | 29,610 | 11 |
Clerical support | 20,559 | 8 |
Technical | 14,473 | 5 |
Other | 8,726 | 3 |
Executive | 7,689 | 3 |
The total number of employees in the core public administration is 270,798.
Between 2017 and March 31, 2023, the core public administration has grown consistently and has increased by 71,107 employees.
Figure 6.1 - Text version
Graph showing the percentage of employees in the core public administration by first official language as of 2023:
- English: 70%
- French: 30%
- Unknown: less than 1%
Figure 6.2 - Text version
Graphic showing the representation of employment equity groups in the core public administration as of 2022:
- Indigenous people: 4.9%
- visible minority: 14%
- with disability: 6.5%
- women: 53.2%
Figure 6.3 - Text version
Graph showing the number of employees in the core public administration by employment tenure as of 2023:
- indeterminate: 84%
- term: 10%
- casual: 4%
- student: 2%
Figure 6.4 - Text version
Graph showing the percentage of employees in the core public administration by age group as of 2023:
- under 25: 5%
- 25 to 29: 11%
- 30 to 34: 12%
- 35 to 39: 13%
- 40 to 44: 15%
- 45 to 49: 14%
- 50 to 54: 13%
- 55 to 59: 10%
- 60 to 64: 5%
- 65 and older: 2%
Source: Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Human Resources Statistics
Treasury Board as the employer
Established in 1867, Treasury Board is the only statutory Cabinet Committee. It has several responsibilities including being the Employer for the core public administration; these responsibilities are delegated to the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) through the Financial Administration Act.
As the employer, Treasury Board has three primary duties:
1. Establishing compensation and terms and conditions of employment for represented employees:
- collective agreements govern key aspects between the relationship between employer and employee
- the National Joint Council is the forum through which participating employers and bargaining agents take joint ownership of broad labour relations issues and develop collaborative solutions to workplace problems
- pension plans that are set in legislation and not subject to bargaining
- benefit plans (health, dental, and disability insurance) are negotiated outside the bargaining process. Plans are for both employees and retirees
2. Setting policy direction for people management. Two primaryFootnote 5 policies supported by 22 directives guide people management in the core public administration:
- Policy on People Managementprovides deputy heads with support in developing and sustaining a high-performing workforce
- Policy on the Management of Executives establishes the authorities and responsibilities of deputy heads and the CHRO for executive management
3. Maintaining a healthy, diverse, inclusive, accessible, bilingual and safe workplace. This is achieved through:
- developing innovative solutions for recruitment and talent management
- providing guidance on how to develop and implement measures to support the Federal Public Service Mental Health Strategy
- supporting government implementation of the Official Languages Act in federal institutions
- providing clear expectations for behaviour and shared values and ethics
People management roles and responsibilities
There are distributed accountabilities and roles across the Government of Canada for people management:
Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
The Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer (OCHRO) supports Treasury Board in its role as the employer by driving excellence in people management and providing guidance to support consistency across the public service.
Deputy heads
Hold primary responsibility for human resources management within their organizations. This includes directing the administration of financial and human resources.
Privy Council Office
The Privy Council Office (PCO) supports the Clerk as Head of the Public Service, including directing public service–wide people management priorities.
Collective agreements
As of March 2023, in the core public administration:
- 232,000 unionized members represented by 16 bargaining agents
- covered by 28 group collective agreements
Collective agreements cover issues such as pay and other allowances, leave, labour relations, career development, hours of work and job security.
These terms and conditions of employment are negotiated with bargaining agents through the collective bargaining process.
During negotiations, one of the parties can declare impasse, which will trigger the applicable dispute resolution mechanism, either arbitration or conciliation or strike.
The National Joint Council complements traditional collective bargaining by offering an alternate and innovative way to address issues on a public service–wide basis through the work of 12 committees and 11 directives included in collective agreements which are negotiated with bargaining agents through the cyclical review.
Bargaining agents
- Public Service Alliance of Canada: 138,000 members
- Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada: 47,000 members
- Canadian Association of Professional Employees: 25,000 members
- National Police Federation: 19,000 members
- Union of Canadian Correctional Officer: 6,500 members
- Association of Canadian Financial Officers: 6,000 members
- Association of Justice Counsel: 3,100 members
- Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers: 1,900 members
- Canadian Merchant Service Guild: 1,300 members
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers: 1,100 members
- Other bargaining agents:Footnote 6 2,600 members
Notes
- Populations are as of March 2023 and exclude non-employees (casuals, terms of less than three months and students).
- All numbers are rounded.
- Source for bargaining agents: Pay system, Employee Relations and Total Compensation for National Police Federation only.
Key partners in human resources management
There are four other key partners that work closely with OCHRO and who are responsible for the various aspects of human resources management within government:
Public Service Commission of Canada
Safeguards the integrity of the staffing system and the non-partisanship of the public service and manages the tools for public service recruitment.
Canada School of Public Service
Provides learning, training, and professional development opportunities to public servants and helps deputy heads meet the learning needs of their organizations.
Public Services and Procurement Canada
Acts as the central purchasing agent, real property manager, treasurer, accountant, pay and pension administrator,Footnote 7 integrity adviser and translation services for the public service.Footnote 8
Shared Services Canada
Responsible for delivering information technology and network services to partner organizations to support the delivery of federal programs and services.
Pensions and benefit plans
Pensions
- The President of Treasury Board is responsible for the public service pension plan pursuant to the Public Service Superannuation Act, and reports to Parliament on behalf of the Public Sector Pension Investment Board. The President is also supported by the Public Service Pension Advisory Committee, comprised of employee, employer and retiree representatives.
- TBS is responsible for policy and oversight of 17 Acts of Parliament, with 54 distinct sets of regulation, including enabling legislation, and a liaison function with the Public Sector Pension Investment Board which has $243.7 billion in net assets under management.
- In addition to the public service pension plan, the Government of Canada provides other pension plans, including those for the Canadian Armed Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, members of parliament, senators, judges, governors general, lieutenant governors and diplomats.
Public Service Pension Plan statistics
- Total members: 739,629
- Active contributors: 396,541
- Retired plan members, survivors and deferred annuitants: 343,088
- Average annual pension: $37,026
Benefits
- The Treasury Board establishes or modifies the federal public service benefit plans pursuant to the Financial Administration Act 7.1(1). The President of the Treasury Board is responsible for the overall management of the benefit plans.
- TBS is responsible for the operations, design, retendering and implementation of industry contracts, negotiations with bargaining agents/retirees, financial stewardship and the delivery of nine benefit plans that support the health and well-being of 3.5 million plan members. Five of these plans in the areas of health, dental, and disability are the largest in Canada. Benefit expenditures (including legislated obligations) of $3.8 billion annually account for more than 90% of TBS’s overall spending.
- There is also a key oversight and management role for TBS of administrators and insurers for the largest contracts in the benefit plan industry.
Public Service Benefits Plan membership
- Public Service Health Care Plan: 1,693,091
- Public Service Dental Care Plan: 905,064
- Pensioners’ Dental Services Plan: 552,667
- Public Service Disability Insurance Plan: 291,087
- Public Service Management Insurance Plan: 75,651
A healthy and safe workplace
The Treasury Board is responsible for maintaining a workplace that is healthy and safe, diverse and inclusive, free from harassment and violence, supportive of employees’ ability to work in their official language; and where expectations for behaviour and shared values and ethics are clear. Some of the key initiatives in support of these objectives:
Centre on Diversity and Inclusion
Playing a leadership role on innovative initiatives and the change management required to build a diverse and inclusive public service culture
Official Languages Centre of Excellence
Support the coordinated implementation of the Official Languages Act, establish certain policies and programs for its application, particularly with respect to language of service, language of work and participation of English- and French-speaking Canadians in federal institutions, and monitor compliance with these
Centre of Expertise on Mental Health
Supporting federal organizations in implementing the National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace; supports mental health and wellness champions, leaders and employees through the provision of expert advice, resources and tools
Senior leaders and talent
Providing leadership, programs and policies to support a purpose-led, accountable, impact- and results-driven, diverse and inclusive senior leadership cadre across the federal public service
Harassment, discrimination and violence prevention
Ensuring the public service is a workplace free from harassment, discrimination and violence
Occupational health and safety
Providing direction to the various stakeholders regarding their respective duties and responsibilities under the Canada Labour Code and to make certain that the required measures are taken to ensure compliance
People management policies and regulations
As the Employer, the Treasury Board sets the people management policy requirements that deputy heads are responsible for implementing within their organizations. OCHRO is responsible for the provision of direction, feedback and functional leadership to deputy heads and heads of human resources on HR management matters, and any associated tools, systems, and oversight.
People management policy suite
The policy suite consists of seven policies and 25 directives:
- the Policy on People Management (19 directives) sets expectations for the management of all core public administration employees, including executives
- the Policy on the Management of Executives (three directives) sets additional expectations specific to the management of executives
- the Policy on Official Languages (three directives) supports compliance with and implementation of the Official Languages Act and its regulations
- four other policies addressing specific issuesFootnote 9
The policy suite, with some exceptions,Footnote 10 was renewed in 2020 with a focus on enhancing governance, leadership, and performance measurement.
Ministerial mandate letter commitments supported by Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
- Ensure vaccination across the public service.
- Ensure that public service workplaces are free from sexual harassment and violence, as well as racism and all forms of hate.
- Bargain in good faith with Canada’s public sector unions.
- Support departments in implementing the plans outlined in their responses to the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion in the Federal Public Service.
- Ensure the use of disaggregated data to track the public service’s progress in implementing the plans outlined in their responses to the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion.
- Build a whole-of-government approach for the improved collection, analysis, availability and publication of disaggregated data.
- Create a Diversity Fellowship to mentor and sponsor diverse groups of public servants.
- Implement an action plan to increase representation in hiring, appointments and leadership development.
- Create a fellowship for 1,000 students and new graduates.
- Offer language training to post-secondary students to reduce barriers to public service recruitment.
- Hire 5,000 new public servants with disabilities by 2025.
- Offer language programs to racialized public service employees.
- Expand public service recruitment programs to international students and permanent residents.
- Help community organizations support students to enter the public service.
- Establish a mental health fund for Black public servants.
- Support career advancement, training, sponsorship and educational opportunities for Black public servants.
- Advance the implementation of the Pay Equity Act across the public service.
- Bring forward a coherent and coordinated plan for the future of work within the public service.
- Develop a long-term, government-wide public service skills strategy.
- Require Crown corporations to implement gender and diversity reporting, starting in 2022.
- Improve government whistleblower protections and supports, including exploring possible amendments to the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act.
- Ensure that Canadians across the country can receive services from federal institutions in both official languages.
- Implement measures outlined in the White Paper, English and French: Towards a Substantive Equality of Official Languages in Canada, that are related to the public service.
Legislative framework
Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Guarantees the rights and freedoms set out in it; subject only to such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can demonstrably be justified in a free and democratic society. Courts have determined that the “freedom of association” clause confers rights of collective bargaining, including benefit plans.
Financial Administration Act
Confers HR management powers to the Treasury Board and/or deputy heads (organization of work, classification, discipline, termination of employment, terms and conditions of employment, establishment and modification of the public service benefit plan)
Public Service Employment Act
Sets out staffing rules, restrictions on political activities administered by the Public Service Commission of Canada
Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act
Governs collective bargaining and labour relations in the federal public service
Employment Equity Act
Establishes rules for employers to engage in proactive employment practices to increase the representation of four designated groups: women, people with disabilities, Aboriginal peoples, and visible minorities
Canadian Human Rights Act
Prohibits federally regulated employers from discriminating based on the grounds listed in the Act. It also protects the right to pay equity by establishing that it is a discriminatory practice for an employer to establish differences in wages between male and female employees who perform work of equal value
Accessible Canada Act
Provides for the development of accessibility standards and gives the government the authority to work with stakeholders and persons with disabilities to create new accessibility regulations that will apply to sectors within the federal jurisdiction
Pay Equity Act
As of August 31, 2021, will require Treasury Board and other federal employers and ministers’ offices to proactively review compensation and ensure that they are providing equal pay for work of equal value
Canada Labour Code, Part II
Sets out the occupational health and safety regime, including workplace harassment and violence prevention regulations, strengthening Canada Labour Code provisions with a comprehensive approach that considers all forms of harassment and violence
Official Languages Act
Assigns responsibilities to Treasury Board and its President, regulations and policies on communications and services to the public, language of work in federal institutions and the participation of English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians in federal institutions
Public Service Superannuation Act (and other pension legislation)
Sets out the terms and conditions for pension benefits to current and former federal public sector employees, and their survivors and dependents. Includes Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act for invested assets.
Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act
Establishes a secure and confidential process for disclosing serious wrongdoing in the workplace, as well as protection from acts of reprisal
Primer: people management in the federal public service
Executive summary
This document provides an overview of the management of people in the federal public service, including the roles and responsibilities administered by Treasury Board as the employer for the core public administration. The employer is supported by TBS through the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer.
Introduction
The federal government is the largest employer in Canada with $84.9 billion annually in total compensation costs for 2022–23Footnote 11 and comprises the core public administration (including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police), separate agencies, Crown corporations, and the Canadian Armed Forces (Regular and Reserve Forces). As of March 31, 2023, the federal public sector employed approximately 611,874 people.
The Treasury Board is the employer for approximately 271,000 employeesFootnote 12 within the core public administration, which comprises the 69 organizations named in Schedules I and IV of the Financial Administration Act (for example, Health Canada, the Department of Justice Canada and Natural Resources Canada). The Treasury Board is responsible for people management within the core public administration, as outlined in the following authorities and responsibilities in the Financial Administration Act:
- establishing total compensation and rewards, including benefit plans and contributions to pensions, as well as terms and conditions of employment for approximately 271,000 employeesFootnote 13
- setting policy direction for people management
- maintaining a healthy, diverse, inclusive, accessible, bilingual, and safe workplace
The Treasury Board and its President also have authorities and responsibilities for other parts of the federal public sector, though more limited than that of the core public administration.
- Separate agencies named in Schedule V of the Financial Administration Act (for example, the Canada Revenue Agency and the Parks Canada Agency) are not part of the core public administration. These agencies are employers in their own right and are responsible for their own people management. Nonetheless, Treasury Board approves collective bargaining mandates and agreements for these separate employers.
- As of 2019, Treasury Board, as the employer for uniformed members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, has the authority to set members’ pay and benefits. Civilian employees of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are public service employees and part of the core public administration.
- Members of the Canadian Armed Forces are not employees of Treasury Board, but the National Defence Act authorizes the Treasury Board to establish pay and benefits.
- Crown corporations (for example, Canada Post) are separate legal entities with authority over internal human resources. In some cases, the Governor in Council may require a Crown corporation to obtain Treasury Board approval of their collective bargaining mandates prior to bargaining.
The Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer within TBS supports Treasury Board ministers and its President by leading research, policy development and oversight, collective bargaining, and developing guidance and tools to help ensure departments and agencies can effectively manage their workforce.
Background and context
Workforce demographics of the core public administrationFootnote 14
As of March 31, 2023, of the 270,798 employees in the core public administration, the majority (84%) are indeterminate employees. The remaining 16% are term (defined contract length), casual (temporary contracts limited to 90 working days) or students (full-time students hired through approved student programs). As of March 2023, the majority (53%) of employees work outside of the National Capital Region.
Over the last 20 years, the public service has observed relatively steady growth. Since 2000, the non-executive population has grown by 77% (to 263,478), though it is of note that within this population, knowledge workers grew by 161% (to 64,508).Footnote 15 Over this same period, the executive population has grown by 122% (to 7,320).
There are approximately 232,000 employees within the core public administration who are represented by one of 16 bargaining agents who have negotiated 28 collective agreements.Footnote 16
According to the report on employment equity in the public service of Canada for fiscal year 2021 to 2022, the makeup of the core public administration met or exceeded the workforce availabilityFootnote 17 targets for three of the four designated groups (women, Indigenous Peoples, members of visible minorities) defined by the Employment Equity Act.
Representation for persons with disabilities has stabilized after a six-year decline. However, representation for persons with disabilities has remained below the workforce availability targets. Workforce availability targets for persons with disabilities nearly doubled two years ago due to a broadening of the range of disability types considered in the 2016 Census.
Representation of the designated groups is not evenly distributed across classification groups and levels. For example, Indigenous Peoples are underrepresented in the executive group. The updated core public administration representation rates will be reported against the same workforce availability targets until the new workforce availability estimates based on Census 2021 become available (this typically occurs two years after the Census).
Roles and responsibilities of Treasury Board as the employer
1. Setting total compensation
The Treasury Board establishes compensation for the federal public sector in an integrated manner to attract and retain employees to support the delivery of results for the people of Canada. This includes wages, salaries, current and future benefits, pension plan contributions, and other costs owed to employees as compensation (for example, Employer Canada Pension Plan/Quebec Pension Plan and Employment Insurance contributions, paid leave).
TBS is responsible for establishing business requirements for the pay system, whereas Public Services and Procurement Canada is responsible for their implementation and for delivering pay services to government employees.
TBS supports the President of the Treasury Board in the oversight, management, and administration of the public service pension plan and in the stewardship of other federal retirement programs, including the Members of Parliament pension plan.
As the employer, the Treasury Board has authorities through the Financial Administration Act, to organize work and to provide for the classification of positions and persons employed in the core public administration. The organization of work and the classification of positions are not negotiated. The classification system is divided into 29 occupational groups and the work is evaluated by 72 classification standards.
a) Collective bargaining
TBS officials are mandated to negotiate collective agreements with 16 bargaining agents on behalf of the Treasury Board. Once a tentative settlement is reached, the Treasury Board provides the authorization for officials to enter into a collective agreement, provided bargaining unit members vote in favour.
Separate agencies listed under Schedule V of the Financial Administration Act (for example, the Canada Revenue Agency, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency) are responsible for conducting their own collective bargaining. However, separate agencies are required, under the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act,to obtain a mandate from the Treasury Board prior to negotiating any changes.
In collective bargaining and the renewal of collective agreements, the goal is to bargain in good faith and ensure fair and competitive compensation for employees to adequately attract and retain talent while respecting the overall fiscal responsibility of the government and Canadians. During negotiations, one of the parties can declare an impasse, which will trigger the applicable dispute resolution mechanism, either binding arbitration or conciliation/strike, (the mechanism is decided by the bargaining agent at the outset of the negotiations).
Created in 1944, the National Joint Council complements traditional collective bargaining by offering an alternate and innovative way to address issues on a public service–wide basis through the work of 12 committees and 11 directives, which are included in collective agreements.
The National Joint Council is the “forum of choice” to:
- share information
- consult on workplace policies
- co-develop directives which guide the provision of public service–wide benefits
Participating employers and bargaining agents take joint ownership of broad labour relations issues and develop collaborative solutions to workplace problems.
b) Pay equity
The Pay Equity Act and Regulations, which apply to federally regulated employers in the public and private sectors, came into force on August 31, 2021. TBS officials are responsible for developing and maintaining pay equity plans to support the Pay Equity Act’s implementation in the core public administration and for Royal Canadian Mounted Police members. Separate agencies are responsible for developing their own pay equity plans. Each step of the pay equity plan development will be negotiated at legislated pay equity committees composed of employer and employee representatives. Unless an extension of time is authorized by the Pay Equity Commissioner, Employers have until September 3, 2024, to post a pay equity plan, which will identify where gaps exist.
c) Pensions and benefits
The President of the Treasury Board is responsible for oversight of 17 Acts of Parliament, with 54 distinct sets of regulation and enabling legislation, and has a liaison function with the Public Sector Pension Investment Board, which has $243.7 billion in net assets under management. In addition to the public service pension plan, the Government of Canada provides other pension plans, including those for the Canadian Armed Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Members of Parliament and Senators, Judges, the Governor General, Lieutenant Governors, and Diplomats, for which the President of the Treasury Board has certain stewardship responsibilities.
The President of the Treasury Board is the Minister responsible for the Public Service Superannuation Act and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act and is required by legislation to table annual reports and actuarial reports in Parliament. The President is also supported by the Public Service Pension Advisory Committee, comprised of employee, employer and retiree representatives.
Departments and agencies in the core public administration, separate agencies, certain Crown corporations and the territorial governments participate in the public service pension plan. The pension plan has 739,629 members, including 396,541 active contributors (which includes the core public administration and participating separate employers) and 343,088 retired plan members, survivors, and deferred annuitants. The average annual pension paid to retired members was $37,026.
Since 2018, a funding policy provides guidance to support prudent governance of the pension plans. Policy objectives include ensuring that sufficient assets are accumulated to cover the cost of the pension plans, achieving stable and predictable funding, and maintaining the plans’ sustainability and affordability for members and the government.
Under the Financial Administration Act, the Treasury Board has the authority to establish, modify, and provide administration of the public service benefit plans. Further to this authority, there are nine benefit plans covering health, dental, disability and life insurance, five of which are the largest in Canada. Each of these plans has its own principal administrator or insurer. These benefit plans are negotiated outside the collective bargaining process at various forums with bargaining agents and the National Association of Federal Retirees (where applicable). The following details the membership of the plans:Footnote 18
- Public Service Health Care Plan: 1,693,091 plan members. The Public Service Health Care Plan, administered by Canada Life, is a voluntary plan providing health care coverage to eligible public service employees, pensioners and dependants, including survivors. Pensioner coverage is cost-shared on a 50:50 basis with the employer.
- Public Service Dental Care Plan: 905,064 plan members. The Public Service Dental Care Plan, administered by Canada Life, is a mandatory (automatic enrolment) employer-paid plan providing dental services coverage to eligible public service employees and their dependants.
- Pensioners’ Dental Services Plan: 552,667 members. The Pensioners’ Dental Services Plan, administered by Sun Life, is a voluntary cost-shared plan providing dental services coverage to eligible federal pensioners and their dependants, including survivors.
- Public Service Disability Insurance Plan: 291,087 plan members. The Public Service Disability Insurance Plan, administered by Sun Life, is a mandatory cost-shared plan providing long-term disability insurance coverage for eligible public service employees who are represented in collective bargaining.
- Public Service Management Insurance Plan: 75,651 plan members. The Public Service Management Insurance Plan, administered by Industrial Alliance, is a mandatory cost-shared plan (employer-paid for executives) providing long-term disability insurance coverage. It is an optional cost-shared plan for eligible public service employees excluded from collective bargaining, providing group life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance and dependants’ insurance, for eligible public service employees excluded from collective bargaining.
2. Establishing people management policies
The Treasury Board issues policies which provide direction to departments on public sector management, including the management of people. The Treasury Board Policy on People Management and the Policy on the Management of Executives are the two main instruments that set out the expectations for the management of all core public administration employees and executives. TBS, through its Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, is responsible for supporting the implementation of these policies and works to ensure that deputy heads, managers and the human resources community are equipped with training, systems, and tools to effectively implement the policies.
Updates were made to the Policy on People Management and the Policy on the Management of Executives, which came into force April 1, 2020, to enhance governance, leadership, and performance measurement. These two policies are supported by 22 directives, which contain mandatory procedures and standards (for example, on classification, telework, mandatory learning, interchange). These policies delegate authorities respectively to the President, the Secretary, and the Chief Human Resources Officer, to issue, amend or rescind the supporting directives, provided the changes have no financial implications.
The President of the Treasury Board is also the sponsor of the Policies for Ministers’ Offices (Policies) which provide the various financial, personnel, and administrative rules and regulations under which ministers’ offices function. The Policies also state that the Treasury Board provides ministers with budgets for exempt staff and operational needs of their offices. The Policies were last updated in 2011.
3. The workplace
The Treasury Board is responsible for maintaining a workplace that is diverse, inclusive, free from harassment and violence, supportive of employees’ right to work in the official language of their choice and in which employees are guided by clear expectations for behaviour and shared values and ethics. The annual Public Service Employee Survey provides relevant data on the issues in the workplace such as job and organizational satisfaction, the level of trust and respect as well as data on stress, mental health issues, harassment, and discrimination.
a) Centre on Diversity and Inclusion
The Centre on Diversity and Inclusion supports federal organizations in creating safe, healthy, diverse, and inclusive workplaces through:
- development and implementation of new and innovative initiatives
- coordination and engagement with organizations and networks to foster increased cohesion for diversity and inclusion
The Centre on Diversity and Inclusion plays a leadership role on cross-departmental initiatives and the change management required to build a diverse, and inclusive public service culture. It also supports the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer’s engagement in various fora and leads new and innovative initiatives on diversity and inclusion.
b) Official languages
Under the Official Languages Act, the President of the Treasury Board is responsible for assuming a leadership role within the federal government in the application and implementation of the Act. The President coordinates the implementation of the Act in consultation with other federal ministers. The Treasury Board is responsible for developing and implementing policy instruments to ensure that:
- Canadians communicate with and receive services from the federal government in the official language of their choice
- the federal public sector workforce is made up of English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians in a proportion that reflects their representation in Canadian society
- each federal public sector position is identified bilingual or unilingual
- language proficiency standards for bilingual positions are established
To effectively implement the Official Languages Act and its regulations, the President of the Treasury Board has the delegated authority to amend Treasury Board official languages policy instruments.
Federal institutions subject to the Treasury Board Policy on Official Languages include departments from the core public administration, separate employers, Crown corporations and privatized entities, such as airport authorities and Air Canada.
The Official Languages (Communications with and Services to the Public) Regulations set out the circumstances under which federal offices are required to offer their services in one or both official languages, including the criteria for determining whether or not there is significant demand in the minority official language.
The Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer collects, analyzes and presents data on the public service workforce and bilingualism in the context of an Annual Report on Official Languages tabled before the Parliament by the President of the Treasury Board.
c) Wellness and mental health
A Joint Union-Management Task Force on Mental Health released three reports since 2015 in alignment with the National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace (Standard), which was developed by the Canadian Standards Association. Federal public sector organizations have been developing action plans focused on the promotion of mental health that reflect the Federal Public Service Workplace Mental Health Strategy’s three strategic goals:
- changing the culture to be more respectful toward people with mental health issues
- building capacity with tools and resources for employees at all levels
- measuring and reporting on actions
In 2017, the Centre of Expertise on Mental Health in the Workplace was launched within Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer to facilitate centralized access to resources and tools for organizations, managers, and employees to assist them in their organizational efforts to build a healthy, respectful, and supportive public service. This includes supporting organizational mental health practitioners and champions to help departments prevent psychological harm and promote mental health in the federal public service.
d) Workplace harassment and violence
Bill C-65, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (harassment and violence), the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act and the Budget Implementation Act, 2017, No. 1 was introduced in the House of Commons on November 7, 2017. As of January 2021, the new stand-alone Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations apply to all federal work places covered under Part II of the Canada Labour Code, including the federally regulated private sector, the federal public service and parliamentary work places. It replaces Part XX (violence prevention) of the Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, as well as portions of two other regulations that include violence prevention provisions. The Regulations include provisions to:
- prevent harassment and violence through comprehensive prevention policies, training and improved data collection
- respond to occurrences when they do happen through a resolution process that requires employers to communicate regularly with parties and provide multiple options for seeking resolution
- make available information respecting support services to employees
To this end, a public service–wide directive has been developed in collaboration with bargaining agents. The Directive on the Prevention and Resolution of Workplace Harassment and Violence (2021) replaces the Policy on Harassment Prevention and Resolution (2012) and the Directive on the Harassment Complaint Process (2012).
e) Occupational health and safety
TBS provides direction to the various departmental actors – deputy heads, managers, supervisors, and employees – regarding their respective duties and responsibilities under the Canada Labour Code and to make certain that the required measures are taken to ensure enterprise-wide compliance.
f) Common hybrid work model for the federal public service
In June of 2022, the former Clerk of the Privy Council outlined expectations for a hybrid workforce and encouraged departments to experiment with models.
On December 15, 2022, the Secretary and the Chief Human Resources Officer of TBS announced the implementation of a common hybrid work model for the core public administration.
The Direction on Prescribed Presence in the Workplace sets out the requirement for deputy heads to implement a minimum requirement of two or three days per week in the workplace for all public servants.
This direction applies to all core public administration employees (indeterminate, full time, part time, term), students and casual workers (Schedules I and IV of the Financial Administration Act). Separate employers (Schedule V of the Financial Administration Act) have been encouraged to adopt a similar strategy, to ensure a coherent approach for the whole public service.
g) Values and ethics
The Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act requires that the Treasury Board establish a code of conduct applicable to the entire federal public sector (including Crown corporations and separate agencies). The Values and Ethics Code for the Public Sector therefore outlines the values and expected behaviours that guide federal public servants in all activities related to their professional duties. Adherence to the Code is a condition of employment and failure to adhere to the Code is subject to discipline up to and including dismissal. The Code lists five values: respect for democracy, respect for people, integrity, stewardship and excellence. The Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act also requires the President of the Treasury Board to promote ethical practices in the public sector and a positive environment for disclosing wrongdoings and requires the Chief Human Resources Officer to prepare an annual report of disclosure activity in the public sector which the President must table in both Houses.
In November 2022, the President of Treasury Board announced the appointment of an external task force that would explore revisions to the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act. The task force’s review is considering opportunities to enhance the federal disclosure process and strengthen protections and supports for public servants who come forward to disclose wrongdoing. The task force will produce a public report that provides the government with recommendations on possible amendments to the Act to further support and protect federal employees who come forward to disclose wrongdoing. Their work began in January 2023 and is expected to take 12 to 18 months.
Furthermore, the Clerk has initiated a government-wide engagement on public service values through the establishment of a Deputy Ministers’ Task Team. Initial findings from this task team were published in December 2023.
Key partners
Outside of the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, key partners with people management responsibilities include:
- the Public Service Commission of Canada, which safeguards the integrity of the staffing system and the non-partisanship of the public service and manages the tools for public service recruitment
- deputy heads of departments and agencies are responsible for the effective people management in their organizations
- the Canada School of the Public Service, which provides learning, training and professional development opportunities to public servants and helps deputy heads meet the learning needs of their organizations
- the Privy Council Office, which supports the Clerk as Head of the Public Service, including directing public service–wide people management priorities
Key legislation
The President has responsibilities under the following pieces of legislation insofar as they relate to the work of the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer and Treasury Board as the employer:
- Financial Administration Act
- Public Service Employment Act
- Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act
- Employment Equity Act
- Canadian Human Rights Act
- Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- Accessible Canada Act
- Pay Equity Act
- Canada Labour Code, Part II
- Official Languages Act
- Public Service Superannuation Act (and other pension legislation – 17 Acts in total)
- Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act
Office of the Chief Information Officer at a glance
Outline
- What we do
- Who we are
- Where we fit in the digital landscape
- How we deliver
- Priorities
What we do
The Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) provides leadership, direction, oversight and capacity building for information management, information technology, government security, access to information, privacy, and internal and external service delivery. OCIO does this by focusing on four strategic themes through its Digital Ambition:
- excellence in technology and operations
- data-enabled digital services and programs
- action-ready digital strategy and policy
- structural evolution in funding, talent and culture
Who we are: leadership
Office of the Chief Information Officer
Dominic Rochon:Footnote 19 Chief Information Officer of Canada
Stephen Burt: Chief Data Officer of Canada
Establishes OCIO as the Government of Canada (GC) centre of expertise for Privacy and Responsible Data. Embeds consistent and rigorous data governance across the Government of Canada (digital policy suite, including the Policy on Service and Digital, Access to Information and Open Government, and Privacy). Manages the legislated Access to Information Act review process, including Access to Information and Privacy Online and Open Government Portal. Supports cybersecurity improvements across the Government of Canada.Footnote 20
Po Tea-Duncan: Chief Information Security Officer of Canada
Oversees the delivery of secure and reliable government services through the GC’s enterprise security architecture, security strategy and policy development, and GC cyber security event management.
Minh Doan: Chief Technology Officer of Canada
Horizontal portfolio management, reduction of technical debt, and improvement the state of mission-critical applications.
Mike MacDonald: Senior Assistant Deputy Minister of Security Policy Modernization
Oversees and strengthens the Policy on Government Security and related instruments. Modernize security screening for the GC. Evolve GC security policy to support and enable a digital government and workforce.
Len Bastien: Senior Assistant Deputy Minister of Digital Community Development
Manages recruitment, retention and development of digital talent across the GC. Drives improvements to the Digital Talent Platform and other talent tools. Develops and strengthens partnerships to enhance in-house digital skills and build innovative programming.
Who we are: corporate profile
Active workforce population for selected reporting period
Active workforce: 442
Indeterminates: 341
Determinates: 101
Figure 7.1 - Text version
Line graph demonstrating the trend over time for the composition of the active workforce population between the 2021–22 and 2023–24 fiscal years:
Reporting period | Fiscal year 2021–22, first quarter | Fiscal year 2021–22, second quarter | Fiscal year 2021–22, third quarter | Fiscal year 2021–22, fourth quarter | Fiscal year 2022–23, first quarter | Fiscal year 2022–23, second quarter | Fiscal year 2022–23, third quarter | Fiscal year 2022–23 fourth quarter | Fiscal year 2023–24, first quarter | Fiscal year 2023–24, second quarter | Fiscal year 2023–24, third quarter |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Indeterminate employees | 226 | 224 | 231 | 240 | 269 | 301 | 320 | 342 | 361 | 358 | 341 |
Determinate employees | 80 | 76 | 93 | 126 | 135 | 116 | 108 | 155 | 131 | 115 | 101 |
Figure 7.2 - Text version
Bar graph comparing the number of employees classified in the Economics and Social Science Services category (EC) with those classified in the Administrative Services category (AS) in the third quarter of 2023–24 fiscal year. There were 128 employees classified as EC and 116 classified as AS.
Figure 7.3 - Text version
Bar graph demonstrating the sub-composition of determinate employees by contract type for the third quarter of the 2023–24 fiscal year:
- 45 seconded employees
- 25 term employees
- 15 agency employees or contractors
- 10 students
- 6 casual employees
Source: Internal TBS data
*Includes $1.9 million for cyber security coming in the Supplementary Estimates (C)
How we deliver: strategic direction
OCIO provides leadership for enterprise digital transformation objectives and priorities by:
- setting the strategic, operational and policy direction for the Government of Canada for information technology, information management and data, service, and supporting enterprise planning and reporting
- supporting governance, reviewing/endorsing digital initiatives, and establishing guidance to support innovation
- collaborating with partners, stakeholders, and other departments and agencies (for example, Employment and Social Development Canada; Canada Revenue Agency; Shared Services Canada; Public Services and Procurement Canada; Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada; Communications Security Establishment) to advance priorities
- facilitating innovation and experimentation in service design and delivery, information, data, information technology and cyber security
- supporting federal public servants in delivering better government services and publishing digital government guides and resources
The Digital Ambition, a three-year forward-facing strategic plan, is the north star to guide OCIO and the government in achieving our digital transformation priorities through its four strategic themes.
How we deliver: excellence in technology and operations
OCIO works with key stakeholders like Shared Services Canada and Communications Security Establishment Canada to ensure a safe, secure and reliable IT operational environment to support the delivery of policy, programs and services to individuals. The sector also provides oversight and support on multi-year, foundational, and transformational programs managed across the Government of Canada to modernize the technology and processes used to deliver our services.
Digital Ambition priorities:
- strengthen the overall health of the application portfolio
- strengthen GC digital transformation
- improve the service experience of all clients
- deploy modern and accessible workplace tools and devices
- plan and govern for the sustainable and integrated management of service, data, IT, privacy and cyber security
Key priorities: Government of Canada Cloud Adoption Strategy, Government of Canada Cyber Security Event Management Plan, Application Modernization, Government of Canada Enterprise Architecture Review Board, Government of Canada Technical Debt Strategy, GC Enterprise Cyber Security Strategy
How we deliver: data-enabled digital services and programs
OCIO supports improved government-wide use of data and information to provide better and more accessible services and programs by integrating them into government structures, operations and decision-making. Good data practices allow the government to produce stronger and better-informed policies, as well as improved delivery of effective, equitable and inclusive programs and services, among many other benefits.
OCIO is also enabling cross-government initiatives that create a single front door to establish identity for access to all government services, as well as looking at ways to streamline the secure sharing of data across Government of Canada organizations to improve digital services and enable the achievement of priorities.
Digital Ambition priorities:
- maximize public value of data and information
- build and use secure common solutions for digital service delivery
- manage and use data and information as strategic assets
Key priorities: 2023-2026 Data Strategy for the Federal Public Service, Directive on Automated Decision-Making, National Action Plans on Open Government, Enhancements to GC Service Delivery
How we deliver: action-ready digital strategy and policy
As the digital landscape continues to evolve, OCIO supports the implementation of flexible and action-ready strategies and policies to navigate change and move to a common look and feel. Digital government means ensuring the government remains responsive, resilient, and equipped to deliver services and priorities in a fast-changing world.
Digital Ambition priorities:
- embed Government of Canada priorities into governing frameworks and policy
- provide horizontal prioritization and portfolio management
- streamline partner portfolios
- establish an agile operating model
- Implement Government of Canada-wide architecture strategy and standards
- provide modern, reliable and secure networks and infrastructure
Key priorities: Government of Canada Digital Standards Playbook, improving the government’s access to information regime, Government of Canada Cyber Security Management Guidelines
How we deliver: overview of legislation and policy
Figure 8 - Text version
Image depicting the organization of the legislation, policies, directives and Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat corporate documents that govern how the Office of the Chief Information Officer operates.
At the top of the image, the foundational legislation from which all Treasury Board policies and directives derive from are listed:
- Financial Administration Act
- Access to Information Act
- Privacy Act
The graphic then depicts the key policies that stem from these pieces of legislation and the directives or standards that apply to each policy:
- Policy on Service and Digital:
- Directive on Service and Digital
- Digital Standards (not a directive)
- Directive on Open Government
- Directive on Digital Talent
- Directive on Automated Decision-Making
- Policy on Government Security:
- Directive on Identity Management
- Directive on Security Management
- Policy on Access to Information:
- Directive on Proactive Publication
- Directive on Access to Information Requests
- Policy on Privacy Protection:
- Directive on Privacy Impact Assessment
The Policy on the Planning and Management of Investments is held by the Office of the Comptroller General.
The bottom row of the graphic shows the corporate documents of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat:
- Departmental Plan
- Departmental Results Report
How we deliver: structural evolution in funding, talent and culture
OCIO supports a broad culture shift across a diverse workforce required to deliver a digital government. Changing the public service culture and processes requires flexibility, collaboration, digital knowledge and active support from leaders who facilitate and enable the transformation. OCIO works with partners across government to tackle longstanding institutional barriers that hamper change and innovation, including governance systems and procurement.
Digital Ambition priorities:
- drive a systemic culture shift across government to support a digital-first mindset
- attract, retain and develop diverse digital talent
Key priorities: Government of Canada Digital Talent Platform, Government of Canada Digital Talent Strategy, Government of Canada onboarding, Government of Canada Digital Skills Strategy
Annex: glossary
- applications
- Software or a computer program designed to help people perform an activity.
- architecture
- The design of how software applications communicate.
- digital-first mindset
- Doing things differently in the internet era (asking different questions, involving people with different perspectives, finding new solutions to problems).
- digital talent
- People who work in digital disciplines. They have the skills and experience in fields including but not limited to digital leadership, development, data, design, product, and security.
- enterprise
- In the content of Digital Government, meaning across departmental silos.
- enterprise architecture
- Organizing the organization to deliver value through software solutions.
- infrastructure
- Underlying systems required to host and deliver software solutions.
- platforms
- Shields developers from the underlying complexities of infrastructure and provides reusable components in the development of applications.
- service channels
- The means of accessing a service, including paper, phone and online. Online services are delivered through applications.
Primer: digital government
Outline
- What is digital and what can it provide?
- The digital government landscape: who does what?
- The digital government landscape: the state of play of service, information and data, applications and technology
- How did we get here and where are we going?
What is digital and what can it provide?
- Digital is rethinking how to use new capabilities to improve how customers are served.
- Digital is about the technological and organizational processes that allow an enterprise to be agile and fast.
- Being digital requires being open to reexamining your entire way of doing business and understanding where the new frontiers of value are.
- A digital mindset institutionalizes cross-functional collaboration, flattens hierarchies, and builds environments to encourage the generation of new ideas.
– What Digital Really Means, Dörner and Edelman (McKinsey and Company)
Digital is fundamentally about good service delivery
- Digital government is about using data and technology to support the efficient and effective implementation of government policies, programs and processes.
- Digital transformation allows institutions to identify opportunities, create value and benefit from economies of scale.
- Advances in digital technologies are radically transforming the way Canadians live, work and interact. Canadians expect secure, seamless, user-centric digital services.
- Meeting expectations and delivering on government’s digital capabilities are critical to maintaining trust in Canada’s institutions.
The digital government landscape: who does what?
Where we fit in the digital landscape
Figure 9 - Text version
Graphic showing how the government’s digital landscape involves key organizations that play roles in four separate layers:
- the business layer
- the information layer
- the application layer
- the technology layer
The business layer is overseen by Strategic Communications and Ministerial Affairs and the Canadian Digital Service. The application and technology layers are overseen by Shared Services Canada.
The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Office of the Chief Information Officer, provides policies, standards, guidelines, oversight and enablement across the layers to provide security, privacy and accessibility.
The business layer involves how clients access services, how we provide services and how we work with service delivery partners.
The information layer involves how we use and manage information and data.
The application layer involves the applications that support service delivery and manage data.
The technology layer involves the infrastructure and platforms that enable service delivery and integration.
Digital landscape: other key federal partners
Digital change at scale requires actively engaging and working with key partners.
Figure 10 - Text version
Graphic showing how key federal partners effect digital change at scale. It features four principal areas:
- government operations and services
- economy
- privacy and cyber security
- data
The first three areas intersect with one another, and data intersects with all three other areas.
The area of government operations and services involves the following:
- Public Services and Procurement Canada oversees government applications (for example, human resources software) and is a common service provider (for example, real property manager)
- service delivery departments (for example, Employment and Social Development Canada; the Canada Revenue Agency; Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) provide delivery of services that are critical to national economic and social well-being (for example, Benefits Delivery Modernization)
The area of privacy and cyber security involves the following:
- Public Safety Canada, which undertakes coordination and strategic policy-making on national cyber security matters
- the Department of Justice Canada, which is involved with Privacy Act reform
- the Communications Security Establishment and the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, which act as the cyber security centre of expertise
The area of the economy involves Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, which is involved in the digital economy in Canada and is the lead for Canada’s Digital Charter.
The area of data involves:
- Statistics Canada for the collection, compilation, analysis and publication of statistical information
- Library and Archives Canada for data preservation
The digital government landscape: the state of play of service, information and data, applications and technology
The business layer: there is a large and complex service delivery and operational environment
74 departments and agenciesFootnote 21 report 1,637Footnote 22 services through their service inventories.
Figure 11 - Text version
Bar graph showing the top 10 services by transaction volume for 2022–23 across six service channels: telephone, online, in person, postal mail, email and other. The services are:
- traveller processing at the Canada Border Services Agency (70.4 million transactions)
- the Canadian Astronomy Data Centre at National Research Council Canada (57.0 million transactions)
- commercial processing at the Canada Border Services Agency (23.0 million transactions)
- financial literacy at the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (10.1 million transactions)
- external credential management at Shared Services Canada (10.1 million transactions)
- passports and travel documents at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (3.7 million transactions)
- Client Support Centre at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (3.4 million transactions)
- Canadian passport at Employment and Social Development Canada (3.4 million transactions)
- Old Age Security benefits at Employment and Social Development Canada (3.3 million transactions)
- electronic travel authorization at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (3.1 million transactions)
High-level measurements used to track overall Government of Canada service
- 22% of Government of Canada services can be completed online from end-to-end
- Overall, 39% of all steps required to receive a service were available online
- 59% of Government of Canada services with standards met all their targets in 2021–22
Source: As of December 2023, 2022-23 Government of Canada Service Inventory
The information and data layer
We have significant information and data holdings that we are not culturally or technologically able to use or share as much as we would like.
The scope of enterprise data and information is broad:
- Services to Canadians, including businesses and many other types of clients requires the transfer and use of information and data between parties:
- regulation, enforcement and security
- operations (for example, human resources, financial)
- science, research and academic work
- policies, funding programs and grants and contributions
Canada’s regulatory and legislative landscape is complex:
- Defined boundaries of data and information sharing within:
- the federal government
- with other jurisdictions in Canada and abroad
- with Indigenous Peoples
- Limited knowledge of GC data holdings or ability to share data and information between applications
The production, use and management of data in the GC
Public servants develop and deliver programs and services and provide evidence-informed advice to decision-makers.
As new technologies reshape the lives and work of people around the world, the volume of data continues to grow exponentially.
The Office of the Chief Information Officer of Canada helps the GC ensure that privacy is protected, and that data is used ethically and in the open. Increasing public trust in a public service that can manage, safeguard and use data.
Sources: Report to the Clerk of the Privy Council: A Data Strategy Roadmap for the Federal Public Service, 2023–2026 Data Strategy for the Federal Public Service
Applications and technology layer: the information technology ecosystem is large with increasing annual expenditures
Figure 12 - Text version
Bar graph showing Government of Canada information technology operating expenditures from the 2013–14 fiscal year to the 2021–22 fiscal year, in billions of dollars:
Fiscal year 2013–14 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2014–15 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2015–16 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2016–17 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2017–18 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2018–19 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2019–20 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2020–21 ($ billions) | Fiscal year 2021–22 ($ billions) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Departments | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.9 | 5.7 | 5.9 |
Shared Services Canada | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
Figure 13 - Text version
Pie chart showing Government of Canada information technology operating expenditures by technology services groups in 2021–22, in millions of dollars:
- information technology applications: $3,081 million
- telecommunications and networks: $1,411 million
- production and operations computing: $1,343 million
- distributed computing: $1,439 million
- information technology program management: $1,093 million
- information technology security: $577 million
Shared Services Canada and the Office of the Chief Information Officer continue to make progress towards standardizing, integrating and modernizing networks, emails and data centre applications.
Source: 2021–22 Departmental IT Expenditure Reports of 43 partner departments (excluding Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada) and three client departments (Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council)
Note: Shared Services Canada expenditures include Shared Services Canada’s Vote Net Revenue (IT Services Provided by Shared Services Canada to Other Departments)
Slide updated February 27, 2023
Applications and technology layer: there remains significant opportunity for modernization
- Business applications: 7,857
- Percentage of “healthy” applications: 36%
- Approximately two thirds of GC Business Applications are calculated as not healthy
- Application portfolio health results show a slow progress on aging IT since 2013
Figure 14 - Text version
Pie chart showing an assessment of aging information technology in four categories:
- attention required: 40%
- minimal or no attention required: 36% (this figure constitutes the Application Portfolio Health Indicator)
- not assessed: 16%
- immediate attention required: 8%
*The Application Portfolio Health Indicator (APHI) is the percentage of healthy applications in the GC where the health of the application is determined based on a department’s self-assessment of the application’s business value, technical condition, funding condition and criticality.
Source: Government of Canada Application Portfolio Management as of January 18, 2024
The Application Portfolio Health Indicator (APHI) is the percentage of healthy applications in the GC where the health of the application is determined based on a department’s self-assessment of the application’s business value, technical condition, funding condition and criticality.
Figure 15 - Text version
Bar graph showing the Government of Canada Application Portfolio Health Indicator (APHI) from 2013–14 to 2023–24 and the APHI for mission-critical applications from 2018–19 to 2023–24.
Mission-critical applications are those applications that support the delivery of services that, if disrupted, would cause high or very high risk to the health, safety, security, economic well-being or continuity of government operations.
APHI for the Government of Canada:
Fiscal year 2013–14 (%) | Fiscal year 2014–15 (%) | Fiscal year 2015–16 (%) | Fiscal year 2016–17 (%) | Fiscal year 2017–18 (%) | Fiscal year 2018–19 (%) | Fiscal year 2019–20 (%) | Fiscal year 2020–21 (%) | Fiscal year 2021–22 (%) | Fiscal year 2022–23 (%) | Fiscal year 2023–24 (%) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Healthy applications | 21 | 20 | 18 | 21 | 28 | 30 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 36 |
Mission critical healthy applications | No data | No data | No data | No data | No data | 49 | 51 | 55 | 55 | 62 | 55 |
Figure 16 - Text version
Bar chart comparing the overall maturity of technology by cyber security pillar in 2022 and 2023.
Scores by pillar:
2022 | 2023 | |
---|---|---|
Identify | 2.3 | 2.4 |
Protect | 2.3 | 2.5 |
Detect | 2.1 | 2.3 |
Respond | 2.0 | 2.2 |
Recover | 2.1 | 2.2 |
Maturity scoring is as follows:
- Level 0: does not exist
- Level 1: partial
- Level 2: risk informed
- Level 3: repeatable
- Level 4: adaptive
The range of overall maturity by cluster group is between 1.9 and 2.7.
Source: Government of Canada Application Portfolio Management as of July 18, 2023
How did we get here and where are we going?
How did we get here?
- Historically, federal institutions developed and implemented their programs and services and supporting operations independently of each other.
- This has resulted in siloed operations, data and technology, with each department developing its own approaches.
- In 2011, Shared Services Canada was created to integrate the Government of Canada IT infrastructure and some of the IT support services (email, telecommunications). It took over an aging patchwork of IT systems that lacked interoperability.
- In 2019, the Chief Information Officer of Canada-led Enterprise Governance and Planning, along with policy changes, supported significant investments to modernize and enhance the government’s digital services.
- Shared Services Canada has made progress repairing and replacing critical hardware infrastructure, including decommissioning costly legacy data centres, implementing modern cross-government IT solutions.
- In 2022, The Digital Ambition was introduced outlining four strategic pillars to transition the GC to a more digital government. In 2023, a refreshed Ambition was published alongside a Year in Review which highlighted the Government of Canada’s success stories and challenges from the previous year.
Decades of under-investments have resulted in the accrual of significant “technical debt” as IT infrastructure ages faster than the pace of repairs or replacements.
Older infrastructure is inherently costly to maintain, often performs poorly and can be more prone to service interruptions.
Digital enables horizontal integration
The cross-cutting nature of digital government is challenging vertical departmental structures and underscoring the importance of operating across mandates and organizations.
- Institutional mandates and authorities are vertical.
- To deliver on digital, we need to act horizontally and have the right mechanism in place to drive behavioural change.
What are the challenges?
Many underlying challenges to the implementation of digital government result from, or are exacerbated by, siloed approaches to operations, data and technology:
- Complex structural reality: The government has an outdated and complex IT infrastructure that affects its ability to respond efficiently and effectively to the changing needs of Canadians. Services and the mechanisms to access services, continue to be siloed and inconsistent. Some services are not accessible or secure and user experiences vary greatly across government.
- Shortage of talent and under-representation: The GC needs to represent the population of Canada while reducing systemic barriers to people trying to access government information and services, no matter where they live and how they identify. To build a diverse and inclusive workforce that helps the GC, it needs to better understand the needs of individuals and deliver quality, user-centric service.
- Value-driven investment: Investment in technology and digital initiatives has continued to grow over the last decade, however, the highly decentralized nature of IT investment management and decision-making in the GC creates high complexity. There is opportunity to provide both self-service and full-service means to support Canadians and be methodical about how we invest collectively to achieve efficiency of delivery.
What are some of the best practices to support digital government?
Leading digital governments across Canada and around the world have prioritized:
- developing the necessary common digital platforms and components needed across government to deliver services
- putting user needs over government needs, and avoiding project surprises: relentlessly researching, developing and testing services with the people who actually use them, strengthening public trust as a result
- delivering service improvements to the public on an incremental and continuous basis (for example, daily not yearly)
- recruiting digital professionals and building capacity of public servants, and empowering them with tools and autonomy
- launching digital marketplaces to make it easier for private businesses to collaborate with government on service delivery
What are our key priorities for advancing the digital agenda?
The Digital Ambition, a three-year forward-facing strategic plan, contains four strategic themes that are supported by a set of government-wide priorities that focus on outcome-driven, action-oriented approaches that address the challenges of digital modernization.
“To enable delivery of government in the digital age for all Canadians. This will be done by providing modernized and accessible tools to support service delivery that expresses the best of Canada in the digital space.”
Four themes
- Excellence in technology and operations
- Data-enabled digital services and programs
- Action-ready digital strategy and policy
- Structural evolution in funding, talent and culture
Theme 1: excellence in technology and operations
Individuals and businesses are satisfied with and trust Government of Canada services, which are reliable, secure, timely, accessible, and easy to use from any device.
Priorities
1.1 Strengthen the overall health of the application portfolio
1.2 Strengthen Government of Canada transformation
1.3 Improve the service experience of all clients
1.4 Deploy modern and accessible workplace tools and devices
1.5 Plan and govern for the sustainable and integrated management of service, data, IT, privacy and cyber security
Read more
- Government of Canada Cloud Adoption Strategy
- Government of Canada Cyber Security Event Management Plan
Theme 2: data-enabled digital services and programs
Departments make better data-driven decisions; operations are more effective and efficient; costs are lower; and duplication of effort is reduced.
Priorities
2.1 Maximize public value of data and information
2.2 Build and use secure common solutions for digital service delivery
2.3 Manage and use data and information as strategic assets
Read more
- National Action Plan on Open Government
- Government of Canada Data Strategy
- Directive on Automated Decision-Making
Theme 3: action-ready digital strategy and policy
The Government of Canada’s major service delivery systems are easy to use and maintain, stable and reliable, secure, and adaptable.
Priorities
3.1 Embed GC priorities into governing frameworks and policy
3.2 Provide horizontal prioritization and portfolio management
3.3 Streamline partner portfolios
3.4 Establish an agile operating model
3.5 Implement GC-wide architecture strategy and standards
3.6 Provide modern, reliable and secure networks and infrastructure
Read more
Theme 4: structural evolution in funding, talent and culture
Government of Canada public servants are digitally enabled through cultural and operational shifts and work on modern, diverse and multidisciplinary teams to serve the public better.
Priorities
4.1 Drive a systemic culture shift across government to support a digital-first mindset
4.2 Attract, retain and develop diverse digital talent
Read more
Initiatives to support the key priorities
Here are some of the key initiatives that are within the four strategic themes of the Digital Ambition that will be pursued to achieve the priority goal of delivering government services efficiently and effectively:
- ensuring operations are safe, secure and reliable in an ever-evolving cyber-threat landscape
- providing oversight and assurance on large-scale, multi-year, foundational and transformational projects and programs across government to modernize the technology and processes used to deliver services (for example, Old Age Security, Employment Insurance and Canada Pension Plan, GC pay system)
- driving the digitalization of government services and working with Service Canada to establish a coordinated and whole-of-government approach to improve delivery of core government services
- enabling solutions that support the transition from a highly analog environment to one that leverages digital opportunities to support the outcomes of the Access to Information review
- driving a systemic shift in culture across government that continues to look at evolution of policy and programs with a digital-first mindset
- attracting, retaining, and developing the GC’s digital talent to build a diverse community that reflects those we serve
Office of the Comptroller General at a glance
Outline
- Who we are
- What we do
- Why comptrollership matters
- Our impact
- Key activities
Who we are
Mandate
The Comptroller General is responsible for government-wide direction and leadership in the areas of financial management, management of assets, and internal audit.
These comptrollership functions are the foundation of the delivery of programs and services to Canadians – departments and agencies count on our leadership, and these lenses embedded in decision-making at Treasury Board.
Management team
Roch Huppé: Comptroller General
Monia Lahaie: Assistant Comptroller General, Financial Management
Sheri Ostridge: Assistant Comptroller General, Internal Audit
Samantha Tattersall: Assistant Comptroller General, Acquired Services and Assets
Christine Walker: Assistant Comptroller General, Financial Management Transformation
What we do: business lines
Financial Management Sector
Focused on strengthening government-wide financial management, oversight and reporting, and building capacity in specialized areas such as finance, accounting, costing, charging and grants and contributions
Acquired Services and Assets Sector
Focused on strengthening the management of assets and acquired services through policies, advice and capacity-building functions for federal procurement, real property, materiel management, investment planning, and project management communities
Internal Audit Sector
Focused on strengthening the internal audit function government-wide, which contributes to sound risk management, control and governance processes
Financial Management Transformation Sector
Focused on working with departments and agencies to transform the delivery of core comptrollership functions across government by leveraging the need to update digital tools and skill sets, to deliver faster and more real-time information to decision-makers and help deliver the programs and services that Canadians need
Why comptrollership matters
Effective resource management controls are foundational to trust in government
- The credibility of costing and other financial data, as well as adherence to Public Sector Accounting Standards in support of departmental financial reporting, is critical to the Government of Canada
- In 2022–23, over $249.5 billion in grants and contributions were spent through more than 750 transfer payment programs by over 50 departments with different mandates and results
It underpins the assets and services we own and buy
- The Government of Canada spends approximately $10 billion annually to administer the federal real property portfolio
- The federal government owns $29.6 billion worth of material assets, such as vehicles, machinery and equipment
- Approximately $34.3 billion in contracts and amendments were awarded in federal public procurement in 2022 to buy everything from military vehicles, vessels and equipment to software and systems
It provides assurance on government practices and activities
- Over 200 internal audit engagements are conducted annually across government, touching on a wide range of high-risk areas such as IT security, HR management, transformation, program design, and so on
Which is supported by diverse functional communities across government
- Over 6,600 financial analysts and approximately 600 executives work in financial management across the government
- Over 14,000 people work in the real property and procurement community alone
- There are 44 chief audit executives and approximately 650 Internal Audit employees
Our impact across government
Comptrollership is the foundation of government, and the Comptroller General provides the leadership, direction and support to departments to deliver on their mandates.
Setting the rules and direction for how departments manage their business
- Without effective management and oversight on resource management and accounting, project and asset management, procurement and management control, and transfer payments, the government cannot effectively deliver programs and services.
- Not only do we set the policies and establish delegation limits (for example, contracting and project limits) to ensure consistency across the enterprise, but we also continually engage, advise, and guide departments in support of effective resource management.
- Recognizing the impact of program delivery decisions on the Public Accounts, we work with departments to build capacity, find solutions and ensure credibility through Chief Financial Officer Attestation and other tools.
- Given the reset of Treasury Board policies, we are working with both practitioners and senior designated officials to provide guidance and tools to effectively manage their projects, assets, and procurements.
- We provide deputy heads with assurance regarding the design and operation of the governance, risk management, and control processes in their organizations.
Leading and developing the community
- Engage deputy heads on the designation of chief financial officers, senior designated officials and chief audit executives to ensure the right people with the right skills are placed in the right positions.
- Develop a diverse and robust pool of talent and support professionalization through government-wide recruitment and staffing, succession programs, oversight of leadership programs, and development of training and learning, with a focus on inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility.
- Work with professionals in departments to build capacity where there are identified needs (for example, costing, charging, transfer payments, real property management, financial systems, data analytics, assurance and internal audit functions).
Supporting Treasury Board in its management board role
- Treasury Board submissions and the chief financial officer attestation should reflect our efforts of working with departments on their management frameworks.
- In addition, we provide advice and analysis to support submissions (for example, advice on cost estimates, financial risks, accounting implications).
Optimize investment in comptrollership management systems
- Establish strategies and solutions to standardize, modernize and consolidate systems to meet the needs of the departmental management, central agencies and the comptrollership community.
Key activities
- Building and developing strong and vibrant professional communities to support program delivery and ensure strong stewardship of public funds
- Working with departments to ensure they have the software and tools required for complex modern comptrollership management
Financial Management
- Manage all Treasury Board financial management policies
- Oversee the Public Accounts of Canada
- Address the main accounting issues and implement accounting standards (for example, asset retirement obligations and financial instruments)
- Review and challenge key costing initiatives (for example, National Shipbuilding Strategy, Benefits Delivery Modernization, and so on) and build costing capacity across the GC
- Support the effective delivery of transfer payment programs
Financial Management Transformation
- Policy and oversight of investments in comptrollership management systems
- Guide and support departments with a robust GC-wide strategy that maximizes investment in comptrollership management systems by leveraging digital advancements to standardize and manage data as a strategic asset, optimize planning, reporting and analytics in departments and GC-wide, simplify and automate processes, and consolidate systems and reduce technical debt
- Digital Comptrollership Program functions build and support standardized digital solutions that departments can leverage, drive GC-wide procurements to meet community needs, strategically manage contracts and vendors and provide expertise to departments in the planning, implementation and operation of modernized systems.
Acquired Services and Assets
- Manage the implementation of a relatively new suite of Treasury Board policies.
- Support Treasury Board (via program sector) on the review of hundreds of submissions annually that touch on procurement, projects, investment plans and real property.
- With partners (Public Services and Procurement Canada and Indigenous Services Canada), increase the diversity of bidders on Government of Canada contracts with focus on Indigenous procurement.
- Build the capacity of the procurement, materiel, real property and project management communities through recruitment and professional development.
Internal Audit
- Implement a modern, renewed Vision for Internal Audit in response to the changing pace and complexity of the risk environment.
- Perform internal audit work across the GC, focused on providing a range of independent internal audit services designed to add value and improve operations within departments and Regional Development Agencies.
- Enhance the role of internal audit to provide real-time advice and assurance in support of large transformation initiatives.
- Lead recruitment of Departmental Audit Committee Members.
Office of Public Service Accessibility at a glance
Overview
- Who we are
- What we do
- Key activities
- Priorities
Who we are
Mandate
- Co-develop, launch and advance the implementation of Nothing Without Us: An Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada
- Provide advice and leadership to federal departments and agencies as they prepare to meet the requirements of the Accessible Canada Act
- Launch and manage the Centralized Workplace Fund to invest in research, tools and innovation aimed at improving workplace accommodation practices and removing barriers that create a need for accommodation
Management team
Alfred MacLeod: Assistant Deputy Minister, Public Service Accessibility
Clara Morgan: Director, Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund
Stephanie Austin: Director, Policy and Engagement
Office of Public Service Accessibility’s launch
- The Government of Canada has put greater emphasis on implementing anti-racism, equity, accessibility and inclusion initiatives in recent years.
- The Office of Public Service Accessibility was established in 2018 (and renewed for 2021-2024) to prepare the public service to meet or exceed the requirements of the Accessible Canada Act.
- The Accessible Canada Act (2019) and regulations aim to create a barrier-free Canada for persons with disabilities by January 1, 2040.
- The Office of Public Service Accessibility supports the President of Treasury Board in removing barriers to accessibility and disability inclusion in the federal public service, and in the hiring of 5,000 net new public servants with disabilities by 2025.
What we do: accessibility in the public service
- Accessibility in the workplace focuses on removing and preventing barriers for all employees, and in particular, employees with disabilities who often face systemic barriers in the workplace.
- Barriers include anything that prevents people from fully and equally participating in Canadian societies. Some barriers are very visible, like a building without an access ramp. Other barriers are less visible, like instructions written in complex language.
The prevalence of disabilities among Canadians (whether physical, sensory, cognitive, or mental health-related) is common:
- Approximately one in five Canadians (22%, or more than 6.2 million people), over the age of 15 identify as having a disability in Canada.
- Disabilities can refer to any impairment, whether permanent, temporary or episodic in nature.
- Almost everyone is likely to experience some form of disability ─ temporary or permanent ─ at some point in life.
Environmental analysis: current state
Employees with disabilities
- The public service’s core administration employs over 271,000 people across Canada.
- People with disabilities are the only equity group currently underrepresented in the public service workforce. Despite 9.1% workforce availability in Canada, people with disabilities only represent 6.2% of the core public service workforce.
Barriers facing employees with disabilities
- Physical, communications and information as well as attitudinal barriers in the workplace
- Technological barriers in the use of platforms and tools
- Efficiently accessing timely workplace accommodations (supports, tools and measures) that would effectively address these barriers
- Knowledge gaps in how to procure goods and services in an accessible manner and how to design programs and services accessibly from the start
- Behavioural and attitudinal barriers in how to serve Canadians in a barrier-free manner and how to nurture diverse and inclusive teams
As the largest employer and service provider in Canada, the federal public service can make a significant difference in identifying, proactively preventing and removing barriers.
The Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service
- Public service to become a model of accessibility in Canada and internationally
- Guided by the principle of “nothing without us” and co-developed through extensive consultations with public servants through cross-Canada townhalls, engagement with experts, surveys, and in collaboration with the Persons with Disabilities Champions and Chairs Committee of the federal public service
- Public Government of Canada progress updates on the implementation of the strategy were released online in December 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023
Five strategy goals
- Improve recruitment, retention and promotion of persons with disabilities.
- Enhance the accessibility of the built environment.
- Make information and communications technology usable by all.
- Equip public servants to design and deliver accessible programs and services.
- Build an accessibility confident public service.
Key activities
The Office of Public Service Accessibility supports Government of Canada accessibility capacity-building and sustainability by:
- providing public service leadership and advice to help advance the implementation of the Accessibility Strategy’s five goals
- equipping the public service to better support employees with disabilities and to better serve Canadians with disabilities through learning
- drawing awareness to accessibility and disability inclusion through regular outreach and engagement activities with employees, leaders, functional communities, experts and groups with lived experience of disability, across Canada
- investing in projects through the new Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund and co-designing accessible solutions to help remove barriers and improve accommodation for employees and clients with disabilities
- supporting and improving the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport, already used by more than 55 federal organizations in its current document format. A new portal-based digital Passport (a major investment and improvement) is coming this spring. The Passport facilitates conversations between employees and managers about the tools and supports needed to succeed in their jobs and throughout their careers
Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund
To support the full participation of persons with disabilities in the federal public service, the Office of Public Service Accessibility received $10 million over five years (2019–2024) to establish the Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund.
- Improves workplace accommodation practices and reduces barriers that contribute to the need for individual accommodations.
- Seed funding supports the development of pilot tools and guidance, improvements to existing practices, experimentation with innovative accommodation solutions that can be scaled across the Government of Canada.
Sample projects include:
- Lending Library Service Pilot (Shared Services Canada)
- Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport (TBS)
- Accessibility Hub guiding departments on accessibility (TBS)
- Neurodiversity Recruitment Pilot (multiple departments)
- Lighting Project for employees with lighting sensitivities (Public Services and Procurement Canada)
- Workplace Accommodation Centre (TBS)
Progress and next steps
There has been progress on accessibility since 2019, but impact will take time to fully realize.
Example | What we do | What’s underway |
---|---|---|
Identifying barriers and co-designing solutions |
We raise awareness on barriers, provide input on accessibility, and support greater inclusion of persons with disabilities in co-developing initiatives that impact their workplace. |
Expanding successful co-developed initiatives to broader public service (such as via a central digital application for the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport) |
Building accessibility capacity and sustainability across the public service |
We support departments and agencies in building accessibility capacity by identifying and sharing accessibility resources and tools. |
Enabling greater collaboration by identifying best practices and highlighting innovative solutions across the public service (for example, Communities of Practice, Accessibility Hub, analysis of accessibility plans and progress reports) |
Measuring, reporting, and improving supports |
We provide advice and collaborate on data and measurement initiatives across the public service to consider barriers facing persons with disabilities and improve accountability. |
Embed accessibility into traditional reporting and data collection and create tips and resources for measurement on accessibility. |
Changing our culture to be accessibility confident |
We engage with employees and leaders across the government to raise awareness in accessibility, reduce stigma and help cultivate a public service that is accessible by default. |
Ongoing engagement and learning events throughout the year, to build competencies in accessibility |
Key partners
The Office of Public Service Accessibility works closely with:
Key departments involved in public service management and/or diversity, inclusion and accessibility:
- Employment and Social Development Canada
- Public Service Commission of Canada
- Shared Services Canada
- Public Services and Procurement Canada
- Canada School of Public Service
- Privy Council Office
- Statistics Canada
At TBS, this includes close collaboration with:
- Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer
- Office of Chief Information Officer
- Office of Comptroller General of Canada
Other partners:
- departments and agencies preparing for the Accessible Canada Act
- employee networks and communities of practice
- external accessibility experts in Canada or abroad (including the Canada Human Rights Commission and the Office of the Chief Accessibility Officer)
Priorities in 2023–24
Leadership and governance in accessibility
- Continue to support deputy heads responsible for specific elements of the strategy to make measurable progress.
- Focus on removing barriers and improving workplace accommodation practices by:
- funding innovative pilots that support accessibility in public service such as the Lending Library (Shared Services Canada)
- working with key functional communities (Human Resources, Chief Information Officers, managers, real property) to build capacity in accessibility and disability inclusion
- advancing the development of an accessible digital application for the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport
Strategic advice and measurement
- Launch tools and guidance to support departments in developing and implementing their accessibility plans and measuring progress.
- Identify trends, best practices and sharing lessons learned in accessibility with departments and agencies.
- Provide progress updates on the implementation of the strategy.
Outreach and engagement
- Deliver learning and engagement events, including sessions promoting the Passport, to mobilize and equip key audiences to remove barriers and improve accessibility and disability inclusion.
- Increased engagement to ensure that accessibility and disability is embedded in broader diversity and inclusion efforts, working closely with other employment equity groups and allies.
Office of Public Service Accessibility beyond 2024
The Office of Public Service Accessibility’s funding sunsets on March 31, 2024. Renewal is pending a Budget 2024 decision.
Should no incremental funding be secured, the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport, as a critical application for streamlining workplace accommodation processes, would be scaled down and maintained only in minimal operational capacity, and could be at risk if funding for ongoing operating costs cannot be found.
Annex 1: legislative overview
The Accessible Canada Act aims to create a barrier-free Canada by 2040 through the identification, removal and prevention of barriers to accessibility wherever Canadians interact with areas under federal jurisdiction.
To facilitate this work, the Act establishes new machinery:
- Chief Accessibility Officer
- Accessibility Commissioner
- Canadian Accessibility Standards Development Organization
The legislation applies to all sectors in the federal jurisdiction:
- Parliament
- Government of Canada
- telecommunications
- banking
- transportation
And specific duties are assigned to all entities within these sectors:
- develop and publish annual accessibility plans in consultation with persons with disabilities
- establish a feedback process
- publish progress reports
Annex 2: Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund projects
- The Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport: an innovative approach to streamlining workplace accommodation (TBS lead)
- A lending library service for employees who require workplace accommodations due to an illness, disability or injury (Shared Services Canada lead)
- An innovative approach to increasing the recruitment and retention of neurodiverse individuals in the federal public service (with the Public Service Commission of Canada, Shared Services Canada, and the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada)
- The development and assessment of e-learning modules developed for employees, managers, and HR professionals to learn about topics surrounding autism and neurodiversity (with the Canada School of Public Service)
- The delivery of career counselling and coaching services for interns and managers of the Federal Internship Program for Canadians with Disabilities (Public Service Commission of Canada lead)
- A research study into the causes and impacts of harassment and discrimination of persons with disabilities in the federal public service (TBS lead)
- The establishment of a culturally appropriate Indigenous accessibility resource centre to provide advice and guidance on culturally appropriate workplace accommodations regarding Indigenous federal public servants with disabilities (Knowledge Circle for Indigenous Inclusion)
- Alignment of Treasury Board policy instruments with the Accessible Canada Act and the Canadian Human Rights Act through a policy review (TBS lead)
Centre for Greening Government at a glance
Outline
- Who we are
- What we do
- Key activities
Who we are
Mandate
The mandate of the Centre for Greening Government (CGG) is to provide leadership toward net-zero, climate-resilient and green Government of Canada operations.
Management team
Nick Xenos: Executive Director, Greening Government
What we do: Greening Government Strategy overview
Objective (aligned with the Paris Agreement, 2015) |
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Key focus areas | Aligning policies, engaging partners and measuring performance are cross-cutting:
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Implementation |
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Performance results |
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Key activities
Leads and coordinates the implementation of the Greening Government Strategy and the Policy on Green Procurement, including by:
- providing strategic advice, practical guidance and tools to departments for net-zero, climate-resilient and green real property, fleet, and procurement
- convening interdepartmental working groups and external stakeholder communities of practices to share expertise, successes, and best practices
Tracks and publicly discloses greenhouse gas emissions reductions for federal operations
Administers:
- the Greening Government Fund (approximately $5 million per year) to fund projects in departments that reduce emissions
- the Low-Carbon Fuel Procurement Program ($228 million for eight years starting in 2023–24) to support the purchase of low-carbon fuels for the government’s air and marine fleet
Partners and stakeholders
Collaborates with, guides and, directs federal departmentsto green their operations with a focus on 28 major federal emitters
Works with provinces, territories, industry and non-governmental organizations on amplifying greening efforts across the country
The business of supply: voted appropriations
Supply
By law, Parliament must approve all government spending
The “business of supply” is the process by which the government asks Parliament to authorize its intended expenditures through legislation, that is, the Appropriation Acts
- The Estimates are a series of reports that provide supporting detail to supply legislation by setting out the government’s spending plans
The President of the Treasury Board, supported by TBS, has the following responsibilities in supply:
- chairs the Treasury Board, a Cabinet committee responsible for reviewing and approving ministerial proposals for expenditures and other authorities
- tables the Estimates (spending plans) and introduces the related supply bills in Parliament
- appears at parliamentary committees to be accountable for the contents of the Estimates and supply bills
- tables Departmental Plans, Departmental Results Reports, and Public Accounts (actual expenditures) in Parliament
Required authorities for voted government spending
Cabinet
Policy approval (fundamental direction)
Minister of Finance or Prime Minister
Funding decision (source of funds)
The Treasury Board
Expenditure and other authorities (approves new spending and Estimates)
Parliament
Supply (appropriations)
Parliamentary approvals and reporting dates in 2023–24
January to March 26
- Supplementary Estimates (C) (the last Estimates for 2023–24)
- Main Estimates for 2024–25 (tabling and interim supply)
- Departmental Plans for 2024–25
- Budget 2024
April 1: beginning of fiscal year
The government starts the 2023–24 spending cycle.
September to December 10
- Supplementary Estimates (B), 2023–24
- Public Accounts for 2022–23
- Departmental Results Reports for 2022–23
- Fall Economic Statement 2023
April 1 to June 23
- Supplementary Estimates (A), 2023–24
- Main Estimates, 2023–24 (approval and full supply)
The events and documents in the reporting cycle provide Parliamentarians with the opportunity to review and make decisions on the use of public funds by the government.
Roles and responsibilities in seeking supply
The Treasury Board:
- has a central decision-making role in the government’s business of supply, including expenditure plans and reporting
- approves ministerial requests for adjustments to voted funds as requested in Treasury Board submissions or other proposals
TBS:
Supports the Treasury Board in its roles and responsibilities noted above, which involves:
- reviewing spending and implementation plans for program efficiency and alignment with government priorities
- supporting the supply process by preparing the Estimates and overseeing centrally managed expenditures (for example, central votes for spending authorities that can be carried forward from one fiscal year to the next)
Key steps in securing supply
1) Treasury Board approval of Treasury Board submissions / “Aide-mémoire”
The approval by Treasury Board allows inclusion of approved funding/authorities into the Estimates
2) Tabling of the Estimates document
In the House of Commons during each of three supply periods, usually three or more weeks before introducing the appropriation legislation
3) Committee appearances
In the weeks after tabling, the President appears on behalf of the government before parliamentary committees; other Ministers and officials may also be called to appear
4) Introduction of Appropriation Acts
After Committee review, supply bills are introduced and voted in the House of Commons on the last allotted day of the supply period, then considered in the Senate
5) Royal Assent
Formalized after the bill has passed the House of Commons and the Senate, followed by the release of supply to departments
Reports tabled in Parliament as part of the business of supply
The President typically tables four types of documents each year related to the supply process:
- Parts I and II of the Main Estimates (the Government Expenditure Plan and the departmental Main Estimates): tabled by March 1
- Supplementary Estimates: there is no set number per year, but can be tabled in May, late October or early November, and February of a year
- Departmental Plans (Part III of the Main Estimates): usually tabled in March (to closely follow the Main Estimates), which describe planned programs and spending, and expected results for the year.
- Departmental Results Reports: usually tabled in late October or early November (close to the Public Accounts) and describe the department’s performance against its Departmental Plan
The public and parliamentarians can access the information presented across these various reports in GC InfoBase.
Current supply cycle at a glance
Figure 17 - Text version
Graphic showing the steps in the government’s expenditure cycle, with ministerial requests and Treasury Board approvals handled in the following way:
- The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat supports the tabling of Estimates documents in the House of Commons and the Senate. These documents involve the Main Estimates and Supplementary Estimates.
- Parliamentary committee appearances take place.
- The introduction of an appropriation act involves the following:
- interim supply bill
- full supply bill for the Main Estimates
- full supply for Supplementary Estimates
- The House of Commons and the Senate vote on the supply bill / appropriation act, after which departments and agencies receive supply.
Appendix 1: snapshot of government spending
Figure 18.1 - Text version
Pie chart showing a breakdown of statutory and voted budgetary authorities, 2023–24:
- Statutory: $240.1 billion (50.1%)
- Voted: $239.2 billion (49.9%)
Figure 18.2 - Text version
Bar graph showing the composition of budgetary authorities in the 2023–24 Main Estimates and Supplementary Estimates (B).
Of statutory authorities:
- public debt charges totalled $38.6 billion
- transfers to other levels of government totalled $91.9 billion
- transfers to persons totalled $76.0 billion
- other statutory payments totalled $33.6 billion
Of voted authorities:
- capital budgets totalled $12.1 billion
- transfer payments totalled $96.0 billion
- operating budgets, Treasury Board central votes and payments to Crown corporations totalled $131.2 billion
Total may not add up due to rounding.
Figure 18.3 - Text version
Line graph showing that the growth in budgetary expenditure authorities was outpaced by the growth in nominal gross domestic product from the 2003–04 fiscal year to the 2022–23 fiscal year. The result is that budgetary expenditure authorities were about 258% greater in 2022–23 than in 2003–04.
Figure 18.4 - Text version
Line graph showing that the growth in voted budgetary expenditure authorities since the 2017–18 fiscal year has been notably higher (at 96%) than growth in nominal GDP (at 30%), whereas statutory expenditure authorities increased 39% from the 2017–18 fiscal year to the 2022–23 fiscal year.
Appendix 2: GC InfoBase
- A one-stop reference for the public and parliamentarians on government, finances, people and results data
- The web tool contains years’ worth of federal government data, bringing together information previously scattered across over 500 government reports such as the Public Accounts, Main Estimates and Departmental Plans
- The InfoBase is a key vehicle for displaying departmental results information under the Policy on Results, helping improve transparency to Parliament and Canadians
- Track spending by budget items and by implementing organization (for example, COVID-19 spending)
Primer: the business of supply
Executive summary
The following explains the “business of supply,” the process by which the government asks Parliament to authorize the funds required to meet its financial obligations. It summarizes the:
- key steps involved in transmitting the government’s projected annual spending to Parliament for review and funding approval (also known as the Estimates)
- supporting role of TBS regarding the Estimates and the parliamentary approval process
Introduction
The Expenditure Management System sets out the framework for the prioritization, planning, allocation and oversight of the expenditure of public funds across the federal government. The business of supply, the process by which Parliament’s authorization is sought for the government’s expenditures through appropriation acts, is one part of that broader system. Parliament has the sole authority to grant supply, which constitutes the amounts and objects (or destination) of all public spending.
Tabling the government’s Estimates documents and introducing related supply bills in the House of Commons are among the key functions of the President of the Treasury Board.
Background and context
The federal Budget lays out how the government intends to allocate funding across its priorities. With approved sources of funds, Ministers seek to implement initiatives within their areas of responsibility by preparing Treasury Board submissions requesting expenditure and other related authorities. Once approved by the Treasury Board, the related expenditure authorities may then be requested from Parliament.
Parliament approves spending authority in two ways:
- Annual appropriations: For one third of the government’s spending authorities, parliamentary approval is sought through appropriation bills for expenditures that require approval by Parliament each year (for example, departments’ operating and capital budgets, grants and contributions and certain payments to Crown corporations).
- Other statutes: For roughly two thirds of the government’s spending authorities, Parliament authorizes spending through specific legislation (for example, public debt charges, income support programs, fiscal equalization, health and social transfers).
The government’s annual spending plan and resource allocation priorities are reflected in the Estimates documents. Parliament has an opportunity to study these documents before the government introduces the related supply bill. Once approved by Parliament, the bill becomes an appropriation act that enables the government to make payments from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
The parliamentary business of supply necessitates the tabling/introduction of two elements:
- the Estimates that provide overall spending details and support the supply bills introduced during each supply period
- the actual supply bills that seek parliamentary spending authority for the portion of overall expenditures that is appropriated annually
The President is responsible for tabling the Estimates documents, on behalf of the government, in the House of Commons. The Estimates include the proposed schedules to the appropriation bill, which is usually introduced in the House within a few weeks of the Estimates tabling. The supply bill (that is, appropriation bill) enables the government to obtain the parliamentary authority necessary for program spending.
The President is also responsible for responding to Parliament’s questions about the government’s spending plans, in addition to those of their department (TBS) and the larger portfolio (which includes the Canada School of Public Service, the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada, the Public Sector Pension Investment Board and the Office of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada). Votes in the House of Commons on “money bills,” including appropriation bills, are matters of confidence.
The President typically tables four different documents each year, related to the supply process:
- Parts I and II of the Main Estimates (the Government Expenditure Plan and the departmental Main Estimates): tabled by March 1.
- Supplementary Estimates: there is no set number per year, but can be tabled in May, mid-October to November, and February of a given year.
- Departmental Plans (Part III of the Main Estimates): usually tabled in March (an effort is made to table as close to the Main Estimates as possible) and describe departmental program and expenditure plans and expected results for the year. By convention, the President of the Treasury Board tables Departmental Plans on behalf of all other ministers.
- Departmental Results Reports: usually tabled in late October or early November, which describe the organizations’ performance against their Departmental Plan. This usually occurs shortly after the President tables the Public Accounts of Canada each fall.
How TBS supports the business of supply
TBS supports the work of the Treasury Board in overseeing ongoing program spending; providing oversight of expenditure plans; and contributing to upfront discipline for new spending initiatives through the review and approval of Treasury Board submissions.
Departmental spending proposals are submitted to TBS in two ways:
- via departmental submissions, where departments seek to include specific in-year and ongoing program or initiative spending authorities in the Main and Supplementary Estimates
- as input to the Annual Reference Level Update in the fall when adjustments are made to all departmental budgets (or reference levels), as required to reflect decisions and changes in forecasts since the previous exercise in the upcoming Main Estimates
Conclusion
The President of the Treasury Board, supported by TBS, has several roles and responsibilities in the business of supply that help ensure that the government is able to advance its agenda. Specifically, these roles help ensure that the government is able to implement its priorities, secure required parliamentary expenditure authorities and oversee timely implementation, while ensuring adequate oversight, due regard for proper stewardship of public resources and accountability to Parliament and the public. On the part of the President, this requires close attention to the supply calendar and the activities in it.
The business of supply is one part of the broader Expenditure Management System, which sets out the framework for government-wide expenditure priority setting, planning, allocation and oversight functions.
The Expenditure Management System as a whole:
- establishes the Estimates and provides for parliamentary approval of supply
- provides oversight and control of government expenditures
- supports priority-setting by Ministers and expenditure decision-making at the federal level
- establishes departmental accountabilities, including the requirements to assess ongoing spending against priorities
- reports to Parliament on the performance and results of programs
Appendix: the Estimates calendar
As set out in the Canada Elections Act, under normal circumstances, Canadian federal elections are held on the third Monday of October, in the fourth calendar year from the previous election. This Estimates calendar is based on an October general election.
Within 15 days of the opening of a new Parliament
Governor General Special Warrants, authorized under section 30(1) of the Financial Administration Act, may be used to provide authority for payments when Parliament is dissolved for a general election. To be used, a minister must report that an expenditure is urgently required for the public good, and the President of the Treasury Board must report that there is no funding available through current appropriations to make the payment.
Within 15 days of the opening of a new Parliament, the President tables a Statement on the Use of Governor General Special Warrants, if any were issued.
October to December
The President could table a fall Supplementary Estimates soon after the new Parliament opens. Given this timing, these Estimates would likely be limited to items identified by organizations as urgently requiring supply.
The related supply bill would be introduced and voted by the House of Commons in early December. This would be followed by introduction in the Senate, where Royal Assent takes place upon approval. The Governor General would then issue a warrant (Financial Administration Act, Section 28) to authorize organizations to draw funds specified in that appropriation act from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
February to early March
The President tables the final Supplementary Estimates for the current fiscal year and, by March 1, the Main Estimates for the upcoming fiscal year.
The President, Secretary and other officials are invited as witnesses before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates, and/or the Senate Committee on National Finance.
Mid to late March
A supply bill for the Supplementary Estimates and an interim supply bill for the Main Estimates will be introduced in the House of Commons by the last allotted day of the supply period ending on March 26. Interim supply provides organizations with an advance on the funds requested in the Main Estimates to cover their needs from April 1, when the new fiscal year begins, until full supply for the Main Estimates is passed in June.
The supply bill follows the same pattern – introduction and passing in House of Commons, followed by the Senate, Royal Assent and issuance of a warrant.
March to May
Parliamentary Standing Committees consider individual department and agency Estimates. Ministers and officials are invited as witnesses.
The President and senior TBS officials testify at Standing Committees on TBS’s Estimates as well as the government-wide Estimates.
By May 31
House of Commons Standing Committees report, or are deemed to have reported, on individual departmental Estimates. The Committee of the Whole (the entire membership of the House of Commons sitting as a committee) may also study certain departmental Estimates, including one department selected by the Opposition.
By end of June
The House of Commons concludes debate on full supply and the President introduces the full supply bill on the last allotted day of the supply period ending on June 23. Again, this is followed by introduction in the Senate, Royal Assent, and the issuance of a warrant to allow departments to draw funds from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
Federal regulations
Regulations: an introduction
Regulations are a form of law and a key policy instrument used by government:
- legislation sets an overarching framework, while regulations establish operational details
- at the federal level, regulations can be made by the Governor in Council or by a Minister or head of an agency, as delegated by Parliament in enabling legislation
Regulations are made by every order of government:
- federal regulations deal with areas of federal jurisdiction (for example, patent rules, vehicle emissions standards, drug licensing)
- provincial regulations deal with areas of provincial jurisdiction (for example, land use, education, health)
- municipal by-laws deal with issues of local interest (for example, zoning, property taxes, local roadways)
Regulations protect health, safety, security and the environment, and support innovation, productivity and competition.
A significant part of government operations
Regulation is an important dimension of government activity and one in which the President of the Treasury Board plays a significant role.
The President of the Treasury Board establishes the Government of Canada’s regulatory policy framework and leads whole-of-government regulatory cooperation efforts.
Sixty federal departments and agencies have regulatory responsibilities.
From January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023, around 250 regulations were considered (55 for pre-publication and 155 final), as well as approximately 170 orders-in-council.
This includes proposals to add, remove and update regulations in order to address emerging technologies and new challenges to health, safety, security and the environment.
The COVID-19 pandemic required flexibility to address rapidly emerging priorities needed to uphold the health and safety of Canadians.
Role of the Treasury Board President
The President of the Treasury Board hastwo principal roles in the federal regulatory system:
- leading the Government of Canada’s work on regulatory policy, cooperation, and modernization:
- regulatory policy outlines the requirements that federal regulators must meet in developing and implementing regulations
- regulatory cooperation with provincial, territorial and international partners aims to harmonize regulations and reduce barriers
- regulatory modernization aims to improve transparency, reduce administrative burden and harmonize regulations while maintaining strong protections
- chairing the Treasury Board (Governor in Council), which considers regulatory proposals and orders-in-council as the Cabinet committee which recommends that the Governor General make regulations as part of the Governor in Council approval process
The President is also the Minister responsible for regulations related to public administration (that is, access to information) and employer-related issues (that is, pensions, official languages).
Treasury Board (Part A and Part B)
Established in 1867, the Treasury Board is the only statutory Cabinet Committee.
It has two distinct functions:
Part A: Management Board | Part B: Governor in Council |
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Makes decisions about:
Treasury Board responsibilities are delegated by the Financial Administration Act, which creates the Board’s public service support: Secretary of the Treasury Board, Comptroller General, Chief Human Resources Officer and Chief Information Officer |
Since 2003, the Treasury Board has been designated as the Cabinet Committee responsible for considering Governor in Council matters. Treasury Board is responsible for making recommendations to the Governor General about most orders in council, including:
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In addition to the Financial Administration Act, over 20 other statutes establish the Treasury Board’s roles and authorities. Powers and responsibilities are also set out in regulations, orders-in-council, policies, guidelines and practices. |
Role 1: lead regulatory policy and cooperation
Canada’s regulatory system needs to constantly adapt to keep pace with rapid change.
As the Minister responsible for federal regulatory policy, cooperation and modernization, the President:
- leads whole-of-government work to continuously improve and streamline the regulatory system, including tools and support to regulators
- advances the government’s regulatory priorities, including through Cabinet directives and Treasury Board policies
- leads the Government of Canada’s efforts to cooperate with other jurisdictions in the development and management of regulatory frameworks as a means to reduce barriers to trade
Federal regulatory policy is set out in the Cabinet Directive on Regulation, which establishes expectations and requirements in the development, management and review of federal regulations.
Role 2: chairing Treasury Board (Governor in Council)
The Treasury Board is the Cabinet committee responsible for considering Governor in Council matters (that is, regulations and most orders-in-council) when it is referred to by the official title of “Treasury Board (Governor in Council).”
- The Governor in Council is the Governor General acting on the advice and with the consent of the King’s Privy Council
The President of the Treasury Board:
- chairs the Treasury Board (Governor in Council)
- ensures that decisions on regulatory proposals are consistent with the Cabinet Directive on Regulation, are within ministerial authorities, and are in the public interest
Role 2 (continued): types of Governor in Council proposals
There are two types of Governor in Council proposals: regulations and orders-in-council
Regulations (approximately 100 to 200 per year)
- A form of law (subordinate legislation) made by Cabinet
- Submissions include a Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement, legal text and a communications plan
- Examples include food and drug safety, environmental protection, and transportation safety
- In any given year, 20% to 30% of proposals are for Canada Gazette, Part I (prepublication consultation), and 70% to 80 % are for Canada Gazette, Part II (final publication)
Orders-in-council (approximately 200 to 300 per year)
- A legal decision
- Submission to the Treasury Board (Governor in Council) includes an order-in-council, an explanatory note and a communications plan (as applicable)
- Examples include authority to enter into an international agreement, tabling of budgetary estimates and release of supply, and bringing legislation into force
Most Governor in Council proposals are made public after approval.
Regulation approval process (usually 18 to 24 months)
There are two key decision points for the Treasury Board in this process:
- approving the draft regulation for (or an exemption from) pre-publication in Canada Gazette, Part I
- final approval of the regulation
Figure 19 - Text version
This infographic shows the 13 steps involved in the regulatory approval process:
- early stakeholder consultation and policy development
- planning and preliminary review
- develop regulatory impact analysis
- draft proposed regulations
- review of regulatory submission
- approval for prepublication by the Treasury Board
- prepublication (Canada Gazette, Part I)
- receive and address public comments
- review of final regulatory submission
- final approval by the Treasury Board
- Governor in Council approval
- registration and Canada Gazette, Part II
- Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations
Treasury Board decision points occur at steps 6 and 10.
During steps 2 to 6 and steps 8 to 10, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat works with partners to support the approval process (for example, the review and challenge function).
How the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat supports the Secretary
Review and challenge function
- Review regulatory submissions to ensure they are well designed and based on rigorous analysis
- Only proposals that meet the analytical and process requirements are supported
- Brief the Secretary in preparation for Treasury Board consideration of Governor in Council submissions
Oversight and reporting
- Provide central oversight, assess and report publicly on the government’s overall performance in delivering on regulatory reforms and on its regulatory policy framework
Regulatory cooperation
- Support Canada’s work with provincial, territorial and international partners to reduce unnecessary regulatory differences, harmonize or align regulations, and adopt international standards
Supporting policy leadership
- Provide analysis and advice on opportunities to strengthen Canada’s regulatory policy framework
- Provide guidance and tools to assist departments and agencies in preparing regulatory submissions
Regulatory modernization
- Support continuous improvement of the regulatory system through tools and programming to enhance regulatory agility, transparency and innovation, while reducing unnecessary burden and continuing to protect health, the environment and other considerations
Federal roles in regulatory development
In addition to the Treasury Board, other key federal partners support regulatory development:
- sponsoring ministers: Bring forward regulatory proposals in keeping with their mandates
- TBS: Reviews authorities, conducts regulatory design and analysis and supports Treasury Board decision-making
- Privy Council Office: Ensures examination and registration according to the Statutory Instruments Act
- Department of Justice Canada: Provides legal review to ensure compliance with the Statutory Instruments Act
- Public Services and Procurement Canada: Publishes draft and final regulations in the Canada Gazette
- Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations: Examines and scrutinizes regulations made by the government
Annex: legal and policy frameworks for Governor in Council regulatory proposals
Legal framework
Governor in Council authorities found in statutes or pursuant to the Royal Prerogative
Statutory Instruments Act
- Examination (legal review) by the Department of Justice Canada
- Registration upon approval
- Publication in the Canada Gazette, Part II
Red Tape Reduction Act and Regulations
- Control the growth of administrative burden on business arising from regulations (the One-for-One Rule)
- Publicly report on implementation
- Allows for exemptions (for example, tax and tax administration, non-discretionary obligations and emergency, unique and exceptional circumstances)
Policy framework
Cabinet Directive on Regulation
- Sets out expectations and requirements in the development, management and review of federal regulations (Governor in Council and ministerial)
- Builds upon existing international best practices (for example, consultation, regulatory cooperation, cost-benefit analysis, stock review)
- Analytical requirements are commensurate with the impact level
- The directive was updated and came into effect September 2018
- Governor in Council and ministerial regulations are required to adhere to the directive
Primer: The Government of Canada’s regulatory system and regulatory policy initiatives
Executive summary
The President of the Treasury Board has two principal roles in the federal regulatory system:
- leading the Government of Canada’s work on regulatory policy
- chairing the Treasury Board, which considers regulatory proposals and orders-in-council
The President is also the Minister responsible for regulations related to public administration (for example, access to information) and employer-related issues (for example, pensions and official languages). Appendix A outlines regulatory initiatives underway.
Introduction
Regulations are a type of law and a key policy instrument used by the federal government to support a broad range of policy objectives, including the protection of health, safety, security and the environment. While legislation sets out an overarching legal framework, regulations establish requirements and operational details. A strong regulatory system helps build public confidence in government and in the safety of regulated products and services. Regulations also support a fair and competitive economy.
The principles for the federal regulatory system are enshrined in the Cabinet Directive on Regulation. Led by the President of the Treasury Board, the directive serves as the regulatory policy framework for departments and agencies. The directive provides guidance on the regulatory life cycle:
- regulatory development (for example, stakeholder consultation, regulatory impact analysis and regulatory cooperation)
- regulatory management (for example, compliance and enforcement)
- regulatory review (for example, review of regulatory stock and programs)
Additional legal requirements for federal regulations are set out in the Red Tape Reduction Act (for which the President of the Treasury Board is responsible) and the Statutory Instruments Act (for which the Minister of Justice is responsible).
Through legislation, Parliament has delegated the authority to make regulations to the Governor in Council, Ministers, and administrative agencies; this is why regulations are also referred to as “delegated,” “secondary” or “subordinate” legislation. The Governor in Council is the Governor General acting on the advice and with the consent of the King’s Privy Council. The Treasury Board is the Cabinet committee responsible for considering most Governor in Council matters (that is, it is not responsible for the approval of senior appointments). It carries out this function as a committee of the Privy Council, with the official title of “Treasury Board (Governor in Council).” This committee is often referred to as “Treasury Board (Part B).” By comparison, Treasury Board (Part A) acts as the government’s expenditure manager (for example, by preparing the government’s expenditure plans and approving the use of new money that has been set aside in the Budget), management board (for example, by setting the rules that establish how people, public funds and government assets are managed) and employer of the core public administration (for example, through collective bargaining and determining the terms and conditions of employment).
Governor in Council decisions are final and do not require ratification by other Cabinet committees or Cabinet. Most Governor in Council proposals are made public after approval, although a small number are exempted from publication in the Canada Gazette under section 15 of the Statutory Instruments Regulations; many of these exemptions relate to issues of national security.
The Treasury Board (Governor in Council) considers two types of Governor in Council proposals: regulations and orders-in-council.
- regulations (form of law): examples include food and drug safety, environmental protection, and transportation safety
- an order-in-council (legal decision): examples include authority to enter into an international agreement, tabling of budgetary estimates and release of supply, and bringing legislation into force
Roles of the Treasury Board President in the federal regulatory system
The President of Treasury Board has two principal roles in the federal regulatory system.
As the Minister responsible for federal regulatory policy, the President of Treasury Board is responsible for:
- leading whole-of-government work to continuously improve and streamline the regulatory system
- advancing the government’s regulatory policy priorities and regulatory cooperation
The President of the Treasury Board (Governor in Council) also:
- chairs the Treasury Board (Governor in Council), which considers most regulations and orders-in-council
- ensures that regulatory proposals are consistent with relevant Cabinet directives, are within ministerial authorities and are in the public interest
In addition, the President of Treasury Board is also the Minister responsible for TBS and is responsible for regulations related to public administration (for example, access to information) and employer-related issues (for example, pensions and official languages).
Roles of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat in the federal regulatory system
TBS supports the President as the lead Minister for federal regulatory policy and as chair of the Treasury Board (Governor in Council).
TBS is responsible for the following:
1. Supporting Treasury Board through review and challenge of regulatory submissions and orders-in-council
TBS reviews, applies due diligence and challenges regulatory submissions to the Treasury Board (Governor in Council) to ensure that they meet the requirements of the Cabinet Directive on Regulations. Similarly, TBS reviews and challenges orders-in-council submitted for Board approval. TTBS officials brief the President and their staff and make recommendations to the Treasury Board regarding regulatory and order-in-council submissions.
From January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023, around 250 regulations were considered (55 for pre-publication and 155 final), as well as approximately 170 orders-in-council. These include proposals to add, remove and update regulations to address emerging technologies and new challenges to health, safety, security, and the environment.
2. Central oversight of Canada’s regulatory system and regulatory policy framework
TBS provides central oversight, and it assesses and reports publicly on the government’s overall performance in delivering on recent regulatory reforms and on its regulatory policy framework.
TBS has also been leading whole-of-government efforts to review regulatory requirements and practices that hinder economic growth and innovation. Examples of this work include:
- establishing the Centre for Regulatory Innovation to help regulators respond to technological advances and leverage novel regulatory approaches
- leading the development of annual omnibus legislation to remove or update outdated or redundant requirements
- providing oversight of the Red Tape Reduction Act, which includes the One-for-One Rule that requires regulators to remove a regulation each time they introduce a new regulation that imposes new administrative burden on business
3. Regulatory cooperation
TBS works with other federal regulators, as well as provinces, territories, and international partners, to reduce duplicative requirements and barriers between jurisdictions that impede trade or business investment.
TBS also works to promote good regulatory practices internationally through leadership roles in international forums such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, and through the negotiation of good regulatory practices and regulatory cooperation provisions and chapters in trade agreements.
4. Supporting the federal regulatory community and supporting departments
TBS works closely with departments to support the regulatory community and help departments in the development of regulatory proposals. For example, the department works with the Canada School of Public Service and the Community of Federal Regulators to provide training to regulators on regulations and cost-benefit analysis.
Regulatory modernization initiatives underway
For an overview of regulatory initiatives currently underway, see Appendix A.
Appendix A: regulatory modernization initiatives underway
External Advisory Committee on Regulatory Competitiveness
An External Advisory Committee on Regulatory Competitiveness was established in 2019 to advise the Treasury Board on regulatory competitiveness. This first committee completed its term in 2021, having made a total of 44 recommendations to improve the regulatory system.
The committee was renewed in October 2022 with a two-year term to advise Treasury Board by providing recommendations on how to promote and advance regulatory excellence and support the modernization of Canada’s regulatory system through innovation, competitiveness, and economic growth.
The committee is mandated to:
- support the advancement of recovery initiatives and provide advice to TBS on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic to make the regulatory system more flexible, adaptable, and sustainable
- provide advice to TBS on the development of policy or guidance on stock reviews
- provide advice to TBS on updates to the Cabinet Directive on Regulation
- monitor the advancement of recommendations made by the previous committee and provide guidance on addressing the recommendations, for example, cumulative regulatory burden, competitiveness data, consultation, and engagement
The committee produced their first recommendation letter to the Treasury Board in June 2023. This letter included five recommendations along three themes:
- Make regulatory excellence a priority across government, championed at the Cabinet table by all ministers
- Equip Canada’s regulators to be world class
- Modernize regulatory engagement
A second advice letter is expected in June 2024.
Coordinating targeted efforts to review regulations
Targeted Regulatory Reviews are exploring ways to reduce barriers to innovation, economic development, and investment in the Canadian economy—while continuing to protect the health, safety, and security of Canadians and the environment. Through the Regulatory Reviews, federal departments and agencies identify opportunities to make the regulatory framework more agile and responsive across priority policy files and sectors, including to support innovative technologies.
Two rounds of Regulatory Reviews have been completed to date, focused on:
Round 1 (completed 2019):
- agri-food and aquaculture
- health and bio-sciences
- transportation and infrastructure
Round 2 (completed 2021):
- clean technology
- digitalization and technology neutrality
- international standards
Across these two rounds, departments and agencies identified more than 100 initiatives to advance regulatory modernization, including legislative and regulatory changes, updated policies and practices, and opportunities to support emerging technologies. A third round of Reviews is currently underway, focused on the blue economy (Canada’s oceans economy) and supply chains. The Regulatory Reviews are currently funded through the end of 2024–25.
Annual bill to facilitate regulatory amendments
Starting in 2019, the government committed to introduce an Annual Regulatory Modernization Bill (ARMB) to remove or update outdated or redundant legislative requirements that have downstream impacts on the federal regulatory environment. TBS is responsible for leading the development of the ARMB in collaboration with regulatory departments and agencies, the Department of Justice Canada, the Department of Finance Canada and the Privy Council Office (PCO).
The first ARMB included changes to 12 pieces of legislation and was included in the Budget Implementation Act, 2019, No. 1. The second ARMB (Bill-S6: An Act Respecting Regulatory Modernization) was tabled in March 2022 and completed Senate review and is currently at Second reading in the House of Commons. A third ARMB is currently under development.
A public consultation on ideas for future iterations of the ARMB was launched in March 2023 and closed in June 2023. The consultation sought feedback on proposals relating to removing barriers to efficiency, overly restrictive legislation and unnecessary requirements. In addition, the consultation requested feedback on providing all regulators the authority to conduct regulatory sandboxes as well as incorporation by reference of internal documents on an ambulatory basis. Stakeholder feedback received is currently under assessment.
Promoting regulatory sandboxes
Stakeholders have advocated for the greater use of regulatory sandboxes and pilots in the design and application of regulations to be more agile and responsive to advances in technology and changes in the regulatory regime.
In response, TBS established the Centre for Regulatory Innovation to help regulators leverage novel approaches, including regulatory sandboxes, that encourage innovation but do not compromise consumer trust and confidence.
Regulatory sandboxes, specifically, are spaces created and controlled by regulators to test new products and new regulatory approaches (that may otherwise encounter barriers in the existing regulatory framework) prior to full marketization or implementation. Ultimately, the learnings from these sandboxes better equip regulators to ensure that their regulatory regime can remain up to date. TBS is exploring an enabling framework to allow all federal regulators to leverage sandboxes to test regulatory approaches for new products or practices that are not currently permitted or suitably regulated.
To date, the Centre has supported nine initiatives testing novel approaches across Transport Canada; Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; the Competition Bureau; Environment and Climate Change Canada; Standards Council of Canada; and Health Canada, through advisory support, as well as up to $2.8 million in funding support committed. The Centre is continuing to work with regulators to identify new opportunities for novel approaches, including and beyond sandboxes.
Additionally, the Centre also helps regulators build capacity to design and administer more competitive regulatory regimes. Since 2020, the Centre has administered approximately $14.2 million for 37 projects across 13 departments and agencies. This funding, originally set to sunset in March 2022, was renewed with an additional $6.2 million over three years and will sunset in March 2025.
Advancing economic recovery through the Regulatory Cooperation Council
The Regulatory Cooperation Council is a bilateral forum that provides regulators and stakeholders from Canada and the United States with the opportunity to work together to address regulatory barriers to trade and investment. Its objective is to support economic growth and innovation, while protecting the health, safety, security, and environment of our countries by identifying opportunities to align or remove duplicative or unnecessary regulatory burden on industry. The Regulatory Cooperation Council is jointly supported by TBS and the United States Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Over the past 10 years, the Regulatory Cooperation Council has facilitated the development of 31 bilateral work plans in areas related to health care, transportation, energy, and agriculture, among others. In this respect, the Regulatory Cooperation Council has been key for the implementation of trade and industrial policy priorities by reducing regulatory duplication or misalignment between the jurisdictions. There is an opportunity to leverage the Regulatory Cooperation Council to address economic recovery priorities that jointly impact Canadian and American markets.
TBS continues to work with colleagues in the United States to discuss the future of the Regulatory Cooperation Council and opportunities for new work plans related to joint Canada–US priorities.
Advancing obligations related to regulatory oversight under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (2021) requires the government, in consultation and cooperation with Indigenous Peoples, to take “all measures necessary” to ensure consistency of federal laws with the Declaration. In consultation with Indigenous partners and departments, the Department of Justice Canada developed an action plan containing 181 measures. Measures were mainly identified by Indigenous groups themselves. On June 21, 2023, the government released the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act Action Plan. The plan provides a roadmap for implementation of the Declaration, and to achieve its objectives. The action plan measures touch on many areas, including promoting human rights education, ensuring oversight of the Declaration’s implementation, implementing the right to self-determination, strengthening Indigenous languages, and improving Indigenous Peoples’ well-being.
TBS Regulatory Affairs is implicated in two Action Plan measures:
- Shared Priority 1: Develop a process and further direction for federal government departments and agencies to align bills and proposed regulations with the Declaration. TBS Regulatory Affairs is responsible for the Cabinet Directive on Regulation, while the Privy Council Office is responsible for the Cabinet Directive on Law-Making. The Privy Council Office is responsible for guidance on primary instruments (statutes), whereas TBS is responsible for secondary instruments (regulations). TBS is working with the Privy Council Office and the Department of Justice Canada to develop a go-forward plan for implementation to begin in 2025. The plan will include further engagement on regulatory and central decision-making issues.
- Shared Priority 66: Developing measures to implement Indigenous Peoples’ right to participate in decision-making related to legislative, program and policy development.
This work is being led by Justice and the Privy Council Office, and TBS is supporting. Work is underway for this longer-term priority set to be address by 2028 or beyond.
The Treasury Board policy suite
Executive summary
The Government of Canada’s management regime establishes minimum standards for how ministers and deputy heads use their authorities and manage public resources. The Treasury Board approves rules, known as the Treasury Board policy suite, that provide direction on the management of the public service and support departments and agencies in the delivery of programs and services to Canadians.
Introduction
This document outlines the role and function of the Treasury Board policy suite. As the minister responsible, the President of the Treasury Board is accountable for the administration of the policy suite, including maintaining policy instruments and supporting departments in implementation. The President brings proposals to the Treasury Board to seek approval of a new policy, or, if needed, to seek approval to amend or rescind a policy.
Background and context
The policy suite provides direction to departments and agencies and assists ministers in their accountability to Parliament. Collectively, rules set by the Treasury Board support consistency in government operations across departments by establishing minimum standards.
The Treasury Board is given the authority to issue rules by the Financial Administration Act as well as pursuant to more than 20 other pieces of legislation. As such, Treasury Board is accountable to Cabinet acting as the Governor in Council and to the Prime Minister for the requirements it issues and for management and financial performance across government.
TBS acts as the administrative arm of the Treasury Board and supports it by:
- identifying and assessing management issues to determine whether a government-wide approach is necessary
- formulating, communicating, reviewing, adjusting and evaluating policies
- assessing compliance, interpreting policies and providing implementation advice and guidance to departments
- making decisions regarding departmental submissions pursuant to a particular policy
Currently, the Treasury Board policy suite includes 28 policies, which are supported by directives, standards, mandatory procedures, guidelines and tools. The supporting instruments provide direction to public servants to meet expectations set out in policy.
The policy suite is underpinned by three frameworks that ensure consistency:
- the Foundation Framework
- the Framework on the Management of Compliance
- the Framework on the Management of Risk
They describe the government’s management regime, including the responsibilities and accountabilities of ministers, deputy heads and the Treasury Board.
The scope of the Treasury Board’s policy suite covers a range of administrative and program-related functions. While the policy suite adapts to changing needs over time, the 28 policies can be divided into the following functional areas:
1. Financial management
Promotes proper use and accountability of public funds.
2. Assets and acquired services
Assesses and sets the framework for the stewardship and value for money through life cycle management of assets and acquired services (for example, investment planning, procurement, real property, materiel and project management).
3. Service and digital
Establishes the framework for the management of service design and delivery, information and data, information technology, and cyber security in the digital era.
4. Results, evaluation and internal audit
Measures performance and promotes public communication of information about results achieved and informs the oversight of public resources through the provision of advice and assurance to deputy heads for decision-making.
5. Transfer payments
Guides how departments use transfer payments to advance government policy objectives. Transfer payments can range from statutory transfers such as Old Age Security to grants and contribution programs such as the New Horizons for Seniors Program.
6. Access to information and privacy
Sets rules for access to information in government records and the protection of privacy and personal information held by the government.
7. Strategic communications
Sets rules for how the government communicates with the public (for example, advertising, social media, public opinion research and web publishing).
8. Government security
Establishes the framework for the protection of government operations and the people, information and assets that support them.
9. Official languages
Promotes equality of English and French through communications and services.
10. People management
Supports human resource management, including a healthy and respectful workplace, compensation, collective bargaining, pensions and benefits, values and ethics, performance and talent management, learning, and employee recourse.
Policies strengthen government performance, results and reporting, and good governance and sound stewardship. This requires the policy suite to balance the need for minimum standards of management excellence while respecting the individual authorities and responsibilities of ministers and deputy heads.
Deputy heads hold the primary responsibility for ensuring that their departments follow the rules. In cases of non-compliance, deputy heads are responsible for taking corrective action and reporting non-compliance to TBS when appropriate.
Secretary of the Treasury Board of Canada
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