I would just add to what my colleague said by explaining that we have decided to make investments in improving the data, the evidence base, which would apply to a whole host of policy decisions. It is getting to the point about when you need to do this. You need to have some investment in the disaggregated data that you need to drive good policy development.
Part of this is making it happen, but also having the information and the evidence you need to do a good job at it. For example, last fiscal year our department funded Status of Women Canada to develop a specific chapter in its “Women in Canada” report on women, education, and technology, which will be published in June. There are a lot of issues with respect to the participation of women in STEM fields, technical fields—the kind of fields that are going to drive the industrial revolution we are undertaking—and ensuring that all Canadians participate in that kind of future.
We really need better data. We need to have much more information analysis done. We have funded that sort of thing because it speaks to the point of being able to do this early so that, when you are actually conceiving of having a dialogue about policy, you have the information you need. At the point in time when you need to do the analysis, you have the evidence at hand to make good decisions and design the programs properly.