Representation and Ministerial Influence on Cabinet Committees in Canada

Abstract

Cabinet committees are important sites of executive politics in Canada. This article examines the extent to which two representational attributes—gender and region—determine influence, as a function of cabinet committee structure. Employing a dataset of ministers under the three most recent prime ministers, I find that female ministers are less likely than male ministers to be influential in terms of connections to other ministers, to belong to the core of most influential ministers and to be represented on the most powerful committees or chairing committees. However, there is evidence of improvement over time. While regional representation is an imperative in cabinet making for Canadian prime ministers, its role in determining ministerial influence within committees is not evident: ministers from less-represented regions are no more likely to be influential than other ministers. This analysis highlights a neglected but central arena for social representation in Canadian government.

Canada's Lobbying Industry: Business and Public Interest Advocacy from Harper to Trudeau

“…In addition, the newly elected government was explicitly interested in public engagement. Beginning in 2015, the PMO made public mandate letters for each cabinet minister (Ie, forthcoming), which stated that the minister would be held “accountable for our commitment to bring a different style of leadership to government” including “constructive dialogue with Canadians, civil society, and stakeholders, including business, organized labour, the broader public sector, and the not-for-profit and charitable sectors” (Government of Canada, n.d.). Laura Wesley, former executive director, Consultations and Public Engagement at the Privy Council Office, wrote in 2018 that “the federal government has dramatically increased the scope and scale of its consultations and engagement in the past two years” (Wesley, 2018: 14).…”

Ministerial policy roles and mandate letters in the Justin Trudeau government

“…Indeed, all of Trudeau's letters contain shared sections emphasizing electoral commitments, Liberal branding, and the “trust” that Canadians have placed in the government. This means the public letters serve a public relations function that undisclosed letters do not (Ie, 2023).…”

“…As Wernick (2021) advises, one of the first things ministers should do is plan the implementation of their mandate letter with their political and civil service advisors; this also keeps policy ambitions of ministers in check (Savoie, 1999). Finally, mandate letters can also be framed as constructing networks of coordination among ministers, shaping how ministers are induced to undertake joint policy efforts (Ie, 2023). They are, therefore, an important window into how ministerial policy roles are constructed by Canadian first ministers.…”

From Gender Equity to Gendered Assignments? Women and Cabinet Committees in Canada and the United Kingdom

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This article explores women's access to ministerial power in an important but understudied arena of executive politics: cabinet committees. Specifically, we analyse the gendered patterns in the distribution of cabinet committee assignments in two 'typical' Westminster cases, Canada and the United Kingdom, and under two prime ministers, Justin Trudeau (2015-2021) and David Cameron (2010, who both made explicit gender-equity pledges. Informed by previous research into gendered allocation of ministerial portfolios, we investigate the overall extent of women's committee assignments, the gendered dimensions of these assignments and the status of assignments, namely the 'prestige' of committee remits, whether committees were chaired by the prime minister and the allocation of chairing responsibilities across committees.

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“…Though the general and particular importance of committees varies, membership is a 'passport to involvement' in the structures of cabinet decision-making (Dunleavy 2003: 344). On this basis, committee assignments provide analytical leverage in examining the 'black box' of cabinet power relations (Dunleavy 1995(Dunleavy , 2003Ie 2019Ie , 2021Royal Holloway Group PR3710 2012). Knowing how women are assigned to committees can shed light on their access to power and the gendering of core executives (Annesley and Gains 2010).…”