HAFF Committee Report

Introduction

Since the beginning of the 1970s, the rapid growth of public expenditures, large and persistent budget deficits, growing public debt, and the increasing burden of taxation have led to a substantial change in the public’s perception and attitudes towards the role of government in the Canadian economy and society. This major reassessment of government activity has resulted in demands for greater transparency and accountability, together with a greater concern about the efficiency and cost effectiveness of the delivery of government programs and services.

The federal government responded to these concerns by engaging in an ongoing and comprehensive review of its programs and how it reports its activities to Canadians in general, and to parliamentarians in particular.

Since the mid-1990s, numerous initiatives have been undertaken to improve the accountability and transparency of the federal government. In 1995, the Treasury Board Secretariat launched the first phase of its Improved Reporting to Parliament Project (IRPP)1. This initiative eventually resulted in the House of Commons adopting a motion in April 1997 to split the Part III of the Main Estimates into the fall Departmental Performance Reports and the spring Reports on Plans and Priorities, which enhances results and performance information. Furthermore, the Government supported the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC) in hosting three roundtables with parliamentarians and departments to explore ways of improving reporting to Parliament.²

In late 1998, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs tabled a report3 that recommended changes in parliamentary procedures to support improvements in reporting, to which the Government responded by proposing a second phase to its Improved Reporting to Parliament Project⁴. The second phase made draft proposals⁵ to better tailor information to the needs of committees, to streamline reporting, to new and strengthen processes for engaging parliamentarians in discussions of public policy and public spending, and to improve the financial accountability framework.

The issues related to reporting to Parliament have been thoroughly studied and diagnosed and a broad range of solutions have been proposed. A strong consensus has emerged as to the desirability and feasibility of making changes to Parliamentary reporting and the time has come to move forward and complete the reform of Parliamentary reporting.

On May 4^th, 2000, the Standing Committee on Procedures and House Affairs struck a new Sub-Committee to address the draft proposals.