President of the Treasury Board Responds to the Auditor General's Report on the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada

[ Backgrounder ]

September 30, 2003

OTTAWA - The Honourable Lucienne Robillard, President of the Treasury Board of Canada and Member of Parliament for Westmount - Ville-Marie, today announced the government's response to the Auditor General's Report on the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

"I thank the Auditor General for her work on this matter. I am very concerned and distressed by her findings," said Minister Robillard. "This is not the public service I know. As the Auditor General has said, the conduct outlined in this report is not representative of the conduct of government employees. However, I take this issue extremely seriously. I am committed to implementing the Auditor General's recommendations and my officials will work with the interim Commissioner to recover public money on a case-by-case basis."

The President noted that this is an extraordinary situation. It raises a difficult issue for all governments: oversight of Agents of Parliament.

"Governments have always been reluctant to be seen to be interfering with these offices," Minister Robillard said. "No government has wanted inadvertently to influence the substantive work of these key agencies or to be seen to do so.

"But clearly, we must not and cannot allow this to inhibit us from putting in place the appropriate oversight and accountability mechanisms. Naturally, we must do so in a manner that respects the independence of these agents and the central role of Parliament. This is why we intend to work closely with the Government Operations and Estimates committee and the Agents of Parliament to put a system in place."

Following the report of the Government Operations and Estimates committee, specific actions taken with respect to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) include:

• TBS hired an outside management consultant to assess the management practices of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner and propose improvements. The recommended actions in this study have been shared with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.
• TBS commissioned a case study and survey of OPC staff to determine why they did not report any wrongdoing under the Policy on the Internal Disclosure of Information Concerning Wrongdoing in the Workplace (IDP) or seek the assistance of the Public Service Integrity Officer.
• TBS has provided advice to the interim Commissioner on discipline and recovery actions.
• TBS has helped identify new management, staff and advisors for the OPC.

In light of the findings of the Auditor General:

• TBS will undertake, with the interim Commissioner, an audit of the application of performance pay in the OPC.
• TBS will review all classification actions and recommend appropriate actions.

The new measures with respect to the OPC are in addition to other recent steps to ensure public service integrity. A working group is being established to examine the issue of whistle-blowing in the public service workplace. This report will examine options for changes to the current policy, including possible legislative approaches. The working group will report by the end of January to the President, who will then share it with parliamentarians for their recommendations.

As well, earlier this year Minister Robillard announced a new Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service. The Code took effect September 1 and requires all public servants to act at all times in a manner that will bear the closest public scrutiny. Treasury Board Secretariat is also implementing the new Management Accountability Framework, a tool for rigorous, comprehensive oversight both at the departmental level and government-wide.

"The Public Service of Canada does not tolerate wrongdoing and those found to have violated the Values and Ethics Code are subject to discipline up to termination," said Minister Robillard. "We will also cooperate with the RCMP on matters referred to them by the Auditor General."

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For more information, contact:

Daniel Grenier
Press Secretary
Office of the President of the Treasury Board
of Canada
(613) 957-2666

Mario Baril
Media Relations
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
(613) 957-2391

IF THERE IS A DISCREPANCY BETWEEN ANY PRINTED VERSION AND THE ELECTRONIC VERSION OF THIS NEWS RELEASE, THE ELECTRONIC VERSION WILL PREVAIL.

TTY (Telecommunications device for the hearing impaired) - (613) 957-9090

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Backgrounder

Treasury Board Secretariat Actions Being Taken With Regard to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner

Performance Management Program for Executives

• All awards for performance for executives at the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and recovery action taken if appropriate.
• Until Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) is confident that the program is well administered, the OPC will be required to secure the agreement of TBS that it is fully complying with the requirements of the Performance Management Program for Executives before any performance-related payments are made.
• The President of the Treasury Board and the interim Commissioner will table a report before the end of October 2003 outlining actions to be taken to respond to the Auditor General's findings, including those related to the administration of the Performance Management Program for Executives. Once these actions are completed, a final report will be provided to Parliament.

Classification of Positions

• TBS is working with the OPC to identify all positions not classified in accordance with Treasury Board classification policies, provide classification advice to that office and ensure that it takes timely corrective action for positions found to be misclassified.
• TBS will review, with the OPC, all proposed classification actions for the next six months.
• TBS will work with the OPC to develop the required level of classification expertise to enable the office to ensure the integrity of future classification decisions and effectively manage its classification program.

Hospitality Expenses

• TBS will review improper hospitality expenditures with the interim Commissioner and ensure that all corrective actions are taken.
• These actions will form part of the report to be tabled in Parliament jointly with the interim Commissioner by the end of October.

Leave

• TBS will review improper cash-outs of vacation leave with the interim Commissioner and ensure that all corrective actions are taken.
• These actions will form part of the report to be tabled in Parliament jointly with the interim Commissioner by the end of October.

Whistleblowing

• TBS commissioned a survey of employees of the OPC regarding their awareness of the internal disclosure policy in an effort to determine why they did not use it to disclose wrongdoing at the OPC. Information sessions are being organized.

Travel

• TBS will review ineligible travel expenditures with the interim Commissioner and ensure that all corrective actions are taken.
• These actions will form part of the report to be tabled in Parliament jointly with the interim Commissioner by the end of October.

Financial Management

• TBS has had a complete management review done of the OPC. The report has been provided to the interim Commissioner as the basis for comprehensive change of management practices for the future.
• An amount equivalent to the $234,000 over-expenditure for 2002-03 has been frozen in the office's budget for the current fiscal year. TBS is working with the interim Commissioner to establish the current and prospective financial requirements for the office.
• TBS is working with the OPC to select a new Senior Financial Officer and ensure the appropriate training and development are given to this individual.