Estimates-related Questions for Standing Committees

Suggested questions for standing committees

This booklet contains lists of questions that committee members may wish to ask as the committee prepares for the planning and hearing stages of its work.

Selecting programs to scrutinize

• What does the committee need to know to select areas of interest or priority?
• Have there been recent concerns about major risks in relation to this department?
  How does the department manage risks?
• Are the department's priorities clearly identified?
  Do the programs still make sense—that is, are they all consistent with the government's or the department's priorities?
• Once the committee has selected a program for scrutiny, what information should it seek from department officials, experts, or other stakeholders?

Examining program planning

• What is the program's primary purpose?
• Are there alternative options for doing what this program does, and if so, what are their respective strengths and weaknesses?
• Is the program's overall direction clear?
  Are long-term commitments spelled out?
  How will these be achieved?
• What key results are expected from this use of taxpayer's funds?
  Do the planned results make sense in terms of the nature of the program?
  Is it clear what will be achieved in the short, medium, and long term, by when, and at what cost?
• What key performance information will be used to track progress in achieving these results?
• Are the program's resources aligned with its requirements, and are its risks identified?
  How does the department explain the current level of resources allocated to the program?
  Would additional or fewer resources make a difference to the expected results, and if so, how?
• Is the program linked to other initiatives, for example, in other departments?
  How will the federal government's overall efforts on this issue be reported?
• What commitments has the government or department made on program evaluation?
  Specifically, what evaluations are planned and when?
• Has the right balance been achieved among the various delivery instruments, such as policy, regulation, and direct program delivery?
  Can the department achieve the same or better result with a different program, a different level of service, or a different way of delivery the existing program?

Considering program delivery issues

• Is the program sustainable in light of the risks and challenges?
  Have new resources been requested or authorized, and if so, what is the rationale?
  Does the new or proposed budget include actions that would improve results?
• Is there assurance that management controls include public sector values and ethics?
  For example, do the controls refer to respecting codes of conduct?
• What other programs or agencies are partners in producing the desired results?
• Is the program being managed with proper attention to public service values, such as fairness and propriety?
• How has the department's sustainable development strategy influenced its key programs and activities?
  What has changed as a result of the sustainable development strategy?

Improving and reporting program performance information

• What benefits have Canadians received from the program?
• Is the program doing what it is supposed to do?
  Are the objectives set in the expenditure plans being met?
  What were the results in the most recent years?
• How do the results being achieved by the program compare to those in other countries or jurisdictions?
  For example, how do unit costs for service delivery compare?
• Does performance information provide assurance of fairness in service delivery?
  For which citizen groups or regions have the results been less than desired?
  What is currently being done to improve deficiencies?
• Is the committee receiving the type of information that it needs?
  Does the information provided answer the committee's questions about the project or the department as a whole?
  For example, are clear and reasonable measures used to report results? Is the evidence presented relevant and reliable?
• Could program results be delivered more effectively?
  What improvements are being planned for the program, and are these based on objective evaluations or performance information?
• Where more than one department is involved in achieving the public policy objective, is the program's contribution to the overall results explained well?
• How are the objectives and actions in the department's sustainable development strategy aligned with the department's strategic outcomes as set out in its Report on Plans and Priorities and its Departmental Performance Report?
• Is the financial information adequate?
  Is it clear what has been spent on the program?
• When does the department expect to have the unaudited financial statements in its Departmental Performance Report ready for audit?

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