Status of Women Committee on April 29th, 2008

[Clare Beckton]

There are the main estimates and the supplementary estimates. We also do this through public accounts. In addition, we submit a number of reports, including the departmental performance report, which tells how the money was expended.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yasmin Ratansi]

So if we wanted to have a look at the numbers that are confusing us all, and we wanted to go from 2002 to 2008-09, you would be able to supply us back-up? We will request that. Thank you.

Ms. Mathyssen.

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

The independent policy fund was cancelled. This committee depended a great deal on research from women's organizations and Status of Women Canada to guide us in the work we do. Do you know of any government-funded research by other departments that could provide the government, and us, with knowledge-based work on gender equality? Government needs this to respond to the complex issues and needs of women across the country.

Secondly, with respect to the research on the SWC Internet site, will those invaluable publications continue to be available?

[Clare Beckton]

In regard to your second question, yes, our research will continue to be available on our website.

In answer to the first question, throughout the government there is a fair bit of research that deals with women's issues. Statistics Canada does a great deal of research, and we have worked with them in the past to ensure that it's sex disaggregated. Other departments, like Health Canada and the women's health programs, also do sex disaggregated data, as does Human Resources and Social Development. Indian Affairs does some work, and we have helped them to ensure that some of their questionnaires contain the gender-specific questions they need to ask. There is a fair bit of information available throughout the various government departments that are working on issues of importance to women.

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

Okay.

[Clare Beckton]

The think tanks also do some work, as well as the Conference Board of Canada, the policy forums; the North-South Institute, in fact, does a fair bit on gender.

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

It's interesting that there is all this information and we still don't have a national child care program and a national housing program. When women's groups come here they say that's what they need, first and foremost: housing and child care.

I want to continue. In the past two years, the committee has put forward several recommendations concerning the restructuring of Status of Women Canada. I think you were here for some of that committee work. For example, there were recommendations from the report, Funding Through the Women's Program: Women's Groups Speak Out. I'm wondering, has the minister acted on any of these recommendations, and could you specifically tell us how?

[Clare Beckton]

I think Status of Women Canada and the ministers have looked at all of the reports when we've talked about gender-based analysis. I think there was a real emphasis on moving towards accountability, for example, and that is what we have been attempting to do through our work with central agencies.

We've also looked at the expert panel work and attempted to integrate some of those recommendations into the work we're doing.

There was an evaluation done of the women's program. We have worked very extensively to implement the recommendations of the evaluation insofar as they remain applicable. We've brought in better systems that enable us to have up-to-date knowledge on the management of the funds that we're putting out. A GCIMS is what it's called.

So we have done a fair bit of work on implementing the various recommendations of the committee over the years. The increase in funding to the women's program was one of the recommendations, which has occurred over the past year.

There was a realignment so that there was more money put into the actual funding for the women's program and less into the administration of the program, so that you'd have more money going out on the ground. Therefore, Status of Women Canada now tends to be one of the more efficient departments in terms of administering the program funds.

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

Could you give me an update in terms of Status of Women Canada being able to process ATI requests in the legislated timeframe and how many resources you have for ATI requests? I submitted some requests last June and I'm still waiting.

[Clare Beckton]

As I've said to the committee before, Status of Women was certainly behind. We have hired another person. We also have a consultant who works with us, and we've made considerable progress in getting at the backlog.

There are challenges because some of the requests require approval from other departments. Sometimes we have no control over the timing of when we get the information back from the other departments. I did speak to the Access to Information Commissioner, and we're certainly working very hard to try to eliminate that backlog. I'm optimistic that by the end of this year we should have eliminated the backlog.

It's very difficult to find people, as you may know, who have the expertise in access to information. It's an area that's in much demand, but we've been very fortunate to find some very good people to augment our staff.

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

Thank you.

Talking about audits and examining things reminded me of the Auditor General and her very clear directive that, of course, it was Status of Women Canada's job to strengthen the participation of women economically, socially, and culturally. I'm wondering how Status of Women Canada compares with other countries and jurisdictions in terms of the work to promote women's issues, women's equality, women's concerns.

[Clare Beckton]

Taking from the reaction that we get in the world community, other countries think Canada is a leader in this regard. Our gender machinery is very much the envy of many other countries and of many provinces whose machinery is inside another department; we are a separate departmental agency. We have the fortune, I guess, in Canada to be able to work with a strong set of laws. We have been able to work on accountabilities, and we have been able to integrate our functions to be able to make our work more strategic.

I think, from looking around the world, some countries do better than Canada. We all know that the Scandinavian countries in many areas maybe have made a little more progress than we have. But at the same time, when I recently spoke to the Swedish ambassador, she told me that while they've made great strides on the democratic process in the representation of women, they have not done so well in the corporate world. There's still a corporate culture that is a challenge.

I think we do actually very well compared to other countries around the world, and we're continuing. I've been continuing to work at how we reorient and have strategic directions that will continue to ensure that we are able to do that work.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yasmin Ratansi]

Thank you, Ms. Beckton.

We now go to the next round.

Ms. Neville, you have five minutes.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm hoping to share my time with Ms. Minna.

I have a number of questions. First, I wonder if you could tell us what the targeted date is for the delivery of the action plan. It would be helpful to know that.

You made some reference to regional offices closed but regional people...and I'm not sure I caught it directly. Are there still people operating in the region? And is it possible to give us a breakdown of what your expenses are when you're travelling and how that would compare with maintaining some regional offices? So I'm looking for a comparison between the kind of outreach you're doing at the present time and maintaining a regional office.

As well, you say on page 7 of the estimates, “In addressing women’s economic security and prosperity, the Department is collaborating on the following key initiatives”, and then you list as an initiative, “supports for young families”.

I don't know what that means. Could you give us some examples of what these are, “supports for young families”?

I have more questions, but I'll stop there.

[Clare Beckton]

I can start.

I don't have a targeted date. That's something that obviously we're working on with the government, to determine what the target date will be.

In terms of the regions, we have regional offices, as you know, in Edmonton, in Moncton, in Montreal, and our Ontario and national region in Ottawa. I'm not sure if we would be able to correlate exactly the costs of running the offices and travel, but we could certainly give you a breakdown of the travel that occurred in each of the regions over the past year, if you wish. I can do that. I'm not sure if we have the ability to compare it. I would have to sit down with my corporate head here to see if there's any way to reasonably compare that--

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

If I can interrupt you, I appreciate the outreach you're doing and what you're trying to do to meet the needs of women's groups. I know it's a challenge. I guess what I'm trying to determine or get some answers to is rather than you or others being on the road a great deal of the time, would it not be more effective to in fact set up satellite offices, or offices for people to consult with? That's what I'm trying to determine.

[Clare Beckton]

No, I understand that. One of the things we are doing this year is working to ensure that all of the Service Canada offices have the information that's needed to be able to help women's groups. I know--

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

That's not providing the information--

[Clare Beckton]

Right.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yasmin Ratansi]

Ms. Neville, if it helps, I've asked them for the income and expense statements for the years 2002 onwards, which we would be able to get.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

That's fine. You're the accountant, Madam Chair.

[Clare Beckton]

With respect to your last question, about supports for young families, that is referring to an initiative we have with our territorial and provincial colleagues. We are commissioning a paper to look at what are the other possible ways, apart from EI, to have benefits and supports for young families. That's part of our federal-provincial-territorial cooperative effort.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

When you say you're commissioning a paper, that's research as I understand research.

[Clare Beckton]

I suppose it's an ideas paper about the possibilities; it's not so much research. They may have to do some research in the process, but it's the other ways to support young families than exist at the present time, which may be within provincial jurisdiction or federal jurisdiction, for example. There will be some research, but it's more focused on what we know is out there and what the other possibilities are.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yasmin Ratansi]

Ms. Minna, very short.