Structure of the Canadian federal government
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The following list outlines the structure of the federal government of Canada, the collective set of federal institutions which can be grouped into the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. In turn, these are further divided into departments, agencies, and other organizations which support the day-to-day function of the Canadian state.
The list includes roughly 130 departments and other organizations, with nearly 300,000 employees, who collectively form the Public Service of Canada. Special Operating Agencies (which are departmental organizations), and non-departmental organizations such as Crown corporations, administrative tribunals, and oversight organizations are parts of the public service operating in areas seen as requiring a higher level of independence from it and the direct political control of ministers. Public servants are agents of the Crown and responsible to Parliament through their relevant minister.
This list is organized according to functional grouping and is further subdivided by category such as offices, departments, agencies, and Crown corporations:
The Crown
[edit]Regal and vice-regal offices
[edit]King's Privy Council
[edit]- King's Privy Council for Canada
- Cabinet of Canada
- Privy Council Office
- Intergovernmental Affairs Secretariat
- Office of the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Executive
[edit]Public Service
[edit]Central agencies
[edit]Ministerial departments
[edit]Department | Abbreviation | Established | Ministers | Deputy heads | Associated entities |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Agriculture and Agri-Food | AAFC | 1868 | Kody Blois (Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food) | Lawrence Hanson |
|
Canadian Heritage | PCH | 1993 | Steven Guilbeault (Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity, Parks Canada) | Isabelle Mondou
(Deputy Minister) |
|
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs | CIRNAC | 2019
1880 (historic) |
Gary Anandasangaree (Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs) | Valerie Gideon
(Deputy Minister) |
|
Employment and Social Development | ESDC | 2003 | Steven MacKinnon (Minister of Jobs and Families) | Paul Thompson
(Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development) Sandra Hassan (Deputy Minister of Labour; Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development) |
|
Environment and Climate Change | ECCC | 1971 | Terry Duguid (Minister of Environment and Climate Change) | Jean-François Tremblay
(Deputy Minister) |
|
Fisheries and Oceans | DFO | 1868 | Joanne Thompson (Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard) | Annette Gibbons
(Deputy Minister) |
|
Global Affairs | GAC | 1909 | Mélanie Joly (Minister of Foreign Affairs) and (Minister of International Development) | David Morrison (Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs)
Rob Stewart (Deputy Minister of International Trade) Christopher MacLennan (Deputy Minister of International Development) |
|
Health | HC | 1993
1919 (historic) |
Kamal Khera (Minister of Health) | Greg Orencsak (Deputy Minister) |
|
Housing, Infrastructure and Communities | HICC | 2002 | Nathaniel Erskine-Smith (Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities) | Paul Halucha (Deputy Minister) |
|
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship | IRCC | 1994 | Rachel Bendayan (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship) | Harpreet S. Kochhar (Deputy Minister) |
|
Indigenous Services | ISC | 2019 | Patty Hajdu (Minister of Indigenous Services) | Gina Wilson (Deputy Minister) |
|
Innovation, Science and Economic Development | ISED | 1993 | Anita Anand (Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry) | Philip Jennings (Deputy Minister) |
|
Justice | JUS | 1868 | Gary Anandasangaree (Minister of Justice and Attorney General) | Shalene Curtis-Micallef
(Deputy Minister and Deputy Attorney General) |
|
National Defence | DND | 1923 | Bill Blair (Minister of National Defence) | Stefanie Beck
(Deputy Minister) General Jennie Carignan (Chief of Defence Staff) |
|
Natural Resources | NRCan | 1994 | Jonathan Wilkinson (Minister of Natural Resources) | Michael Vandergrift
(Deputy Minister) |
|
Public Safety | PS | 2003 | David McGuinty (Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness) | Tricia Geddes (Deputy Minister) |
|
Public Services and Procurement | PSPC | 1996 | Ali Ehsassi (Minister of Government Transformation, Public Services and Procurement; Receiver General) | Arianne Reza (Deputy Minister; Deputy Receiver-General) |
|
Transport | TC | 1935 | Chrystia Freeland (Minister of Transport) | Arun Thangaraj
(Deputy Minister) |
|
Veterans Affairs | VAC | 1944 | Élisabeth Brière (Minister of Veterans Affairs) | Peter Ledwell (Deputy Minister) |
|
Women and Gender Equality | WAGE | 2018
1976 (historic) |
Steven Guilbeault (Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity, Parks Canada) | Frances McRae (Deputy Minister) | None |
Separate agency with direct ministerial oversight
[edit]Agency | Abbreviation | Established | Minister | Deputy head | Associated entity |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Canada Revenue Agency | CRA | 2003
1867 (historic) |
Élisabeth Brière (Minister responsible for the Canada Revenue Agency) | Bob Hamilton (Commissioner of Revenue) |
|
Independent agencies and offices
[edit]- Canadian Judicial Council
- National Judicial Institute
- National Security and Intelligence Review Agency
- Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs
- Office of the Chief Military Judge
- Public Service Commission of Canada
- Transportation Safety Board
Independent review bodies
[edit]- Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board[1]
- Public Servants Disclosure Protection Tribunal
- Canadian Human Rights Commission
- Canadian Human Rights Tribunal
Canadian Armed Forces
[edit]Branch | Abbreviation | Established | Minister | Commander |
---|---|---|---|---|
Canadian Army | CA | 1855 | Bill Blair | Michael Wright |
Canadian Forces Intelligence Command | CFINTCOM | 2013 | Dave Abboud | |
Canadian Joint Operations Command | CJOC | 2012 | Steve Boivin | |
Canadian Special Operations Forces Command | CANSOFCOM | 2006 | Steve Hunter | |
Royal Canadian Air Force | RCAF | 1914 | Eric Kenny | |
Royal Canadian Navy | RCN | 1910 | Angus Topshee | |
Canadian Forces Military Police | CFMP | 1917 | Vanessa Hanrahan |
Parliament
[edit]Procedural officers
[edit]- Speaker of the Senate
- Clerk of the Senate and Clerk of the Parliaments
- Usher of the Black Rod of the Senate of Canada
Standing committees
[edit]- Aboriginal Peoples
- Agriculture and Forestry
- Banking, Trade, and Commerce
- Ethics and Conflict of Interest for Senators
- Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources
- Fisheries and Oceans
- Foreign Affairs and International Trade
- Human Rights
- Internal Economy, Budgets, and Administration
- Diversity subcommittee
- Human Resources subcommittee
- Senate Estimates subcommittee
- Legal and Constitutional Affairs
- National Finance
- National Security and Defence
- Official Languages
- Rules, Procedure and the Rights of Parliament
- Selection Committee
- Social Affairs, Science and Technology
- Transport and Communication
Procedural officers
[edit]- Speaker of the House of Commons
- Clerk of the House of Commons
- Deputy Clerk of the House of Commons
- Clerk Assistant
- Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel
- Sergeant-at-Arms
Standing committees
[edit]- Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics
- Agriculture and Agri-Food
- Canadian Heritage
- Citizenship and Immigration
- Environment and Sustainable Development
- Finance
- Fisheries and Oceans
- Foreign Affairs and International Development
- Government Operations and Estimates
- Health
- Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and
the Status of Persons with Disabilities - Indigenous and Northern Affairs
- Industry, Science and Technology
- International Trade
- Justice and Human Rights
- National Defence
- Natural Resources
- Official Languages
- Procedure and House Affairs
- Public Accounts
- Public Safety and National Security
- Status of Women
- Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
- Veterans Affairs
Joint Standing Committees
[edit]Officers of Parliament
[edit]- Auditor General of Canada
- Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada
- Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner of Canada
- Information Commissioner of Canada
- Intelligence Commissioner of Canada
- Elections Canada
- Privacy Commissioner of Canada
- Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada
- Parliamentary Budget Officer
Agencies
[edit]Review bodies
[edit]Courts
[edit]- Supreme Court of Canada
- Federal Court of Appeal
- Court Martial Appeal Court of Canada
- Federal Court of Canada
- Tax Court of Canada
See also
[edit]- Civil Service Act, 1918
- Special Operating Agency
- State-owned enterprise
- Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary
- Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue
- PPP Canada
Provincial and territorial equivalents
[edit]- Executive Council of Alberta
- Executive Council of British Columbia
- Executive Council of Manitoba
- Executive Council of Newfoundland and Labrador
- Executive Council of New Brunswick
- Executive Council of Nova Scotia
- Executive Council of Ontario
- Executive Council of Prince Edward Island
- Executive Council of Quebec
- Executive Council of Saskatchewan
- Executive Council of the Northwest Territories
- Executive Council of Nunavut
- Executive Council of Yukon
- Government of Alberta
- Government of British Columbia
- Government of Manitoba
- Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
- Government of New Brunswick
- Government of Nova Scotia
- Government of Ontario
- Government of Prince Edward Island
- Government of Quebec
- Government of Saskatchewan
References
[edit]- ^ "Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board". www.fpslreb-crtespf.gc.ca. Retrieved 8 January 2023.