This article is written by Rui Kelly Li, Senior Policy Analyst, Government of Canada.

  • The problem: How does government make decisions for Canadians?
  • Why it matters: Policies affect the daily lives of Canadians.
  • The solution: Understand how policymaking works and engage in the process.

To understand policymaking in Canada, it is vital to first understand how the country governs itself. Canada is a federation, a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy.

The Canadian federation (or “federalism”) refers to the collective of the national government and ten provinces and three territories, each order with its area of responsibility. This structure allows Canada to address the diverse economic, cultural and linguistic interests and needs across the country.

There are three main branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. The legislative branch, or parliament, is made up of officials who Canadian citizens elect from their riding, federally or provincially. As a constitutional monarchy, the executive branch is officially headed by the monarch (currently King Charles) represented by the Governor General, but the authority to govern resides with the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, who are Members of Parliament (MPs). The Prime Minister of Canada is the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Commons. Finally, the Supreme Court of Canada interprets laws in a non-partisan manner.

Influences on policymaking

For the purposes of this article, focus will be on the legislative branch at the federal level. The legislature is bicameral, which means that there are two chambers: the House of Commons and the Senate. The former is composed of 338 elected MPs, the latter is composed of 105 appointed individuals. Provinces and territories have their own legislature, through which policies are deliberated and decided. Policymaking in Canada can occur at three levels of government – federal, provincial and municipal – but the type of law and/or policy that can be developed and enacted differs.

The Constitution Act (1867) is the foundational document that sets out the powers of federal, provincial and territorial levels of government. The federal government has sole jurisdiction over matters such as international relations, security and defence, citizenship, criminal law and banking, whereas health care, education, and municipalities are issues that fall within provincial and territorial jurisdictions. Immigration and natural resources are considered shared jurisdictions.

Municipalities are creatures of provinces, per the Constitution. They are in charge of performing functions that affect the everyday lives of citizens within their local boundaries, such as public transit, water and utilities management and community planning. Unlike federal and provincial politics, there is no political affiliation at the municipal level.

In the Canadian federal context, public servants are encouraged to apply what is called a Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) lens in their work.

Following an election, the party with the most seats forms a government. The party in power can choose to set direction by determining the agenda and identifying priorities. This agenda is influenced by a variety of factors and groups, including, but not limited to, commitments from an electoral platform, political ideology, lobby groups, public perception, economics, environmental conditions and budgetary constraints.

The policy development process can be kickstarted in myriad ways: statistics as reported by the media (i.e. rising rate of inflation), scientific data (i.e. increase in frequency of extreme weather events), international agreements and treaties (i.e. United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples), public opinion (i.e. concern over affordability of housing), international events (i.e. a global pandemic), or from elected officials (i.e. business development in their riding). This is not an exhaustive list.

Once a problem is identified, public servants are tasked with further examination. Their role is to provide professional, impartial advice to elected officials.

The process

Policy objectives can be accomplished in several different ways, including through legislation and grants and contributions. This article elaborates upon the instrument of legislation.

A Memorandum to Cabinet (MC) is a document written to seek policy approval and authority to develop new legislation or substantively change existing legislation. Policy analysts are to clearly define the issue, identify its causes, formulate potential solutions (while weighing the benefits and drawbacks of each), and then articulate a recommended approach (or recommended approaches) based on a rationale.

Depending on the time permitted, public servants can conduct robust research and/or engage key stakeholders or members of the public to solicit their opinions and use that information to inform their work. In the Canadian federal context, public servants are encouraged to apply what is called a Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) lens in their work, which considers the differential impact of proposed policy solutions on identity factors such as race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability. The MC should also have costing breakdowns, target results, risk assessment and a strategic communications plan, all submitted to both the policy committee of Cabinet and then to Cabinet itself. The Cabinet, as noted earlier, is a group of elected officials chosen by the Prime Minister to decide via consensus on key issues facing the country.

Enacting laws

Following Cabinet approval, the Department of Justice drafts a bill with proposed new legislation or amendment(s) to achieve the identified policy goal, in collaboration with the implicated government department’s policy and legal services teams. Departmental input is essential to further enhancing understanding of policy issues and the operational context. This is done in both official languages, English and French.

A bill with the proposed legislative text incorporating the aforementioned input is introduced in parliament, debated and reviewed through three readings, and must be approved by both upper and lower chambers before it becomes law. If a new programme or initiative is intended to be created, public servants may also write a Treasury Board submission on behalf of a Minister, seeking specific authorities to do so. Following implementation, public servants may also perform monitoring and evaluation functions, supported by further consultations with affected groups to determine the success of the policy, which in turn can result in recommendations for improvement. An evaluation can be carried out externally with a consultant as well.

It is important to remember that policymaking is not typically a linear process, but an iterative one. Sometimes the stages described above overlap, occur in a different order or are repeated, in response to changing priorities, stakeholder feedback, or other pressures. All in all, developing a policy is a complex, multi-faceted undertaking intended to improve the lives of citizens.

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