Treasury Board of Canada
The Treasury Board of Canada (French: Conseil du Trésor du Canada) is the Cabinet committee of the Privy Council of Canada which oversees the spending and operation of the Government of Canada and is the principal employer of the core public service.[1] The committee is supported by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, its administrative branch and a department within the government itself.
Conseil du Trésor du Canada | |
| Abbreviation | TB |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1867 |
| Type | Cabinet committee |
Membership | Appointment by Prime Minister of Canada |
| Jean-Yves Duclos | |
Parent organization | |
Staff | Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat |
| Website | www |
The committee is chaired by the president of the Treasury Board, presently Jean-Yves Duclos, who is also the minister responsible for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat.
Role
The Canadian Cabinet is arranged into several committees with varying responsibilities, but all other ones are informal structures and frequently change. Currently organized under the Financial Administration Act,[2] the Treasury Board is the only one created by law and is officially a committee of the Privy Council.
Its role in government makes it far more powerful than most Cabinet committees as it is responsible for "accountability and ethics, financial, personnel and administrative management, comptrollership, approving regulations and most Orders-in-Council".[3] It is also unique in that its committee chair, the president of the Treasury Board, is a member of Cabinet by virtue of holding that office—other Cabinet committees are chaired by minister holding seats in Cabinet by virtue of some other office.
Expenditure management
The Treasury Board oversees the expenditures of the federal government. Ministers submit funding proposals on behalf of their departments to seek financial approval for programs and policies approved in the federal budget or by Cabinet. The president of the Treasury Board is responsible for presenting the Estimates from these submissions to Parliament. The Estimates are prepared by the Secretariat in collaboration with the Department of Finance Canada.[1]
Management and performance policies and principal employer
The Treasury Board, on advice of the Secretariat, sets policies regulating the authority of ministers and deputy ministers to administer and manage their departments, ensuring a government-wide to administration.
As the principal employer of the Government of Canada, it is responsible for labour relations, collective bargaining, and pension and benefits across the core public administration.
Secretariat
The Treasury Board is supported by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, a federal department which acts as a central agency of the Government of Canada and is administered by members of the public service. The role of the Secretariat is to advise members the Treasury Board, develop policies for approval and administer certain programs on behalf of the Treasury Board.[1]
Membership
The Treasury Board is composed of six Cabinet ministers, always including its president and the minister of finance. The current members, as of February 2020, are as follows:[4]
| Member | Ministerial portfolio | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Jean-Yves Duclos | President of the Treasury Board | Chair |
| Joyce Murray | Minister of Digital Government | Vice-chair |
| Bardish Chagger | Minister of Diversity and Inclusion and Youth | Member |
| Catherine McKenna | Minister of Infrastructure and Communities | Member |
| Chrystia Freeland | Minister of Finance; Deputy Prime Minister | Member |
| Jonathan Wilkinson | Minister of Environment and Climate Change | Member |
There are also a number of alternate members, who may attend Treasury Board meetings in the event of conflicts of interest. The prime minister, through a Governor in Council appointment, may designate as many alternate members as the committee may need. As of February 2020, the following are alternate members of the Treasury Board:
See also
References
- Smith, Alex (23 April 2009). "The Roles and Responsibilities of Central Agencies" (Background paper). Library of Parliament.
- "Financial Administration Act. Part I: Organization. Treasury Board". Department of Justice (Canada). 1985. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
- "About the Treasury Board". Treasury Board Secretariat. Retrieved June 9, 2011.
- https://pm.gc.ca/en/cabinet-committee-mandate-and-membership
Bibliography
- PCO (2018-02-22). "A Drafter's Guide to Cabinet Documents". Government of Canada.
- Treasury Board Secretariat (2013-12-31). "Comparing Types of Cabinet Papers". Government of Canada.
- PCO (2017-12-07). "Memoranda to Cabinet". Government of Canada.
- Treasury Board Secretariat (2016-07-15). "The Business of the Treasury Board". Government of Canada.
- Treasury Board Secretariat (2011-06-02). "ARCHIVED - A Guide to Preparing Treasury Board Submissions". Government of Canada.
- Library and Archives Canada (2017-05-26). "Treasury Board Submissions". Government of Canada.
- Treasury Board Secretariat (June 2016). "Better government with partners, for Canadians: Memorandum to Cabinet and Treasury Board Submission - Why They Are Major Tools for Government". Government of Canada.
- Treasury Board Secretariat (1999-12-01). "Archived - Access to Information Guidelines - Confidences of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada". Government of Canada.