Improved Reporting to Parliament
Pilot Document
Each year, the government prepares Estimates in support of its
request to Parliament for authority to spend public monies. This request is
formalized through the tabling of appropriation bills in Parliament.
The Estimates of the Government of Canada are structured in
several parts. Beginning with an overview of total government spending in Part
I, the documents become increasingly more specific. Part II outlines spending
according to departments, agencies and programs and contains the proposed
wording of the conditions governing spending which Parliament will be asked to
approve.
The Report on Plans and Priorities provides additional
detail on each department and its programs primarily in terms of more
strategically oriented planning and results information with a focus on
outcomes.
The Departmental Performance Report provides a focus on
results-based accountability by reporting on accomplishments achieved against
the performance expectations and results commitments as set out in the spring Report
on Plans and Priorities.
The Estimates, along with the Minister of Finance's Budget,
reflect the government's annual budget planning and resource allocation
priorities. In combination with the subsequent reporting of financial results in
the Public Accounts and of accomplishments achieved in Departmental Performance
Reports, this material helps Parliament hold the government to account for the
allocation and management of funds.
İMinister of Public Works and Government Services Canada --
2002
Available in Canada through your local bookseller or by mail
from
Canadian Government Publishing -- PWGSC
Ottawa, Canada K1A 0S9
Catalogue No. BT31-4/66-2002
ISBN 0-660-62145-2
Foreword
In the spring of 2000, the President of
the Treasury Board tabled in Parliament the document "Results for Canadians: A
Management Framework for the Government of Canada". This document sets a clear
agenda for improving and modernising management practices in federal
departments and agencies.
Four key management commitments form the
basis for this vision of how the Government will deliver their services and
benefits to Canadians in the new millennium. In this vision, departments and
agencies recognise that they exist to serve Canadians and that a
"citizen focus" shapes all activities, programs and services. This vision
commits the Government of Canada to manage its business by the highest public
service values. Responsible spending means spending wisely on the things that
matter to Canadians. And finally, this vision sets a clear focus on
results - the impact and effects of programs.
Departmental performance reports play a
key role in the cycle of planning, monitoring, evaluating, and reporting of
results through ministers to Parliament and citizens. Departments and agencies
are encouraged to prepare their reports following certain principles. Based on
these principles, an effective report provides a coherent and balanced picture
of performance that is brief and to the point. It focuses on outcomes -
benefits to Canadians and Canadian society - and describes the
contribution the organisation has made toward those outcomes. It sets the and discusses
risks and challenges faced by the
organisation in delivering its commitments. The report
also associates
performance with earlier commitments as well as achievements
realised in partnership with other governmental and non-governmental
organisations. Supporting the need for responsible
spending, it links resources to results.
Finally,
the report is credible because it substantiates the performance information
with appropriate methodologies and relevant data.
In performance reports, departments and
agencies strive to respond to the ongoing and evolving information needs of
parliamentarians and Canadians. The input of parliamentarians and other readers
can do much to improve these reports over time. The reader is encouraged to
assess the performance of the organisation
according to the principles outlined above, and provide comments to the
department or agency that will help it in the next cycle of planning and
reporting.
This report
is accessible electronically from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
Internet site:
http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/rma/dpr/dpre.asp
Comments or
questions can be directed to this Internet
site or to:
Results-based
Management Directorate
Treasury
Board of Canada Secretariat
L'Esplanade
Laurier
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R5
or to this Internet address: rma-mrr@tbs-sct.gc.ca
Public Service Commission of Canada
Departmental Performance Report
For the period ending March 31, 2002
The Honourable Sheila Copps
Minister of Canadian Heritage
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