You compare the role of Status of Women Canada to that of a department. In the past, we have noted that if we waited for the documents to work their way through the entire process before they reached Status of Women Canada, it was quite unlikely that gender be included in the drafting of a bill, a program or a policy. That is why we are stressing capability. We want the departments to consider all of the consequences and include gender as they begin to develop a policy.
The training that we provide deals with every stage in the development of a regular policy, while including the concept of gender throughout the entire process. We explain to the departments how to itemize the data, to undertake a consultation and develop options. We try to give them the tools that will ensure that the data are included in the proposal as it is approved. That does not mean that Status of Women Canada does not have an important role to play within the departments, but it is almost impossible for us to cover all of the initiatives that are developed.
That said, it is at this point that accountability comes into play. This is also when we work in conjunction with the central agencies so that they might have a greater role and ask the departments to provide the data that had been requested from the outset and the impact this will have on women.
In answer to an earlier question, there are already various accountability mechanisms. The departments must target their initiatives and, for a given year, they must track gender and the accountability framework in their report on planning and priorities. There are tools for accountability within the public service, to ensure that public servants produce quality analyses and take into account the impact of their policies and programs on various social groups. That is what we are doing with the central agencies, and, eventually, that is what we will do with all government departments.
I will not deal with employment insurance. However, when we last appeared before the previous committee, we provided training on comparative analysis. The committee worked in conjunction with one of our trainers to draft a very popular policy. If the committee would like a half-day of training on gender-based analysis, we would be happy to do it again.