Status of Women Committee on March 1st, 2007

[Kathy O'Hara]

I couldn't give you a specific example. I think what a number of us have said is that at various points in a policy development process there is what we are all calling a “challenge function” with respect to GBA.

The analyst is expected to use GBA when it gets to the next layer. The assistant deputy minister is asking questions about the impact, a broad range of impacts, including gender. The next step is you go out into an interdepartmental process--so other players--and in particular we have talked about the Status of Women asking those questions.

Then the central agencies are asking exactly the same kinds of questions, and even in the cabinet committee process you find the same kinds of questions.

Ideally, obviously, the issues have been addressed. That is the whole part of the challenge function at the interdepartmental process. If you haven't done your gender-based analysis, if you can't answer the questions about impacts, you go back to the drawing board and get the information and then include it in your policy proposals.

[Irene Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Do you feel there is adequate capacity to fulfil the GBA requirement or the implementation of GBA in your department at every step along the way?

[Donna Miller]

Speaking for Justice Canada, I'm quite confident that we have the capacity. I think we have the capacity very much at the ground level, and as Ms. O'Hara was explaining, in the development of any policies there are challenge points, both within departments and across departments, including PCO.

So I would say the capacity is high. In Justice it's partially because of the demographics that I mentioned. It's also partially because GBA is so closely linked with equality rights analysis. Of course, we have so much training and expertise developed in our department on equality rights analysis that this also exists to enhance, I think, sensitivity on GBA analysis.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Joy Smith]

Thank you very much, Ms. Miller.

We are now going to go into round two. In round two we have five minutes each.

Ms. Minna.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair. I will be sharing my time with my colleagues, so I will try to be very quick. I have a couple of questions.

The first one is, when you do a GBA analysis in any of the departments, do you include racial or other factors--native women, aboriginal women--in order to be able to actually...? I know it's women, but women are different.

[Kathy O'Hara]

That's an interesting question, because just recently our ADM policy committee looked at this question of gender-based analysis, and that's exactly what came out of that discussion, what they called the intersection. You want to look at female aboriginals, females who are disabled, female immigrants.

There is almost always a kind of intersection of policies. So you are quite right. Gender-based analysis almost invariably includes--

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

So you are including those factors in your analysis now?

[Kathy O'Hara]

Absolutely, yes.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

On employment insurance, with respect to women, I know there was an analysis done showing that the changes to the act in 1996 were having a negative impact on women disproportionately to men. I remember it was the first report that came out. Is that still the case, and do you know if there is any further analysis done with respect to the EI changes of 1996 to women nowadays?

[Kathy O'Hara]

I would have to follow up on that. As you know, the EI Commission produces annual monitoring reports. I must admit I have not looked at the last one, but they produce a report every year on the impact.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Could you let us know?

[Kathy O'Hara]

I will provide the last year's report.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

I'd appreciate that.

My last question, very quickly, is do you collect this segregated data for your information, all of you?

[Janet Siddall]

Certainly CIC does. In your package, in that CD-ROM there is quite an extensive breakdown of segregated data.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

And the others, you don't?

[Donna Miller]

Certainly in Justice we recognize the intersection of gender and gender through various lenses, but we do not track that data. It's part and parcel of our policy analysis, but we do not track it uniquely.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Okay. I gather others don't either?

[Linda Lizotte-MacPherson]

Our situation would be the same.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Those of you who don't, it would be nice if you did. I think it would be helpful.

I'd like to flip to my colleague, Ms. Bennett, please.

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

Thanks very much.

Madam Chair, I noticed in the notes from the Department of Finance that the department appointed a gender-based analysis champion. Could you find out if that person is in the room?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Joy Smith]

Well, if we could continue on with this questioning, is there anybody here from--well, the deputy minister was asked, Madam Bennett, to appear. He will appear in the future, and I think we should continue on with the questions. Do you have a question?

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

My concern is that the budget will be tabled on March 19, and a lot of our questions are really based on whether there will be a gender analysis of that budget. This is something we've been pushing for, for a long time. I was just wondering if there was somebody from the Department of Finance in the room who would come to the table.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Joy Smith]

Ms. Bennett, what we asked for was the deputy ministers, so we can look forward to having--perhaps at the very next meeting I'll see if the deputy minister can be there, because there will be time then, when we get back on Tuesday. I don't think it's fair or planned to bring somebody else in. I'm not aware of anybody here able to step up to the plate. We did ask for a deputy minister.

You have one minute left. Did you have a question?

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

We would like to know on this side if there is somebody in the room from the Department of Finance who we could call to the table.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Joy Smith]

I think that's an unfair--because we asked for the deputy ministers. I don't believe--