Evidence of meeting #98 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was pps.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Patrick McDonell  Deputy Sergeant-at-Arms and Corporate Security Officer, House of Commons
Michel Patrice  Deputy Clerk, Administration, House of Commons
Superintendent Jane MacLatchy  Director, Parliamentary Protective Service
Robert Graham  Administration and Personnel Officer, Parliamentary Protective Service
Daniel G. Paquette  Chief Financial Officer, House of Commons
Charles Robert  Clerk of the House of Commons
Stéphane Perrault  Acting Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada
Michel Roussel  Deputy Chief Electoral Officer, Electoral Events and Innovation, Elections Canada

11:55 a.m.

Liberal

David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC

—and PPS.

11:55 a.m.

C/Supt Jane MacLatchy

—and PPS, and that disturbs me.

I think to have one unified service, one integrated service, it means we all need to feel like we are equally important. We have three pillars in terms of our security in this place. They're detection, protection, response, and all three pillars are crucial. If one piece of that structure feels like they are less than, or not being treated equally, I think that's a problem.

Personally I believe that going forward with one bargaining unit for all uniforms in PPS would enhance that level of integration to avoid that separation.

11:55 a.m.

Liberal

David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC

I have a quick question for you. You probably don't know what this means, but CYR537 is the designation for the airspace above Parliament Hill. That's managed by RCMP, and not by PPS.

Is that always going to be the case?

11:55 a.m.

C/Supt Jane MacLatchy

It's something that's worth discussing. At this point that's the way it has been for a number of years, as the RCMP were responsible originally for the exterior. They do the air security management piece from a national perspective.

That's not something that's been on my radar recently, and no pun intended, sorry, but it's something that definitely, as we look at the RCMP footprint—and I have spoken with this committee before about a potential reduction in that footprint and an increase in PPS—we will be looking at that piece as well.

11:55 a.m.

Liberal

David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC

I have one final, very quick question, which I think is an important one that we're all very curious about. How will the parades work between the old train station Senate chamber and the new chamber in West Block? I'm imagining this flurry of taxis and things when the Usher of the Black Rod is going to knock on the door.

11:55 a.m.

Liberal

Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS

He might get cold.

11:55 a.m.

Liberal

David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC

It could be quite interesting.

11:55 a.m.

Liberal

Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS

I'll ask the Clerk to tell us about what the plans are at present.

11:55 a.m.

Clerk of the House of Commons

Charles Robert

Actually, it's a very good question, and it's something we're still considering. The challenge really is to some extent that this delves into a realm that is the prerogative of the government. The government controls when Parliament will meet. It controls when the sessions will last.

In terms of trying to come up with an answer, we have to work with the government. To borrow a phrase, it's a work-in-progress.

Noon

Liberal

David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC

I believe it's two stops on the Confederation Line, so they could use the LRT.

Noon

Voices

Oh! Oh!

Noon

Liberal

David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC

Thank you very much. I appreciate it.

Noon

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell

We're out of time.

Mr. Cullen, if you can ask a question in one minute I'll give you one minute.

Noon

Skeena—Bulkley Valley, NDP

Nathan Cullen

Ms. MacLatchy, are there any security concerns with the status quo in terms of the different security services operating under three different unions?

Noon

C/Supt Jane MacLatchy

No. I can tell you right now that from my point of view, our security on the Hill is intact. It's secure. I am not concerned with the safety and security of this place.

Noon

Skeena—Bulkley Valley, NDP

Nathan Cullen

I want to be clear with our chair that the interest of PPS in amalgamating these three, even if the various security forces don't want to be amalgamated, is not out of a security desire. I don't want to say it's bureaucratic in a negative sense. You used the term esprit de corps earlier. The point is, it's not a security issue. The current system we have in place is not posing any type of security risk to the House of Commons and the people who visit here.

Noon

C/Supt Jane MacLatchy

I want to be clear on how I answer this. Right now we work very hard to ensure the security and safety of this place, and that includes juggling multiple schedules and different collective agreements to make sure we have the appropriate posture at all times. That's my number one. Posture is my number one priority.

That being said, if we were to go to one union, a lot of the aspects that we mitigate on a day-to-day basis would be alleviated.

Noon

Liberal

Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS

Mr. Chairman, on that I'll make it very clear that like all members I have the greatest respect and appreciation for the work of the members of the Parliamentary Protective Service. We are all grateful for the work they do and appreciate them very much.

I also want to express again, as I have previously to this committee, my full confidence in Chief Superintendent MacLatchy.

Noon

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell

Thank you to the witnesses for coming.

I'd like to remind the committee—because we talked about the two buildings—that the Clerk has agreed we will have a discussion on the plans for the Centre Block at some time with this committee.

I'll do the routine motions.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$347,004,325

(Vote 1 agreed to on division)

PARLIAMENTARY PROTECTIVE SERVICE

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$76,663,760

(Vote 1 agreed to on division)

Thank you very much.

We'll suspend for a minute to change witnesses.

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell

Welcome back to the 98th meeting of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

Joining us today from Elections Canada, we have Stéphane Perrault, Acting Chief Electoral Officer; Michel Roussel, Deputy Chief Electoral Officer, Electoral Events and Innovation; and Hughes St-Pierre, Deputy Chief Electoral Officer, Internal Services.

Mr. Perrault, you may proceed with your opening statement. And thank you for all the time you've spent with our committee.

April 24th, 2018 / 12:05 p.m.

Stéphane Perrault Acting Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

It is a pleasure to be back before the committee today to present Elections Canada's Main Estimates for 2018-19. This appearance also provides the opportunity to highlight the calendar of key activities that remain to prepare for the next general election, particularly in light of potential important legislative changes.

Today, the committee is voting on Election Canada's annual appropriation, which is $30.8 million and represents the salaries of some 360 indeterminate positions. Combined with our statutory authority, which funds all other expenditures under the Canada Elections Act, our Main Estimates total $135.2 million.

There are now at most 16 months left before the start of the next general election. Of course, we do not know exactly when it will begin, but there are at most 16 months before the start of the next election, and less time than that for Elections Canada to achieve a full state of readiness, for which our target date is April 2019. We are giving ourselves some flexibility between April and the start of the election in case any last-minute adjustments are needed.

A strict calendar of activities serves to ensure that changes to the electoral process and its administration are well tested before they are deployed and used by some 300,000 elections workers during the election.

I would therefore like to take this opportunity to explain key aspects of our readiness calendar. This is particularly important should legislative changes be introduced late in the electoral cycle.

There are some 40 IT systems that are critical to the services we provide to electors, candidates, and political parties in the context of the delivery of an election. A majority of these systems will be new or will have gone through significant changes for the next general election. The importance of these changes is a reflection of the need to improve services for Canadians as well as renew aging technology and enhance cybersecurity.

I'm glad to say that work on these systems is progressing well. Over this summer, we will be migrating 27 of these systems and associated databases to our new data centre, which is currently being built. The new data centre is essential to provide the flexibility and the security required to deliver the election in the current environment.

Starting September 1, we will subject all systems to a full round of integrated testing that replicates the activities and transactions of a general election.

Through the fall and winter, we will perform necessary adjustments to our systems and rerun testing cycles until we are satisfied that they are capable of sustaining the requirements, volumes, and pressures of an actual general election.

In March 2019 we plan to hold a simulation of the election process in several electoral districts. This is an exercise we did prior to the last general election as well. The purpose of this exercise is to see how the new business processes and technology that will be used at the next general election perform in a simulated setting, including interactions between local offices and headquarters.

By April 2019 we will also have designed, produced, and largely assembled electoral supplies and materials so that they can be progressively deployed to the 338 electoral districts.

Finally, in the spring of 2019 we will then have also trained all returning officers and have completed and tested the training modules for the poll workers who will be hired for the general election. The training program for returning officers is largely delivered online, and must undergo stringent quality assurance and testing processes before it is rolled out to field administrators, more than a third of whom will be new at the next election.

This is our readiness plan under the current legal framework.

Now, as you know, following the last general election, we made some 130 recommendations for legislative improvements. Many have been endorsed—endorsed unanimously, I should say—by this committee. In its response, the government has indicated that it broadly supports the recommendations for change, and has put forward additional proposals for improvements. These are over and above the proposals already contained in Bill C-33 and Bill C-50, which are currently before Parliament, not to mention private members' bills.

Considering the above, it is pressing for legislative changes to be made without delay if they are to be implemented for the next general election.

When I appeared last February, I indicated that the window of opportunity to implement major changes in time for the next election was rapidly closing. That was not a new message. Both Monsieur Mayrand and I had previously indicated that legislative changes should be enacted by April 2018. This means that we are now at a point where the implementation of new legislation will likely involve some compromises. Let me explain.

Should legislative changes be enacted over the coming year, the agency will need to minimize, as much as possible, changes to existing systems and applications. There are considerable risks in introducing last-minute changes to complex IT systems if there is not enough time to test them thoroughly. As indicated earlier, our window for integrated testing is September 2018, therefore there may not be sufficient time to automate new processes. Less optimal paper or manual solutions may have to be used instead.

Moreover, to the extent that legislative changes impact rules for political entities—and I'm referring here in particular to political financing rules—there will be only a short window of time to complete the necessary steps for renewing all of the manuals and consulting with all the parties, as well as the Commissioner of Canada Elections, on the changes being made, as required by law now. The same is also true for instructions required of field personnel. Last-minute updates to poll worker training and manuals reduce the time for quality control and testing in advance of the election.

Of course, Mr. Chair, our mandate is to implement the changes that Parliament decides to enact, and we will find ways to do that if and when legislation is introduced and passed. However, it is also my responsibility to inform you that time is quickly running out. Canadians trust Elections Canada to deliver robust and reliable elections, and we do not want to find ourselves in a situation where the quality of the electoral process is impacted. Should legislation be introduced, we will, of course, support the work of this committee, including informing members of operational impacts and implementation strategies.

Mr. Chair, this concludes my opening remarks. As usual, my colleagues and I will be happy to answer questions that members may have.

12:15 p.m.

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell

Thank you very much.

Thank you for all the great service Elections Canada has provided us over the last year. We've done some great work together.

Now we'll go to Mr. Simms.

12:15 p.m.

Liberal

Scott Simms Liberal Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, NL

Thank you, Mr. Perrault.

Thank you very much to all the members here.

Very quickly, obviously deadlines are approaching, but I want to bear down on some of the things you talked about here that you're currently going through. You'll be migrating 27 of the systems and associated databases to the new data centre. The data centre has not been built yet. Is that correct? Is that what you said?

12:15 p.m.

Acting Chief Electoral Officer, Elections Canada

Stéphane Perrault

The data centre is in the process of being built. The timeline for that is June 12, to be precise. Following the completion of the data centre, it will be tested. Then we will migrate the systems, which are currently being worked on. The work is being finalized. We will migrate that for integrated testing in September. On September 1, we will start the full round of integrated testing.

12:15 p.m.

Liberal

Scott Simms Liberal Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, NL

How long will the testing take at that point?