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Section II—Analysis of Program Activities by Strategic Outcome

Strategic Outcome

The PPSC has one Strategic Outcome: Criminal and regulatory offences under federal law are prosecuted in an independent, impartial and fair manner.

Program Activity #1: Drug, Criminal Code and terrorism prosecution program

Human Resources (FTEs) and Planned Spending ($ millions)

Description of Activity

This program supports the protection of society against crime through the provision of legal advice and litigation support during police investigations, and the prosecution of:

1. all drug offences under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act and any related organized crime offences throughout Canada, except in Quebec and New Brunswick, where the PPSC prosecutes such offences only where charges are laid by the RCMP;
2. proceeds of crime offences;
3. pursuant to understandings with the provinces, Criminal Code offences where they are related to drug charges;
4. all Criminal Code offences in the three territories;
5. terrorism offences; and
6. war crimes and crimes against humanity offences.

This program activity also involves the promotion of federal/provincial/territorial cooperation on criminal justice issues of mutual concern.

Planning Highlights for 2012-13

Within this program activity, two ongoing priorities relate to organized crime and terrorism-related offences.

The focus on organized crime reflects the priority given to this issue by the federal police and other law enforcement authorities. The PPSC will continue to emphasize inter-jurisdictional cooperation within the prosecutorial community and with investigative agencies both federally, nationally and internationally; provide advice and litigation support during the investigative stage, especially on highly complex cases; prosecute organized crime cases on behalf of the Crown; and pursue proceeds of crime and offence-related property. While all PPSC regional offices prosecute organized crime cases, a number of them are involved in highly complex and resource-intensive cases that will continue through 2012-13, and will require dedicated teams of experienced counsel.

The coming into force of amendments flowing from the Safe Streets and Communities Act can be expected to increase the number of cases that go to trial as well as the length and complexity of those trials. The reduced availability of conditional sentences, as well as changes to the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA), which will result in more young persons being subject to custodial sentences upon a guilty finding, can also be expected to result in fewer guilty pleas and more persons choosing to proceed to trial. The YCJA changes will have the greatest impact on the three PPSC offices in the North, which handle the majority of cases involving young offenders. Finally, the advent of new or tougher minimum mandatory penalties in the Criminal Code for sexual offences involving children, as well as the reduced availability of conditional sentences, can also be expected to particularly affect Northern prosecutions because of the number of such prosecutions conducted by the PPSC.

The priority given to terrorism-related offences reflects the gravity with which national security matters are viewed. These cases are usually resource-intensive. The PPSC is currently prosecuting two cases in Ontario which are expected to carry over to 2012-13.

A prosecution relating to charges laid under the Crimes against Humanity and War Crimes Act is also under way in Ontario. This file involves allegations of genocide in Rwanda and is scheduled for trial in April 2012. Given the complexity of such files, the current estimate for the trial’s duration is four months.

As in previous years, the PPSC will work closely with federal/provincial/territorial heads of prosecution on issues and challenges of common interest. As part of this work, the PPSC will continue to co-chair, and provide secretarial and administrative support to, the FPT Heads of Prosecution Committee and to ensure ongoing linkages between the Committee and partners from outside the prosecution community such as the Canadian Bar Association and the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. The PPSC will also continue to participate in the work of the Heads of Prosecuting Agencies Conference and the International Association of Prosecutors.

During 2012-13, the PPSC again expects to receive foreign delegations interested in criminal justice and seeking to deepen their understanding of the Canadian justice system and Canadian prosecution approaches, particularly in relation to drug and terrorism prosecutions, and with respect to areas of the Criminal Code.

Program Activity #2: Regulatory offences and economic crime prosecution program

Human Resources (FTEs) and Planned Spending ($ millions)

Description of Activity

This program supports the protection of society against crime through the provision of legal advice and litigation support to police and federal investigative agencies, and the prosecution of:

1. offences under federal statutes aimed at protecting the environment and natural resources as well as the country’s economic and social health (e.g., Fisheries Act, Income Tax Act, Copyright Act, Canada Elections Act, Canadian Environmental Protection Act, Competition Act, Customs Act, Excise Act, and Excise Tax Act);
2. offences involving fraud against the federal government;
3. capital market fraud offences; and
4. conspiracies and attempts to violate any of these statutes.

This program also includes the recovery of outstanding federal fines and the promotion of federal/provincial/territorial cooperation on criminal justice issues of mutual concern.

Planning Highlights for 2012-13

The further development and implementation of various elements of the PPSC’s vision for Law Practice Management are planned for 2012-13. This will include the ongoing work on the major revision of the Federal Prosecution Service (FPS) Deskbook⁷, the provision of customized advanced and basic training through its School for Prosecutors, as well as supplementing the PPSC’s knowledge management Intranet site with additional training and legal resources for prosecutors and paralegals.

In addition, the PPSC will continue to work closely with federal-provincial-territorial heads of prosecution on issues and challenges of common interest in the areas of regulatory offences and economic crime. The Securities Fraud and Economic Crime Prosecutors Affiliation will be focusing on the training of prosecutors who handle capital market offences cases and the development of best practices in areas such as information sharing and immunity agreements. The PPSC is contributing to the development of a shared website on economic crime that will be accessible by prosecutors and other members of the Affiliation.

The PPSC will also continue to actively participate in symposia and conferences which focus on regulatory offences and economic crime prosecutions, and to host delegations interested in regulatory prosecutions.

The PPSC’s Agent Affairs Program will continue to implement fixed-term agreements for agents, replacing indeterminate appointments which were subject to termination without notice. This multi-year transition began in 2009; fixed-term agreements will be in place in all jurisdictions across Canada by 2014. Under the new regime, any law firm or lawyer interested in becoming a federal prosecution agent can apply for a five-year term when an opening occurs in a jurisdiction. Agents are selected pursuant to a competitive process that includes screening and reference checks. Further information about the fixed-term regime is available on the PPSC’s website at http://www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca/eng/pub/tcfa-cetf/index.html.

Program Activity #3: Internal Services

Human Resources (FTEs) and Planned Spending ($ millions)

Program Activity Summary and Planning Highlights

Internal Services comprise groups of related activities that support the above two program activities and other corporate accountabilities. Three of the PPSC’s organizational priorities (under Section I) support internal services (i.e., Engagement and Employee Development, Resourcing and Performance Measurement, and Security). Additional planning highlights for internal services are described below.

• Financial Management and Acquisition (Procurement and Assets Management): The Finance and Acquisitions Directorate (FAD) will continue to strengthen its financial management and acquisitions functions through the provision of support, advice and training and to improve internal processes to better support managers. FAD will continue to direct efforts on implementing the Treasury Board policy suite and their specific requirements relating to financial reporting. These include impact analyses, amendments to existing internal processes and practices, development of new or amended directives and procedures, communications, monitoring and training.
  
  As of April 1, 2012, the PPSC will be implementing major changes in how it plans and recovers costs from departments and investigative agencies for prosecutions of regulatory offences that fall under the statutes they administer. These changes will improve business processes and enhance corporate systems to reduce administrative effort.
  
  
• Human Resources Management: Building on the 2009-2014 People Management Strategy, the PPSC will continue to focus on human resources planning, organizational management, and talent management. It will create tools for managers and employees that will enable the organization to take a coherent and progressive approach to the management of its human resources. Issues that were identified in the 2011 Public Service Employee Survey and the 2011-2012 Management Accountability Framework assessment will also be addressed.
  
  
• Information Management and Technology: The PPSC will continue to rely on the Department of Justice and Shared Services Canada for core IM and IT services. A review of the arrangement with Justice is under way with the goal of strengthening and potentially extending services received under the terms of a revised MOU. In addition, the PPSC will continue to explore enabling technologies in such areas as e-disclosure to achieve efficiencies and savings. It will also expand the use of video-conferencing to cut travel expenses, and the use of courtroom technologies to reduce paper burden and related costs. Finally, it will focus on developing a comprehensive IM strategy and plan as well as establishing a Records Disposition Authority for the PPSC.
  
  
• Administration Services: The PPSC’s Administration Services will concentrate on establishing a single headquarters office location in the National Capital Region, by November 2012. It will also implement, as of April 1, 2012, the PPSC’s Informal Conflict Management System in collaboration with bargaining agents.

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