Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for inviting me to address you on the issue of the directive on recordkeeping.
Under the Library and Archives of Canada Act, Parliament assigned the librarian and archivist the responsibility of providing direction and guidance to departments and agencies on the management of records and the authority to control the disposition of records within government institutions. A key part of fulfilling these roles in the 21st century is the modernization of recordkeeping. Put simply, the volume of information generated by the government is growing exponentially. The methodologies prescribed by the new directive on recordkeeping are needed for the government to be able to manage this information in a sustainable manner.
Library and Archives Canada believes the directive on recordkeeping supports its mandate to deliver effective 21st century recordkeeping direction and guidance to government departments and agencies. This in turn ensures the ability of departments and agencies to find, retrieve, and use information in support of current decision-making, while also ensuring, in the long term, that the historical records of these institutions can be readily identified and easily transferred to us, making this documentary heritage available to all Canadians.
Effective, recordkeeping establishes ways and means for organizations to capitalize on corporate information as a key business asset and enabler. This supports current decision-making, documents business activity, and satisfies stewardship, accountability and legal requirements.
Over the last few years, the work of Library and Archives Canada to address systematic issues in the management of information in the Government of Canada has made great strides. These efforts have concentrated on reducing the legacy of unmanaged paper and electronic records as well as working to build capacity to manage the ever-changing digital landscape of electronic records. Perhaps, most importantly, LAC has been helping to find policy solutions to the problem. It is these solutions that I want to discuss today.
We are working closely with the chief information officer branch of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, and our two departments have developed a suite of policy instruments. These instruments support and complement our own mandate, as well as the administration of access to information.
Primary among these policies is the directive on recordkeeping issued in June of this year. The directive lays out a strong framework that will improve recordkeeping within government. It ensures that records are created, captured, used, and managed as business assets, and that they are stored properly and disposed of in accordance with the Library and Archives of Canada Act. Importantly, the directive and the tools and guidelines that accompany it are designed to anticipate and effectively manage digital work environments.
The key to effective 21st century recordkeeping lies in the identification and management of what we call information resources of business value. This concept, which is based on international standards, gives departments and agencies a sound basis from which to manage their information resources in order to support their delivery of mandated programs and services. The directive on recordkeeping supports deputy heads in instilling discipline and rigour over the creation, capture, and management of information resources, improving accountability.
The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat is responsible for the Directive on Recordkeeping. LAC continues to support the Secretariat through the development of complementary tools and guidelines and through awareness and training sessions. Moreover, under the Library and Archives of Canada Act, the disposition (destruction or transfer) of government records is authorized solely by the Librarian and Archivist of Canada.
The timely disposition (when legal and operational needs have expired) of government information is an essential component of sound recordkeeping. Good recordkeeping thus furthers the mandate of LAC in preserving the historical record of the Canadian government.
Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I’d like to end by stressing that, as you know, a change in culture is essential for the implementation of effective 21st century recordkeeping in government. The Information Commissioner clearly identified “challenges that the modern digital environment presents” as one of the biggest current obstacles to effective recordkeeping. The Directive on Recordkeeping will result in better management of the creation and use of information as well as reducing legacies of unmanaged electronic and paper information. This will lead to improved accountability and stewardship, and, therefore, ultimately improve ATI responsiveness.
This concludes my statement. I would be more than pleased to respond to any questions from members of the committee relating to Library and Archives Canada’s role in improving the state of recordkeeping in the Government of Canada.