Government of Canada
Privy Council Office
Gouvernement du Canada
Bureau du Conseil privé
THE ROLE OF
CENTRAL AGENCIES
Presentation to the Financial Management Institute
June 11, 2015
National Arts Centre, Panorama Room
Heather Sheehy, Director of Operations, Machinery of
Government, Privy Council Office
2
Presentation Roadmap
• The Westminster System of Government
• Role of Central Agencies
• Privy Council Office
• Department of Finance and Treasury Board Secretariat
• Parting thoughts
• Discussion
3
The Westminster System: Key Elements
• The Prime Minister is the first Minister and the architect of
government, including defining Ministers’ roles and the Cabinet
decision-making system
• Ministers are collectively and individually responsible to Parliament
• Deputy Ministers are the Minister’s principal source of support in
fulfilling his or her responsibilities and in respecting his or her
accountability to Parliament
• Public servants provide non-partisan policy advice to Ministers and
conduct departmental operations through the exercise of the
Minister’s legal authorities
• Exempt staff provide the Minister with advice that is politically
engaged, but play no role in departmental operations and do not
exercise any of the Minister’s powers, duties and functions
4
Central Agencies
• In the exercise of their authority, the Prime Minister and
the Cabinet are supported by both line departments and
central agencies
• Central agencies play a key role in the successful
formulation and implementation of governmental policies
and programs by overseeing interdepartmental
mechanisms of information-sharing, consultation and
coordination
• Typically, people refer to three central agencies: the Privy
Council Office (PCO), the Department of Finance and the
Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS)
5
Why is coordination necessary?
6
Government is complicated
7
• Government is complicated
• It’s crowded with ideas
• There are a lot of decision makers to manage
• The speed of decision making is accelerating
Pressures
24/7 communications
Savvy stakeholders and
citizens with high expectations
A complex and immediate
digital environment
Impact
Speed
Ascendance of issues
management
Centralization of DecisionMaking
Perpetual campaign mode
8
Roles at a glance
PCO
Finance
TBS
Supports PM,
Ministers in PM’s
portfolio, and Cabinet
Supports the Minister
of Finance
Supports Treasury
Board and its
President
• Coordinates government priorities
and policy agenda
• Supports cabinet-decision-making
system:
‒ ensures that departmental
submissions meet information
needs of Cabinet and are
coordinated with other
departments and overall policy
agenda
• Responsible for overall
intergovernmental relations
• Advises the PM on the machinery
of government
• Supports Governor in Council
Appointments
• Develops government’s macroeconomic policy and fiscal
framework
• Analyzes the economic and
fiscal impacts of policy
initiatives
‒ Allocation of funds from
fiscal framework for new
initiatives
• Prepares annual Budget
• Government-wide financial
reporting
• Responsible for the estimates
and expenditure management
system
‒ Reviews submissions from
Ministers for funding
‒ Reviews existing programs
‒ Provides financial and
performance information to
Parliament
• Manages government-wide
financial, administrative and HR
policies
• Employer for core public service
• Supports the consideration of
regulations
9
Prime Minister
• Maintains unity in Cabinet and provides
direction to Ministers
• Has unique powers:
 appointment and mandate of Ministers
 appointment of senior officials
Clerk of the Privy Council and
Secretary to the Cabinet
• As Deputy to the Prime Minister provides
advice and staff support
• As Secretary to the Cabinet supports all
Ministers collectively and individually
• Head of the Public Service
 management of Cabinet
 leadership on the direction of policy /
finance
Supported by the Prime Minister’s Office:
• Comprised of exempt staff
 Political strategy and tactics
 Political dimensions of policy initiatives,
problems, etc.
 PM’s agenda and travel
Supported by the Privy Council:
• Comprised of public servants (est. 835 FTEs
in 15/16)
• Coordinates, not duplicates, work of
departments
• Small, flat organization to facilitate
information sharing and fast decisions
• Moves people in and out
 Communications / national political liaison
“The Prime Minister’s Office is partisan, politically oriented, yet operationally
sensitive. The Privy Council Office is non-partisan, operationally-oriented, yet
politically sensitive.” Gordon Robertson, Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary
to the Cabinet, 1971.
10
PCO: Prime Minister’s Department
• Supports the Prime Minister as Head of Government
 Priority setting (e.g., assists with the writing of the Speech from the
Throne; developing the federal Budget)
 Policy development (e.g., foreign affairs, defence, national security
and intergovernmental affairs, as well as other priorities)
 Coordination of ministerial mandates
 Government organization
 National security
 Senior appointments
 Supports other ministers within the PM’s portfolio (e.g., the Leader of
the Government in the House and the Minister of Intergovernmental
Affairs)
11
PCO: Cabinet Secretariat
• Manages the flow of business to
Priorities and Planning
Machinery of
Government
Social
Affairs
Foreign
Affairs and
Security
Economic
Prosperity
Operations
Treasury Board (statutory)
Government
Administration
ensure that the decision-making
process functions according to the
standards set by the Prime Minister
• Keeps track of departmental
initiatives
• Ensures proper consultation
• Plays a challenge function to
ensure that MCs are consistent
with the government’s overall
policy direction
• Specifically, with respect to Cabinet
and Cabinet committee meetings,
PCO provides for:
 Agendas
 Briefings to Chairs
 Committee minutes
 Cabinet decisions
12
PCO: Machinery of Government
• Protects the Prime Minister’s prerogative for the machinery of
government
• Provides advice and support to the Prime Minister, Clerk, PCO
Secretariats and departments on:
• How government decisions are made. For example:
• the design of collective Cabinet decision-making process
• What organizational support is needed for Ministers to
discharge their mandates. For example, decisions about:
• the design of organizations, including their structure, mandate, powers, duties
and functions, and place within ministerial portfolios; and
• whether existing organizations can be used to implement a policy decision or
whether changes are required to that organization or a new organization is
necessary
• Who is responsible for implementing decisions. For example:
• determining which minister should do what; and
• the types of mandates, powers, duties and functions they need to implement
government decisions
13
PCO: Supporting the Clerk’s role as head of the
Public Service
• Provides strategic policy advice and analysis to the Clerk on whole-of-
government initiatives for improving government efficiency and
effectiveness, and for maintaining a strong, dynamic and relevant
Public Service.
• Provides advice and support to the Deputy Minister Board of
Management and Public Service Renewal and supports the Prime
Minister’s Advisory Committee on the Public Service.
• Examples:
 Clerk’s Annual Report to the Prime Minister
 The public service management agenda (e.g., Blueprint 2020)
14
Department of Finance
• One of the original departments of the Government of Canada. Established
by statute under the Financial Administration Act and has authorities under
numerous other Acts
• Supports the Minister in the management of the Consolidated Revenue
Fund
• Supports the Minister of Finance in development the government’s macro-
economic policy, including tax policy and tax expenditures, as well as the
overall fiscal framework, and for analyzing the economic and fiscal impact of
proposals by any Minister.
• Develops the annual budget. The budget is the government’s fiscal plan. It
outlines projected revenues, changes in taxation and new spending plans.
• Manages federal borrowing on financial markets
• Administers major transfers of federal funds to the provinces and territories
• Develops regulatory policy for the country’s financial sector
15
Treasury Board
• A committee of Cabinet established by Financial Administration Act
and composed of the President of the Treasury Board, the Minister of
Finance and four other ministers appointed by the Prime Minister
• In contrast to the Department of Finance which is responsible for
establishing general policy on government revenues and
expenditures, the Treasury Board oversees the management of the
government’s expenditures and has responsibilities for government
administration, as outlined in the Financial Administration Act and
other Acts
16
Treasury Board Secretariat
• Assists the Treasury Board in fulfilling its duties
• Is headed by the Secretary of the Treasury Board, who is the equivalent
of a deputy minister
• Sets administrative policies and monitors management performance
• Oversees expenditure management and performance information (e.g.,
Reports on Plans and Priorities and Departmental Performance
Reports)
• Acts as the principal employer of the public service
•
•
•
Superannuation – pension
Labour relations
Collective bargaining
• The Secretariat also includes the Office of the Comptroller General of
Canada, which is responsible for providing government-wide direction
and assistance on financial management and internal audit
17
Some Parting Thoughts…
• The central agencies play a key role in decision-making processes
and administration
• They work to ensure policy coordination, good administrative
practices, and prudent fiscal management
• Their influence and authority is often due to their proximity to the
Prime Minister and Cabinet or control over the purse strings rather
than the statutory authority
• Must balance a centralization of control and authority with sufficient
flexibility and autonomy to allow line departments to effectively
manage issues