How does the Canadian government make decisions
How does the Canadian government make decisions

Most political issues have no clear, predetermined decision-making process as politics is all about who has power and wants to exercise it. On the one hand, power itself is an elusive thing, it is not something that can be stored or quantified, but rather a function of the relationship that exists between people and organizations which can change quickly and unpredictably. How does the Canadian government make decisions, When a government backed by a strong state bureaucracy suddenly collapses within days, it is clear that official power does not always bring about real power.

There have been some changes in government decision-making in Canada over the past four decades which have had some important implications for the use of evidence of efficiency or effectiveness in making decisions about government programs and spending. Additionally, there are changing assumptions about the relationship between policy response, fiscal discipline as well as program effectiveness that influence the use of evidence in decisions about policy priorities and equitable allocation of public resources.

Government decision-making is a process that combines insights from systematic research and practical experience with the complex interplay of ideas, interests, ideologies, institutions, and individuals. These factors determine decisions at two levels; political and administrative. Depending on the time and the regime in place at that same time, decision-making processes are structured and managed in ways that give substance to evidence.

No process is always or more “rational” than another. It all depends on what questions decision-makers need to ask in the circumstances and context of time to make the best decisions about their agenda and/or public expectations about good governance.

As a result, the importance attached to using evidence in decision-making inevitably increases and decreases over time. Thus, the relative position of the program evaluation function is not constant. Simultaneously, it is important to note that no regime can effectively manage its tax resources, or manage them well unless the regime invests in evaluating what the government is doing and how well it is performing.

The finance minister presents an annual budget to the government, which reflects the budget framework approved by the cabinet. The chairman of the Treasury Board then presented the most important forecast.

This framework provides general government direction. They shape and reflect the ongoing work of cabinet committees.

Decision-making is the procedure of making choices by identifying solutions, collecting information, and evaluating alternative solutions.

The government of Canada uses a step-by-step decision-making process that helps make wiser and considerable decisions by organizing relevant information and determining alternatives. This approach increases the likelihood that you will choose the most satisfactory alternative.

Identifying the Decision

The first and very important step is clearly defining the decision that must be made by ministers in the Parliament of Canada.

Gathering Relevant Information

Gather some relevant information before making a decision: what kind of information is ideal and required, what are the best sources of this information, and the mechanism to get it. Some of this information is internal as it can be collected via a self-assessment process while other information is external, for it can be accessed online, in books, from people, and from other external sources.

Identifying the Alternatives

There are probably many sources where information can be gathered and with that being the case, the Parliament of Canada lists all possible alternatives from where information relevant to the undertaking, can be collected.

Weighing the Evidence

In this step, the parliament uses the gathered information to examine whether or not the needs identified in the first step are met or resolved using each alternative. As the

parliament goes through this daunting internal process, it begins to prefer certain alternatives: those that seemingly have higher chances of attaining objectives.

Choosing Among Alternatives

After the parliament has weighed all the evidence in the previous step, it then chooses the best alternative among the options that were enlisted. However, it can choose multiple alternatives if need be.

Taking Action

When the process of choosing alternatives is completed, the parliament then takes positive action by beginning to implement the alternative(s) chosen in the previous step.

Reviewing Decision and Consequences Thereof

The final step involves the parliament looking at the results stemming from the decision made and assessing whether or not it meets the needs identified in Step 1. If per adventure, the decision does not meet the required needs, parliament repeats certain process steps to come up with a new decision it feels will eventually achieve the desired results by collecting more detailed information or indeed, choosing additional alternatives.

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