Departmental Results Report 2022-23

Departmental Results Report 2022-23 PDF Version (2.4 MB)

Table of contents

• From the Ministers
• Results at a glance
  • Core responsibilities and key activities
• Results: what we achieved
  • Core responsibility: National Security
  • Core responsibility: Community Safety
  • Core responsibility: Emergency Management
  • Internal Services
• Spending and human resources
  • Spending: 2020–21 to 2025–26
  • Human resources
  • Expenditures by vote
  • Government of Canada spending and activities
  • Financial statements and financial statements highlights
• Corporate information
  • Organizational profile
  • Raison d'être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do
  • Operating context
  • Reporting framework
• Supporting information on the program inventory
• Supplementary information tables
• Federal tax expenditures
• Organizational contact information
• Appendix: definitions
• Endnotes

From the Ministers

The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc
P.C., K.C., M.P.
Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs

The Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan
P.C., O.M.M., M.S.M., C.D., M.P.
President of the King's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada

As Ministers of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, we are pleased to present the 2022–23 Departmental Results Report for Public Safety Canada. We are also proud to take on our new roles as Ministers at a time of great significance for global safety and security. This report provides a snapshot of the Department's contributions to that important work.

At the time of publishing, Canadians are facing the worst wildfire season on record. As climate change continues to exacerbate extreme weather conditions, we must all be reassured that emergency preparedness remains a top priority. In 2022–23, the Government of Canada has supported relief and recovery efforts for communities affected by wildfires, floods and extreme weather, including matching donations made to the Canadian Red Cross' British Columbia Wildfire Appeal, and Hurricane Fiona Appeal. This includes addressing the needs of Indigenous communities, and redressing mental health and psychosocial impacts. The Government Operations Centre supported a whole-of-government response to the COVID-19 pandemic, floods, wildfires and Hurricane Fiona, by executing 23 Requests for Federal Assistance.

This year, in collaboration with provinces and territories, Public Safety Canada also released the first Federal-Provincial-Territorial Emergency Management Strategy Action Plan, which identifies how governments are implementing the objectives of the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada: Toward a Resilient 2030. Efforts to raise awareness, assess risks, conduct multi-player exercises and engage stakeholders also continued this year, along with a new task force exploring options to further protect homeowners at risk of flooding.

As our world changes, so too does the national security environment, requiring strategic and comprehensive approaches. One timely example is the Government's collaborative approach to countering foreign interference—a serious risk to public safety, that includes harmful activities undertaken by foreign states. In a year that has seen the topic dominate headlines, the Government announced a series of measures to take action, including investments to increase investigative capacity, engage with communities, and to create a National Counter-Foreign Interference Office to be housed within Public Safety Canada.

Many efforts are also underway to protect Canadians in the digital realm. In 2022–23, that included virtual tabletop exercises on cyber incident response, and an expansion of the response toolkit at our disposal, along with tabling new cyber legislation and the establishment of the Research Security Centre, to protect Canada's research sector. The digital threat environment also includes mis- and disinformation—a pervasive threat to our safety—on which the Department will hold a summit this year to coordinate strategies.

The Government of Canada has pursued a comprehensive approach to strengthen firearms control and keep Canadians safe from gun violence. This year the Department supported the development and introduction in Parliament of Bill C-21, An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (Firearms), which would, among other measures, codify in statute a national handgun freeze, with certain limited exemptions. The Firearms Buyback Program is another new element in the Government of Canada's comprehensive plan to keep Canadians safe from gun violence. Canadians, including Indigenous communities and provincial, territorial, and municipal groups, as well as their related police services, continue to be engaged in the development of the Program, which will provide fair compensation to firearm owners and businesses impacted by the May 2020 prohibition.

Everyone deserves to live in a safe and healthy community. The provision of policing services that are professional, effective, and accountable is essential to this—and for First Nation communities, this also depends on cultural relevance. Public Safety Canada made several key advances on the co-development of First Nations police services legislation over the past year by collaborating with key partners. An engagement process was launched in Spring 2022 comprising 13 professionally facilitated virtual engagement sessions, which led to the publication in September 2022 of a "What We Heard" report. We remain committed to introducing legislation that recognizes First Nations police services as an essential service.

As well, in 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to engage with Inuit and Métis on policing and community safety to better understand their unique priorities and perspectives, which included facilitated engagement sessions and bilateral discussions. Public Safety Canada continues to explore opportunities to continue to engage Inuit and Métis partners and organizations in order to identify and advance work on policing and community safety priorities.

Communities also deserve collective approaches to our safety that consider evidence-based solutions, and protect our rights and freedoms. In 2022–23, the Department advanced Record Suspension Program reforms, to increase accessibility to pardons and reduce barriers to reintegration, and established contribution agreements with 18 National Voluntary Organizations to provide $18 million in funding over four years. Combined, these two major efforts will help people navigate the record suspension application process. Public Safety Canada also continued to take continued action to combat serious crime, including child sexual exploitation and money laundering, by advancing work under the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking, and the creation of the Financial Crime Agency of Canada.

We encourage all Canadians to read this report for more details on these and other results from the Department in 2022–23, and to learn about how Public Safety Canada is continually striving to keep Canadians safe.

The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, P.C., K.C., M.P.
Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs

The Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, P.C., O.M.M., M.S.M., C.D., M.P.
President of the King's Privy Council for Canada, Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada

Results at a glance

Core responsibilities and key activities

• Conducted an online consultation for the public and private sectors, including critical infrastructure organizations and industry associations to support the renewal of the National Strategy for Critical Infrastructure and Canada's overall approach to critical infrastructure security and resilience.
• Completed the Enhanced Passenger Protect Program Project, therefore bringing the screening of passengers against the Secure Air Travel Act list under government control, ensuring consistent and unbiased screening of 100,786,263 passengers as of March 2023.
• Supported the introduction of Bill C-26, An Act Respecting Cyber Security, which is intended to lay the foundation for securing Canada's critical infrastructure, and strengthen baseline cyber security protections of the services and systems upon which Canadians rely and that are vital to national security and public safety.
• Established the Research Security Centre, which serves as a centralized resource to provide guidance and advice to the research community and academic institutions to enhance Canada's ability to protect its research and intellectual property.
• Launched public, online and targeted stakeholder consultations to guide the creation of a Foreign Influence Transparency Registry.
• Led and participated in multi-stakeholder meetings to advance National Security interests.

• Engaged with 49 Indigenous communities, supported 15 communities to complete a Community Safety Plan, and entered into 11 Contribution Agreements to support implementation of components of their Safety Plans.
• Sponsored and hosted a gathering of Indigenous communities with Community Safety Plans, focusing on mental wellness in community safety planning grounded in Indigenous culture and approaches.
• Invested in 200 community-based crime prevention projects across Canada as part of the National Crime Prevention Strategy.
• Conducted engagement with key stakeholders and provinces and territories to identify gaps and considerations related to the implementation of an automated sequestering of criminal records (ASCR) system. Established contribution agreements with 18 National Voluntary Organizations to provide funding that will help people navigate the record suspension application process.
• Supported the Canadian Centre for Child Protection for the operation of Cybertip.ca, a national tip line where Canadians can report cases of online child sexual exploitation, and to seek help with concerns about shared intimate images, online luring, and other areas involving child victimization on the internet.
• Supported Project Arachnid, an innovative, victim-centric set of tools to combat the growing proliferation of child sexual abuse material on the internet.
• Engaged with other government departments and international partners, such as the Five Eyes, G7, and digital industry stakeholders, to better address online child sexual exploitation and further protect children and youth.
• Implemented measures under the whole-of-government National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking (2019-2024), including the national public awareness campaign and the development of guidelines for front-line community workers to support victims and survivors of both sexual exploitation and forced labour. Supported the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking to deliver the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline.
• Supported the tabling of Bill C-20, an Act establishing the Public Complaints and Review Commission, in Parliament. Bill C-20 will create increased accountability and transparency for the RCMP and the CBSA and responds to a longstanding need to establish an external review body for the CBSA.
• Supported the development of the Government of Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy, which will guide Public Safety Canada's approach to the region, improving the security of Canadians through establishing important regional partnerships.
• Supported the introduction of Bill C-21, An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms), which would strengthen Canada's firearms legislation through targeted firearms control measures.
• Implemented the outstanding items under Bill C-71, An Act to amend certain Acts and Regulations in relation to firearms, by bringing into force regulations for mandatory licence verification and business record keeping requirements.
• Implemented a national handgun freeze which, with limited exemptions, prevents most individuals from acquiring new handguns.
• Advanced the development of the Firearms Buyback Program, to compensate businesses and individuals impacted by the May 2020 prohibition of assault-style firearms.
• Engaged with Inuit and Métis partners on policing and community safety matters to identify their unique policing and community safety needs, in order to support improved policing and community safety through best practices and approaches.
• Published a "What We Heard" report summarizing feedback received as part of engagement with First Nations. This feedback provided a broad range of considerations to inform the co-development of federal legislation aimed at recognizing First Nations police services as essential services.

• Released the first Federal-Provincial-Territorial (FPT) Emergency Management Strategy Action Plan (EMSAP), which identifies how FPT governments are implementing the objectives of the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada: Toward a Resilient 2030.
• Released Canada's first National Adaptation Strategy (NAS), establishing a shared vision for climate resilience in Canada, key priorities for collaboration, and aligning collective and individual actions for faster, coordinated, and systemic adaptation.
• Completed, in collaboration with federal partners the first round of National Risk Profile risk and capability assessments, which focused on earthquakes, wildland fires and floods, as well as the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on these hazards.
• Established an interdisciplinary Task Force on Flood Insurance and Relocation to continue the efforts of the Advisory Council on Flooding.
• Published the final report for the review of the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA), which contains recommendations aimed at aligning disaster financial assistance with broader objectives for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation to increase Canada's resilience. Recommendations feed directly into upcoming DFAA Modernization work.
• The Government Operations Centre (GOC) produced a series of risk assessments and analyses to brief senior leadership on floods, wildfires and hurricanes. These enabled departments and agencies to prioritize preparation and allocation of resources in support of provinces and territories.
• The GOC conducted several building block exercises, leading to the National Priority Exercise: Coastal Response 2023. Designed to practice whole-of-Government strategy, coordination and communication in response to a catastrophic earthquake, the exercise also tested the interoperability of Emergency Operations Centres, their management structures and senior level decision-making.
• In 2022–23, the GOC responded to 23 Requests for Federal Assistance. Examples include responses to COVID-19, Hurricane Fiona and the Ukrainian Charter Flight events.

For more information on Public Safety Canada's plans, priorities and results achieved, see the "Results: what we achieved" section of this report.

Results: what we achieved

Public Safety Canada's activities and results are structured under three Core Responsibilities (i.e., National Security, Community Safety, and Emergency Management), as well as Internal Services.

Core responsibility: National Security

Description

Public Safety Canada develops policy, legislation and programs to support Canada's capacity to respond to a range of national security threats directed against Canadians, our critical infrastructure and our cyber systems while advancing national counter-terrorism efforts.

Results: National Security Leadership

Enhancing transparency: National Security Transparency Commitment

The Government of Canada depends on the trust of Canadians to keep them safe, and fostering trust requires transparency. In 2022–23, the National Security Transparency Commitment continued to be implemented across federal institutions with national security responsibilities.

In 2022, the National Security Transparency Advisory Group published a third report which detailed how national security and intelligence institutions can be more transparent in their engagement with racialized communities.

Public Safety Canada also promoted initiatives aimed at the declassification of historical national security records, in collaboration with the national security and intelligence community, the Treasury Board Secretariat, and Library and Archives Canada.

In March 2023, the department published new Foreign Interference (FI) pages to inform Canadians about this national security threat and increase transparency about the Government's efforts to counter it.

Combatting terrorism and violent extremism

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada engaged in extensive discussions and strengthened international partnerships across multiple departments and with key stakeholders to discuss the way forward to address the rise of ideologically motivated violent extremism (IMVE) in Canada. As committed in the Roadmap for a Renewed Canada-U.S. Partnership, the Department pursued its engagement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on joint bilateral initiatives relating to addressing IMVE.

Also, Public Safety Canada worked with the security and intelligence community to ensure that the Government of Canada can respond to the evolving threat of terrorism and violent extremism, including Canadian extremist travellers (CETs). The Department worked closely with the Public Safety Portfolio Agencies prior to CETs returning to Canada.

Additionally, the Department's Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence (Canada Centre) continued to lead the Government of Canada's efforts to counter radicalization to violence in all its forms through policy development and support for research and programming initiatives. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to provide national leadership in several areas: early prevention efforts aimed at the general population or at wider community support (e.g., by supporting the YWCA's "Block Hate: Building resilience against online hate speech" initiative); research projects designed to inform prevention practitioners (e.g., by supporting an ongoing systematic review led by the Canadian Practitioners Network for the Prevention of Radicalization and Extremist Violence and l'Université du Québec à Montréal about the appropriateness and utility of tools used to assess the risk of violent radicalization); and front-line programs aimed at interventions with people who are, or at risk of, radicalizing to violence, to help them re-direct away or disengage from violence (e.g., by supporting the John Howard Society of Ottawa's "Project ReSet", an initiative dedicated to disengaging individuals in the Eastern Ontario region from extremist-based violence).

Passenger Protect Program

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada, in collaboration with the Canada Border Services Agency, Transport Canada and Shared Services Canada, completed the Enhanced Passenger Protect Program (EPPP) project. This effectively brought the screening of passengers against the Secure Air Travel Act List (SATA List) under the responsibility of the federal government, thereby ensuring consistent and unbiased screening of all passengers. As of March 2023, all regulated air carriers were onboarded to the new centralized screening system and 100,786,263 passengers were screened.

Public Safety Canada also continued to process and issue Canadian Travel Numbers (CTN) to improve privacy and fairness for travelers who have the same or similar name as someone on the SATA List. In 2022–23, 1,207 CTNs were issued, of which 95 were issued to adults whose names were false matches to individuals on the SATA List, and 80 were issued to children, of which 4 were false matches to individuals on the SATA List.

CTNs were provided to air carriers over 230,000 times in 2022–23, with 31 cases where CTNs successfully deconflicted potential matches to the list and allowed travellers to proceed without delays. As part of Public Safety Canada's Forward Regulatory Plan 2021-23, the Department brought forward minor amendments to the Secure Air Travel Regulations to bridge certain regulatory gaps and ensure PPP continues to run optimally.

Terrorist Listings under the Criminal Code

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada maintained the analytical capacity to administer, review and provide policy advice and recommendations relating to the listing of terrorist entities under the Criminal Code of Canada. Efforts related to maintaining the list of terrorist entities support the investigation and prosecution of terrorist acts and offences, and assist in the prevention of Canada's financial systems from being exploited by terrorist entities. In addition, the Department led the development of legislation (Bill C-41, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and to make consequential amendments to other Acts) that would create an exemption to the terrorism financing offence in the Criminal Code to allow Canadian organizations delivering assistance in geographic areas controlled by a terrorist group to do so without risk of contravening the law. In this regard, Public Safety Canada helped to support the delivery of humanitarian and other life-saving assistance in Afghanistan, in addition to supporting the safe passage of refugees.

Countering hostile activity by state actors

Foreign Interference (FI) threatens Canada's national security, prosperity and sovereignty, and these threats are expected to increase in scope for the foreseeable future. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada worked with federal partners to counter FI threats, including by leading horizontal policy development efforts to provide advice and recommendations aimed at combatting FI and reducing Canada's appeal as a target for such actors.

For example, in March 2023, the Minister of Public Safety launched public consultations with Canadians, academics, businesses, community organizations and others to guide the creation and design of a Foreign Influence Transparency Registry (FITR).

Economic-Based Threats to National Security

In 2022–23, as part a comprehensive approach to addressing economic-based threats to national security, Public Safety Canada supported the development of amendments to the Investment Canada Act (Bill C-34), aimed at modernizing Canada's foreign investment regime and better mitigating economic security threats arising from foreign investment. In addition, the Department conducted domestic stakeholder engagement through the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Economic-based National Security Community of Practice to raise awareness and share information pertaining to economic security issues. International engagements with like-minded countries and allies were also conducted bilaterally and through multilateral channels to share information and coordinate approaches where possible.

Also in 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to manage the National Security Review process in collaboration with 18 designated investigative bodies. All notified transactions are subject to scrutiny and due diligence to ensure they do not introduce threats to Canada's national security, although only a subset met the legal threshold to reach the final stage of review.

Countering financial crimes

The Financial Crime Coordination Centre (FC3) successfully hosted the second annual Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Spin Cycle/Conference in 2023, which saw a record 1,150 hybrid attendees, representing over 100 Canadian public-sector organizations. This event examined key themes such as asset recovery, the implications of the Commission of Inquiry into Money Laundering in British Columbia, best practices for regulatory and law enforcement information sharing, and Canada's upcoming Parliamentary Review of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA). The conference provided attendees with an increased knowledge of tools, tradecraft and resources available.

The FC3 team launched the Knowledge Hub Portal in May 2022, which was created to establish an online resource for AML and Anti-terrorist financing (ATF) professionals across the country. With over 800 users, the Portal addresses gaps in the AML/ATF space by providing users with access to resources such as an online library, a training inventory, news links and an events page. FC3 expanded the resources available in the Knowledge Hub Portal, which included adding sources to the online library, as well as advertising new events and training sessions. Ten Spin Cycle 2023 sessions were recorded and converted into training videos available on FC3's Knowledge Hub Portal to increase accessibility.

Additionally, in Budget 2023, the federal government took action to address gaps in Canada's AML/ATF Regime, and strengthen cooperation between orders of government. Bill C-47, An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 28, 2023 introduces new legislative amendments to the Criminal Code and the PCMLTFA to improve financial intelligence information sharing between law enforcement, Canada Revenue Agency, and Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada. Bill C-47 received Royal Assent on June 22, 2023. The FC3 within Public Safety Canada has provided support towards the development of additional measures to combat money laundering as announced in Budget 2023.

Results: Strengthening cyber security and critical infrastructure resilience

National Cyber Security Strategy

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada began crafting a new National Cyber Security Strategy, through coordination and regular engagement with the federal cyber security community. This included using an online public consultation process to gather input from Canadians and Canadian businesses on their preferred focus for the new Strategy. In addition to the public consultation, targeted engagement sessions were held with industry, provinces and territories to gain insight into cyber security challenges and opportunities. The data collected through the public consultation and engagement sessions will help inform the new National Cyber Security Strategy, which will be presented in due course.

Cyber incident response

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada led interdepartmental work to develop the Federal Cyber Incident Response Plan (FCIRP), which establishes a formal coordination and information sharing framework for cyber security events that affect non-Government of Canada information systems, and complements the pre-existing Government of Canada Cyber Security Event Management Plan (GC CSEMP) and Federal Emergency Response Plan (FERP).

In 2022-2023, the plan was activated to respond to several cyber incidents affecting non-Government of Canada cyber systems. The FCIRP helps maintain situational awareness, enables regular communication at multiple levels between the federal government and affected entities, facilitates informed decision-making regarding the coordination of assistance and support, and ensures accurate and clear communication with Canadians.

An Act Respecting Cyber Security (Bill C-26)

In Spring 2022, the Government of Canada announced that it intends to prohibit Canadian telecommunications service providers from deploying Huawei and ZTE products and services in their 5G networks and intends to consult on the issuance of Orders taken under this legislation including with regard to prohibitions on the use of equipment and services.

Following this announcement, the Government of Canada tabled Bill C-26, An Act Respecting Cyber Security, amending the Telecommunications Act and making consequential amendments to other Acts. The proposed legislation, if it receives Royal Assent, will amend the Telecommunications Act to add security as a policy objective, bringing telecommunications in line with other critical infrastructure sectors. It is envisioned to protect Canadians and bolster cyber security across the federally regulated financial, telecommunications, energy, and transportation sectors. Included in the Bill are proposed amendments to the Telecommunications Act (TA) and the enactment of the Critical Cyber Systems Protection Act (CCSPA). Amendments to the TA would establish new authorities that enable the Government of Canada to take action to promote the security of the Canadian telecommunications system. The CCSPA would establish a regulatory framework to strengthen baseline cyber security for services and systems that are vital to national security and public safety.

Cyber Security Data Strategy

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to work on the development of a cyber security data strategy. Work is underway within the Department, and in collaboration with Statistics Canada, to increase Gender-Based Analysis (GBA) Plus data collection in future iterations of cyber security surveys, including the Canadian Survey of Cyber Security and Cybercrime, in order to better identify gaps and priorities related to national cyber security data.

Canadian Survey of Cyber Security and Cybercrime

The Canadian Survey of Cyber Security and Cybercrime, a joint venture between Public Safety Canada, Statistics Canada, and the cyber security community, is a biennial survey to measure the impact of cybercrime on Canadian businesses. The survey gathers information about: the measures organizations have implemented for cyber security, including employee training; the types of cyber security incidents that impact organizations; and the costs associated with preventing and recovering from cyber security incidents. The 2021 results were released by Statistics Canada in October 2022. In early 2023, Public Safety Canada started the review process for the 2023 iteration of the survey in close collaboration with Statistics Canada and the federal cyber security community. The Department led interdepartmental consultations to provide partner departments and agencies the opportunity to suggest modifications to the questionnaire. The review process will be completed in 2023-24.

Solidifying cyber and critical infrastructure partnerships

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to build its partnerships with the provinces and territories, the private sector, critical infrastructure (CI) owners and operators, academic stakeholders, and international partners to advance CI priorities, as identified in the National Strategy for CI. The Department engaged with CI partners through established governance mechanisms (such as the National Cross Sector Forum on Critical Infrastructure), outreach and information sharing tools (such as Canada's Critical Infrastructure Gateway), and the CI programs described below, to foster coordination and collaboration to strengthen the security and resilience of Canadian CI.

Enhancing Canada's critical infrastructure resilience

In 2022–23, to support the renewal of the National Strategy for Critical Infrastructure and Canada's overall approach to critical infrastructure security and resilience, the Department continued to engage with the broader critical infrastructure (CI) community and met with various stakeholders, both individually and through committees, networks, and other fora. The Department also led an online consultation ("Let's Talk Critical Infrastructure") with private and public sector CI organizations and industry associations in Spring 2022, culminating in a What We Heard report, which was published in October 2022. This report highlighted the call from CI stakeholders for better information sharing and collaboration on risk identification and analysis, as well as leadership from the federal government on CI protection. The feedback collected during these consultations are helping guide the development of options for a renewed approach to CI security and resilience.

Delivery of critical infrastructure programs

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada provided critical infrastructure (CI) owners and operators with concrete tools and actionable information to strengthen their resilience. The Department delivered a suite of awareness-raising, exercise, and assessment programs, including the Industrial Control Systems (ICS) Security Program; Insider Risk Program for CI; Regional Resilience Assessment Program; CI Cyber Assessment Program; and CI Exercise Program. The majority of participants reported that these programs have increased their levels of awareness of the diverse and evolving risks to CI, and that they are better prepared to mitigate and respond to incidents targeting their organizations.

Ransomware

In 2022-2023, Public Safety Canada continued to increase national cyber resilience by enhancing incident reporting, deterring criminality, and mitigating ransomware. The Department advanced cooperation with federal government partners to combat ransomware through intergovernmental groups such as the Public Safety Canada-led Ransomware Working Group (RWG). To that end, the RWG identified policy and operational solutions such strengthening public-private partnerships and developing common messaging to highlight the importance of incident reporting.

Internationally, the Department worked closely with its allies through fora such as the International Counter Ransomware Initiative to help build a safe and secure environment for all Canadians while strengthening collective resilience. Such initiatives have helped identify policy and operational measures such as enhancing public-private sector information sharing and providing coordinated responses to combat ransomware.

Research Security Centre

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada launched the Research Security Centre to provide advice and guidance to researchers and academic institutions on the unwanted transfer of strategic know-how, intellectual property and technology. The Centre supports national security reviews on key federal research funding programs and a newly established Research Security Advisors Network is deployed across Canada to provide assistance and advice to universities and research institutions. The Centre continues to deliver workshops under the Safeguarding Science initiative with a view to strengthen security culture at research institutions as well as provide tailored advice risks and mitigations in sensitive and strategic research areas.

The Centre also contributed to the implementation of the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships, integrating national security risk assessments into the evaluation and funding of research partnerships. The pilot phase of this project included application of the Guidelines to Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada's Alliance Grants program where private sector partners are involved.

Results: Strengthening International partnerships

Recognizing the global nature of security challenges and solutions, Public Safety Canada continued to advance key priorities through bilateral and multilateral co-operation with international partners such as the United States (U.S.) and other Five Eyes countries (which include the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand), and through multilateral fora including the North American Leaders' Summit, G7 and the United Nations (UN). Notable examples include:

• Canada assuming the role of Chair for the Critical Five group under the Five Eyes community in January 2023, this year's meetings focused in the areas of policy levers and methodologies. Public Safety Canada also provided support from a CI lens to the NATO Resilience Committee, and met with other countries bilaterally to build relationships and share information to better understand the complex threat landscape facing CI, and ways to enhance our collective security and resilience;
• Regularly engaging with Canada's security partners in sharing information and approaches on the complex challenges resulting from Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, including through the G7 Interior and Security Ministers' meeting where participating Ministers issued a joint statement expressing solidarity with Ukraine;
• Participating in security discussions at the 10th North American Leaders' Summit, where the Department committed to a series of trilateral security deliverables towards a common North American vision to combat child exploitation, human trafficking, and illegal drug threats like fentanyl;
• Ministerial participation in the annual meeting of the Five Country Ministerial in September 2022, hosted by the U.S., where participants agreed to work more closely together to counter a range of national security issues, including: cybersecurity, research security, and engaging the technology industry; and,
• The Department contributed to the development of Canada's whole-of-government Indo-Pacific Strategy. The Indo-Pacific Strategy will help Canada address problematic behaviour by states in the region such as disinformation, espionage, malicious cyber activity and intimidation of communities.

Public Safety Canada also brought together various government departments and allies, such as the U.S., to advance assistance for Haiti. The Department played a key role in Canada's integrated response to this ongoing situation, particularly through co-management of the Canadian Police Arrangement.

Similarly, Public Safety Canada continued to highlight and advance the Department's security mandate through engagement with the UN. For example, in May 2022, Public Safety Canada appeared before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to underscore Canada's efforts to prevent violence against children in Canada, and the trafficking of children, among other issues.

Results: Gender-based analysis Plus (GBA Plus)

Public Safety Canada continued to use GBA Plus to ensure inclusive outcomes for Canadians. Specific examples of these efforts undertaken under the National Security core responsibility include:

• The public consultation on the new National Cyber Security Strategy was designed to reach all Canadians across regions, socioeconomic backgrounds, gender, race, ability and age, and GBA Plus demographic information was collected from respondents. To continue to further build capacity to apply GBA Plus and a Diversity and Inclusion lens, Public Safety Canada co-chaired a GBA Plus working group for the federal cyber security community to facilitate ongoing sharing of best practices. These engagements continue.
• Public Safety Canada started work, in collaboration with Statistics Canada, to increase GBA Plus data collection in future iterations of cyber security surveys, including the Canadian Survey of Cyber Security and Cybercrime.
• As part of the online consultation to support the process to renew Canada's National Strategy for Critical Infrastructure and overall approach to CI security and resilience, GBA Plus information was voluntarily collected through the process of registering to participate in the "Let's Talk Critical Infrastructure" online consultation. This information was utilized to gain a better understanding of the diversity within the CI community, which will be able to assist with future CI renewal work.
• In consultation with the National Security Transparency Advisory Group (NS-TAG), the Government of Canada committed to consulting Canadians on national security policies in a transparent and accessible way. The NS-TAG is made up of representatives from across civil society, representing a diversity of Canadians including from racialized and marginalized communities. The NS-TAG has actively engaged Canadian and international subject matter experts on issues impacting Canadians from a national security transparency lens to provide advice to the Government of Canada.

Results: United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals

Promoting transparency in institutions and combating global terrorism and money laundering is a key facet of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In 2022–23, under the Core Responsibility of National Security, Public Safety Canada contributed to supporting SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) and SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals) through the following targets:

• SDGs 16.6, 16.7, 16.10, 17.14, 17.16, and 17.17: The advancement of the National Security Transparency Commitment (NSTC) contributed to increased accountability of departments and agencies within the national security community by preparing the third report which detailed how national security and intelligence institutions can be more transparent in their engagement with racialized communities.
• SDG 16.a: The analytical capacity to administer, review and provide policy advice and recommendations relating to the listing of terrorist entities under the Criminal Code of Canada was maintained.
• SDGs 16.a, 16.4, 16.5 and 16.6: In 2022–23, the Financial Crime Coordination Centre (FC3) established a project team of policy and operational experts to support the Minister of Public Safety in bringing forward options to establish the Canada Financial Crimes Agency (CFCA), which is intended to be the lead enforcement agency in the financial crime space. In particular, its objectives include increasing money laundering charges, prosecutions and convictions, and asset forfeiture results in Canada. The CFCA will contribute to reducing illicit financial flows and develop effective institutions for combatting financial crimes. FC3 continues to work closely with implicated federal, provincial, territorial and other stakeholders to advance this work.

Results: Innovation

Further to the Experimentation Direction for Deputy Heads from the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), Public Safety Canada developed its own Experimentation Framework in 2020–21, which continued to guide the Department's efforts in testing new approaches to existing problems, measuring their effectiveness, and building on their results in 2022–23.

This fiscal year, the Department continued efforts, in line with TBS guidelines, to advance experimentation and innovation by exploring innovative ideas and solutions across its program areas.

Results: Key risks

Public Safety Canada's mission is to build a safe and resilient Canada. Accordingly, the Department must exercise a high level of awareness, engagement and adaptability to keep Canadians safe, maintain a cohesive and coordinated approach to safety and security, and generate results for Canadians while managing a variety of risks.

Currently, the Corporate Risk Profile (CRP) comprises the following four risks:

• Some outcomes relying on the actions of partners will not be met;
• That Public Safety Canada will be unable to keep pace with and take advantage of technological advances;
• That the Department may not respond effectively to the pace and magnitude of change in the evolving, all-hazards threat environment; and
• That the Department will not attract and retain the employees required to achieve its organizational objectives.

These risks challenge the Department's capacity to ensure that national security threats are understood and reduced. As such, initiatives were developed to address and mitigate the risks. For example:

• For 2022–23, there was a risk that some critical infrastructure (CI) stakeholders and regions may not have maintained awareness of the evolving threat environment nor taken commensurate action to increase their resilience levels. Public Safety Canada leveraged existing partnerships (e.g., with provinces and territories, private sector, CI owners and operators, academia, and international allies) to aid in securing continued participation in ongoing discussions and exercises on infrastructure resilience. Public Safety Canada also worked to increase the number of CI tools and information products that are offered virtually, and publicly available, in order to broaden access to these products. The Department also leveraged virtual tools (e.g. webinars, teleconferences), as well as regional events and meetings, where feasible, to strengthen the outreach of national CI partnership activities and policy dialogue. As a result, participation levels in consultations and programs remained strong, and partner feedback was reflected in the What We Heard report and in the positive survey responses from program participants.

Initiatives such as these help mitigate the risks associated with the achievement of departmental results, and additional control and mitigation strategies are managed through Public Safety Canada's Corporate Risk Profile and other risk related products (e.g., Treasury Board Submission risk sections, etc.).

Results achieved

Results achieved for National Security

The following table shows, for National Security, the results achieved, the performance indicators, the targets and the target dates for 2022–23, and the actual results for the three most recent fiscal years for which actual results are available.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Security Canada's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Budgetary financial resources

The following table shows, for National Security, budgetary spending for 2022–23, as well as actual spending for that year.

The variance between actual and planned spending in 2022–23 is primarily the result of additional grants and contributions funding required to support the Cyber Security Cooperation Program. In addition, the department received renewed funding through the Supplementary Estimates to continue to support the Strategic Coordination Centre on Information Sharing and for the National Security Transparency Commitment as well as additional funding to enhance Canada's research security capacity.

Human resources

The following table shows, in full‑time equivalents (FTEs), the human resources the Department needed to fulfill this core responsibility for 2022–23.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety Canada's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Core responsibility: Community Safety

Description

Public Safety Canada provides national coordination to help Canadian communities and stakeholders respond to crime and build community resilience, promote the safety and security of Canadian communities and institutions, enhance the integrity of Canada's borders, and support the provision of policing services to Indigenous communities.

Results: Crime Prevention

Firearms and gun control

The Government of Canada continued to enhance Canada's firearm control framework, advance implementation of a ban on assault-style firearms, and fight the criminal use of firearms via additional legislative and program measures.

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada supported the development of Bill C-21, An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms), which was introduced in Parliament in May 2022. Bill C-21 would strengthen Canada's firearms legislation through targeted firearms control measures, including red and yellow flag laws and licence revocation measures to protect victims of intimate partner violence and reduce self-harm with firearms, as well as to address ghost guns and combat firearms smuggling and trafficking. It would also codify in statute the national handgun freeze that came into force by way of regulations on October 21, 2022. Bill C-21 was still being debated in Parliament as of the end of the 2022–23 fiscal year.

Further, the Department completed the implementation of the remaining provisions under the 2019 Act to amend certain Acts and Regulations in relation to firearms in May 2022. With these regulations in force, licence verifications became mandatory when purchasing non-restricted firearms and businesses are required to retain sales and inventory records related to non-restricted firearms for a minimum of 20 years.

Public Safety Canada also continued to advance the design and development of the Firearms Buyback Program (FBP) to compensate firearm owners and businesses impacted by the prohibition on assault-style firearms that took effect on May 1, 2020. This Program aims to remove these firearms from Canadian communities. The Department established a dedicated team to design and develop the FBP, and held almost 100 meetings with the private sector, provinces, territories and municipalities, including their related police services, and Indigenous communities, to ensure that regional delivery considerations informed the design of the Program. Public Safety Canada also conducted focus groups and surveyed Canadians via public opinion research and held a public consultation to gather perspectives on the FBP's proposed compensation model.

Combatting gun and gang violence

While 2022–23 was the last year of the initial five years of funding under the Initiative to Take Action Against Gun and Gang Violence (ITAAGGV), the program was renewed and secured additional funding until 2028. Public Safety Canada provided $74,065,297 in funding to provinces and territories in support of law enforcement initiatives, prevention and intervention under the ITAAGGV, via the Gun and Gang Violence Action Fund. Provincial and territorial governments used the funding to support a variety of activities including developing gang violence strategies, and enhancing prosecutorial services, law enforcement, and community level programs and supports.

Public Safety Canada also continued to provide funding to CBSA and RCMP under the enhancing federal law enforcement theme of the ITAAGGV.

In addition, Public Safety Canada launched the first phase of development of a national strategy on gun and gang violence, including gathering data, conducting background research, and developing a stakeholder engagement process which included developing a proposed federal/provincial/territorial working group structure on gun and gang violence. Through the renewal process, an anti-gang program assessment and overall evaluation of the ITAAGGV were completed as support of the program's renewal. The evaluation provided feedback from stakeholders and partners indicating a need for increased consultation and engagement in developing the national strategy. Further consultation and engagement with stakeholders will continue in-person and through a stakeholder engagement survey in 2023-24 to inform the Strategy's development.

Lastly, Public Safety Canada continued to implement contribution agreements with identified municipalities and Indigenous communities under the Building Safer Communities Fund (BCSF). In 2022–23, the Department entered into agreements with 58 BSCF recipients. Little of the funding was redistributed to ultimate recipients (i.e., community organizations) as most of the contribution agreements are developmental, using BSCF funds to design and develop a Gun and Gang Strategy or programming. One example of the use of the funds to support programming includes Halifax Regional Municipality's use of funds to coordinate Mobile Youth Counselling to reduce trauma impact in vulnerable youth following a community crisis event (e.g., gun-related and violent incidents), by increasing access to lower barrier, youth friendly counselling support.

National Crime Prevention Strategy

Public Safety Canada continued to contribute to building stronger and safer communities through the work of the National Crime Prevention Strategy (NCPS). In 2022–23, the Department supported the implementation of 200 crime prevention projects in communities across Canada representing an investment of over $35 million. These projects focused on addressing risk factors among children and youth; preventing involvement in youth gangs, youth violence and cyber-bullying; enhancing the security of communities at-risk of hate-motivated crimes; and fostering crime prevention in Indigenous and northern communities.

In 2022–23, the Department invested $20.7 million in support of 39 existing initiatives under the Crime Prevention Action Fund. The department also chose 40 new projects for funding, including 25 multi-sectoral, community-driven direct intervention projects which will provide support services to priority youth populations, with specific focus on Black and Indigenous youth; eight research projects that will produce knowledge on multi-sectoral community-driven crime prevention initiatives and impacts of the pandemic; and seven partnership mobilization grants that will assist seven Indigenous organizations in developing multi-sectoral partnerships, mobilizing their respective communities and paving the road toward new crime prevention direct-interventions in the future.

The Department also continued to support Indigenous focused, culturally appropriate crime prevention initiatives through the Northern and Indigenous Crime Prevention Fund. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to support the implementation of nine Indigenous-led Strengthening Community Readiness projects, through an investment of $1.3 million. The Kashechewan First Nation Community Readiness for Crime Prevention and Restorative Justice project is one of the recipients. For this project, Kashechewan First Nation is partnering with the community's education authority, police service, political council, and a not-for-profit organization to develop a plan to strengthen the community's capacity to provide services for at-risk youth, such as youth violence prevention, substance abuse treatment, children and family services, and mental health services.

Public Safety Canada also continued supporting 15 local, targeted and tailored youth violence and youth gang prevention initiatives that aim to prevent at-risk youth from joining gangs, provide exit strategies for youth who belong to gangs, and offer support to youth so they do not re-join gangs. This past year, through the Youth Gang Prevention Fund, the Department invested over $9.4 million to initiatives that predominantly work with Indigenous and Black youth, in predominantly rural communities where youth gangs are an existing or emerging threat.

The Department invested $3.4 million and supported 137 recipients of communities at-risk of hate-motivated crimes to make security enhancements to their community gathering spaces, such as installing new or additional lighting, fencing, gates, cameras, and alarms, as well as other eligible expenses. Budget 2023 proposed an additional $49.5 million over five years, starting in 2023–24, to enhance and expand the Communities at Risk: Security Infrastructure Program, allowing it to be more responsive to the evolving security needs of communities.

Aligned with Canada's Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-Based Violence (GBV), the Department continued to fund research, awareness, and intervention activities aimed at addressing and preventing cyberbullying behaviours amongst children and youth. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada published a literature review on Cyberbullying Prevention and Intervention Initiatives: Role of the Family. The Department also funded a Statistics Canada analysis of cyberbullying data titled Online harms faced by youth and young adults: The prevalence and nature of cybervictimization and two infographics, Cyberbullying among youth in Canada and Cybervictimization among young adults in Canada. These research products expand the knowledge-base of effective crime prevention approaches by providing stakeholders with the tools and information on how to prevent and address bullying and cyberbullying among Canadian youth and young adults.

Finally, the Department also continued to implement Canada's first crime prevention social impact bond. At the end of June 2022, the YMCAs of Quebec completed their first full school year of the Alternative Suspension (AS) Social Impact Bond. Third-party evaluation results confirmed that, when compared to a group of youth that did not receive the intervention, 32% more students achieved a positive change in their problematic behaviours after participating in the AS intervention. Based on these strong results, the YMCA received 9.07% return on their investment.

National Strategy on Countering Radicalization to Violence

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to advance the three priorities identified in the National Strategy on Countering Radicalization to Violence: Building, sharing and using knowledge; Addressing radicalization to violence in the online space; and Supporting front-line interventions.

In line with the first priority, the Department worked closely with domestic and international partners to fund and publish progress and results of four systematic evidence reviews, through the Campbell Collaboration, with notable publications on topics including case management interventions, tools that assess risk of violent radicalization, and online hate and traditional media. For example, Public Safety Canada published a protocol on the associations or impacts of engagement with, and exposure to, hateful content in traditional and social media.

As well, via the Canada Centre, the Department organized seven online knowledge-sharing events with key stakeholders. These events included the Work-In-Progress workshop series covering topics such as tools for professionals, systematic reviews, intervention approaches, and gender and youth experiences. Public Safety Canada also co-chairs the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Countering Radicalization to Violence Working Group which met three times in 2022–23.

In line with the second priority, the Canada Centre actively contributed to multi-stakeholder fora, such as the industry-led Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism's Independent Advisory Committee as one of seven participating governments and the Christchurch Call to Eliminate Terrorist and Violent Extremist Content Online. Additionally, Canada committed up to $1.9 million in funding over three years (2022-2025) through the Community Resilience Fund (CRF) to United Kingdom-based non-governmental organization Tech Against Terrorism for Phase 2 of their Terrorist Content Analytics Platform. The Department collaborated closely with Five Eyes and G7 partners on prevention and countering of violent extremist and terrorist use of the internet.

Lastly, in line with the third priority, the Department continues to fund front-line intervention programs, and evidence-based resources through the CRF, with close to $4.9 million in total funding dispensed in 2022–23. The CRF continues to support the development and implementation of both existing and new projects that assist youth and local organizations with research projects and events focused on the prevention of radicalization to violence.

In early 2023, the Minister of Public Safety re-established the National Expert Committee on Countering Radicalization to Violence. The experts drawn from across the country are helping to ensure that the Government of Canada's approach to preventing radicalization to violence is informed by a variety of expertise.

Finally, Public Safety Canada has continued to work to expand its efforts in implementing the recommendations of the 2020 Evaluation of the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence by increasing outreach and stakeholder engagement; improving knowledge production and mobilization; and systematically collecting and reporting on its outputs and outcomes to better learn about and share lessons.

Results: Reforming the criminal justice system

Record Suspension Program reform

Public Safety Canada completed implementation of Phase 1 of the Record Suspension Program reforms in 2022–23, which included legislative and non-legislative components such as a reduction in application fees, the planning of an online application portal, and preparations that were made for the addition of contribution funding for community support services to assist individuals in navigating the record suspension application process.

As part of Phase 2, the Department held consultations with provincial, territorial, and municipal partners and key criminal justice stakeholders on the Automated Sequestering of Criminal Records (ASCR) system. Public Safety Canada established contribution agreements with 18 community organizations across Canada active in the areas of corrections, conditional release and/or community reintegration, to provide $18 million over four years in funding to help people navigate the record suspension application process. Funding these organizations will help marginalized communities access record suspensions and ultimately facilitate their access to meaningful employment, housing, education, volunteer opportunities and other necessities to support a sustained rehabilitation and reintegration into society. This funding will also help ensure individuals who apply for a record suspension have access to accurate information about the process and will reduce potential applicants' reliance on private, for-profit companies that may provide misleading information and charge high fees.

Community Corrections

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada developed the Federal Framework to Reduce Recidivism (the Framework), which was tabled in Parliament on June 22, 2022. Developed in consultation with a diverse array of stakeholders, the Framework outlines five priority themes key to the successful reintegration of offenders: housing, education, employment, health and positive support networks. The Framework is the first step in putting together a plan that identifies crucial factors that impact why people re-offend and how to support safe and successful reintegration into the community. In Fall 2022 and Winter 2023, the Department engaged with partners on the development of the implementation plan for the Framework. A report back to Parliament will occur in 2025.

Results: Modernizing Law Enforcement and Policing

Transformation and modernization of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Public Safety Canada supported the transformation and modernization of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) by collaborating with the RCMP to advance commitments related to the Independent Centre for Harassment Resolution (ICHR) and the RCMP Management Advisory Board (MAB).

Public Safety Canada supported the ICHR by exploring membership renewal strategies and options. The Department also collaborated on a number of initiatives related to MAB renewal, including membership renewal. A permanent MAB Chairperson and co-Chairperson were appointed in 2022–23.

Contract Policing Assessment

Public Safety Canada, in collaboration with the RCMP, formally initiated its assessment of Contract Policing. The Department started the first phase of the assessment in March 2023 engaging with provincial and territorial officials on the topics of governance and accountability, program sustainability and cost, service delivery, and their program vision beyond 2032. Engagement with municipal and Indigenous partners, as well as other stakeholders continues, with a "What We Heard" report expected in Fall 2023.

Policing Transitions

Public Safety Canada continued to work closely with its partners on the Surrey municipal police transition, though the process was delayed with decisions taken by the City and Province. Additionally, the Department began talks with Grande Prairie, Alberta, to support and plan the City's transition to an independent municipal police service.

RCMP Retroactive Increased Salary Costs

Public Safety Canada and the RCMP met with over 100 contract jurisdictions and 180 representatives, including municipal associations, to discuss individual situations, needs and the potential impact of the estimated retroactive cost in their jurisdictions. The Department continued engagement with the federal-provincial-territorial Contract Management Committee and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities on work underway by the federal government to reach a decision on the matter. In Budget 2023, the Government of Canada announced its decision to offer interest-free flexible repayment terms of up to two years, if required, in recognition of the unique circumstance.

Results: Policing in Indigenous communities

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to implement key Budget 2021 investments and commitments to support culturally responsive policing and community safety services in Indigenous communities.

Firstly, the Department continued to deliver and expand on the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program (FNIPP). This included the allocation of funding towards support for existing Community Tripartite Agreements (CTAs), communities transitioning from CTAs to Self-Administered police services (SAs), new communities joining existing SAs and stabilization of various models of existing police services.

Secondly, the Department worked with the Assembly of First Nations and key partners to co-develop a federal legislation that would recognize First Nations policing as an essential service. Federal officials completed the formal engagement process with First Nations in Spring 2022, which consisted of 13 virtual professionally-facilitated engagement sessions, an online engagement platform, and a generic email address to receive written comments/submissions. The report was posted on Public Safety Canada's website and was sent directly to participants. Informed by this engagement, using reports received to date, discussions with policing experts, including the First Nations Chiefs of Police Association and the First Nations Police Governance Council, as well as with Provinces and Territories, the Department developed Objectives and Guiding Principles intended to set the policy framework for the federal First Nations police services legislation. These Objectives and Guiding Principles will be distributed broadly in 2023-24 to continue progress towards legislation. The Department continued to work collaboratively with the Assembly of First Nations, provinces and territories, the First Nations Chiefs of Police Association, the First Nations Police Governance Council, First Nations police services, First Nations and modern treaty, and self-government agreement holders on practical considerations for the legislation.

Thirdly, the Department also continued to work with Inuit and Métis partners. Preliminary discussions with Inuit organizations began in Fall 2022 to discuss policing and community safety priorities, which has informed ongoing bilateral conversations regarding policing and community safety issues and solutions for different Inuit communities. Engagement with Métis organizations, such as the Métis National Council, is conducted regularly through the Canada-Métis Permanent Bilateral Mechanism.

Results: Combatting Serious and Organized Crime

Organized Crime

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada facilitated information sharing and collaboration between federal, provincial and territorial stakeholders by leading bi-annual meetings of the National Coordinating Committee on Organized Crime. These virtual sessions brought together over 50 partners and stakeholders from the law enforcement community to share information and support discussion and collaboration on key issues related to organized crime (e.g., illegal firearms, auto-theft, and child sexual exploitation), and develop strategies for addressing this crime.

The Department also hosted a webinar featuring domestic and international speakers from law enforcement, academia and the public safety policy community to generate discussions on topics such as the decriminalization of drugs and use of geo-spatial technology to target organized crime. Overall, participants noted that the session increased their general knowledge and deepened their understanding of the current and emerging issues in combatting organized crimes, and would inform current or future work.

Public Safety Canada also supported law enforcement efforts to combat organized crime by investing $28.8 million over five years and $5.9 million ongoing into the Biology Casework Analysis Contribution Program (BCACP). For 2022–23, the Province of Quebec received $4.3 million to help support their independent forensic laboratory for the purpose of conducting biology casework analysis, including DNA identification analysis.

The Department also continued to support the First Nations Organized Crime Initiative to address organized crime and cross-border criminality in Kahnawake and Akwesasne through increased Indigenous law enforcement capacity. Funding for the Kahnawake Peacekeepers ($3.8 million over 2021-26), for example, helped increase awareness of the impact of serious and organized crime through targeted community engagement, facilitated seizures of illegal firearms and drugs, and helped advance joint investigations with federal, provincial and other Indigenous law enforcement partners. Public Safety Canada also renewed the agreement with the Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service for $10.4 million from 2023-28.

Internationally, the Department participated in the Law Enforcement Practitioners Sub-Group (LEPSG) meetings to help advance coordinated law enforcement efforts on addressing transnational threats. As part of the G7 Roma-Lyon Group, LEPSG provides a forum to share ideas and good practices for member-led projects on issues like drug trafficking, cryptocurrency and environmental crime. The Department also continued its participation in the Review Mechanism of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime as part of Canada's international law enforcement efforts for enhanced collaboration in combatting organized crime.

Online Child Sexual Exploitation

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to advance various efforts related to the National Strategy for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation on the Internet (National Strategy).

Firstly, the Department invested $900,000 to raise awareness of this crime through the continuation of a National Awareness Campaign, including resources for parents, youth and educators, as well as a digital advertising campaign targeting parents and caregivers. Building on this initiative, the Department also conducted the pilot Online Dangers School Roadshow in eight schools (43 classes) in the Greater Toronto Area in October 2022. After the events, an average of 76% of students felt they had a better understanding what to do and where to get help if they experienced online sexual exploitation.

Secondly, Public Safety Canada provided over $3 million collectively to the Canadian Centre for Child Protection for the operation of Cybertip.ca, and to support Project Arachnid. Over the last five years, Project Arachnid's activities have led to six million images and videos of child sexual exploitation being removed from over 1,000 electronic service providers spanning over 100 countries worldwide. In 2022–23, Cybertip.ca received 22,120 reports from the public and processed 14,961,698 reports related to notices through Project Arachnid.

Thirdly, in 2022–23, Public Safety Canada provided $250,000 to the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health to support Phase 2 of the perpetrator prevention program "Talking for Change", which provides anonymous support for anyone concerned about their attractions to children or who are having difficulty managing associated behaviours.

In 2022–23, the Department also engaged in several notable knowledge-sharing activities, such as hosting a three-part webinar series on multi-sectoral efforts to address this crime, share lessons learned, and identify gaps. Participants included a cross-disciplinary audience of partners and stakeholders, including Canadian law enforcement, child-serving organizations, victim services and other non-governmental organizations, the education sector, and all levels of government. In total, 87% of participants agreed or strongly agreed that they gained a deeper understanding of emerging trends, current issues/gaps and best practices. Furthermore, close to 85% of participants agreed or strongly agreed the information provided during the webinar would help inform their current or future work.

Public Safety Canada also provided $150,000 to Statistics Canada to develop a Juristat Report on online child sexual exploitation, which was released on March 9, 2023. Using data from the Incident-based Uniform Crime Reporting Survey and the Integrated Criminal Court Survey, the report informs the Government of Canada and Canadians about criminal justice outcomes of online child sexual exploitation and abuse incidents that were reported to police between 2014 and 2020, and the pathways of these incidents through the justice system, including court case outcomes.

Finally, the Department also continued to engage with government departments and international partners, such as the Five Eyes, G7, and digital industry stakeholders, to better address online child sexual exploitation and further protect children and youth. For example, with Five Eyes partners, Public Safety Canada collaborated on a regular basis to discuss the ongoing implementation of the Voluntary Principles to Combat Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, which provide a framework to combat online child sexual exploitation, drive collective action, and establish a baseline standard for safety.

National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking

Public Safety Canada continued working with federal, provincial, and territorial partners and other stakeholders to implement measures under the various pillars of the whole-of-government National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking (2019-2024).

Under the empowerment pillar, Public Safety Canada provided close to $2.1 million to support 19 projects in 2022–23 for organizations to provide trauma-informed services to victims and survivors, and enhance awareness among at-risk youth via the Contribution Program to Combat Serious and Organized Crime. These projects are funded over a period of two to four fiscal years (2020-24) totaling a commitment of over $7 million. For example, Victim Services Toronto received the first of two years of support to start delivering "Project Recover", a collaborative endeavour to help survivors of human trafficking resolve fraudulent debt incurred in their name by traffickers.

Under the prevention pillar, the Department continued to lead the "It's not what it seems" awareness campaign, launched in 2020–21, to raise awareness among Canadians of some of the misconceptions surrounding human trafficking and how to safely report suspected cases. The campaign targets the public, with focus on youth, parents, and at-risk populations, such as Indigenous women and newcomers to Canada.

Under the protection pillar, the Department supported the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking's multilingual, 24/7 toll-free Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline that refers victims to local law enforcement, shelters and a range of other supports and services. The Department also advanced the development of guidelines for front-line community workers who support clients who have experienced forced labour or human trafficking. In 2022, two targeted Requests for Proposals were launched for the development of these guidelines, anticipated for public dissemination in 2023–24.

Under the partnerships pillar, Public Safety Canada continued its engagement with its federal, provincial and territorial, and international partners through various fora. For example, the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Trafficking in Persons Working Group convened to share information and to identify priorities for collective action for 2023–24.

The Department also participated in the Trilateral Working Group on Trafficking in Persons with the United States and Mexico, and the G7 and Five Country Ministerial meetings, and engaged international partners and multilateral organizations such as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the Organization for Security Co-operation of Europe in collaboration with Global Affairs Canada. Further, Public Safety Canada hosted its annual stakeholder engagements to share information, and identify emerging trends and opportunities for collaboration. A summary will be posted on the Departmental website.

Finally, Public Safety Canada continued to support the release of police reported and court-related data on human trafficking. On December 6, 2022 Statistics Canada released: "Trafficking in persons in Canada, 2021". This report uses police-reported data under both the Criminal Code and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to examine trends in human trafficking incidents, including prior contact with police among accused persons, the age and sex of victims and accused persons, and court case outcomes.

Results: Reducing illegal drug supply and use

Reducing the harms associated with the illegal drug supply

Building on its domestic and international partnerships with law and border enforcement agencies and partners, in 2022–23 Public Safety Canada continued and expanded its collaborative efforts to address illegal drug production and trafficking to help reduce the harms associated with an increasingly toxic illegal drug supply.

Specifically, the Department is improving safety for Canadian communities by taking steps to address:

• Organized crime involvement in the illegal synthetic drug market by working with domestic and international partners through forums such as the Canada-United States Opioids Action Plan and the North American Drug Dialogue, for which it hosted the sixth in November 2022.
• The global threat of illegal synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, and their precursor chemicals by embarking on new initiatives to strengthen coordination of cross-border and multilateral policy and operational responses, such as the new North American Trilateral Fentanyl Committee with the United States and Mexico.

Additionally, the Department continues to support front-line law enforcement in their interactions with people who use substances through both the Department's Drug Stigma Awareness Training for Law Enforcement and the consideration of law enforcement implications of alternatives to criminal penalties for the possession of small amounts of controlled substances for personal use.

Reducing the Illegal Cannabis Market

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to work with federal, provincial and territorial stakeholders, and the law enforcement community on measures to disrupt and displace the illegal online cannabis market, including by sharing resources for the law enforcement community on promising investigative practices. The Department also continued its engagement to exchange knowledge on ways to address illegal cannabis activities, including online and cannabis grow operations, and on ways to address financial crimes related to illicit cannabis. The Department also worked with stakeholders to monitor trends and patterns in the illegal cannabis markets, and improve upon methods to measure the availability of illicit cannabis.

In addition, the Department continued to support the disruption of illicit online cannabis sales, including through public education and awareness activities such as publishing jointly with Health Canada on authorized legal cannabis retailers, and developing and implementing an animated video and social media campaign to assist cannabis consumers in making informed decisions and increase awareness of the public health and safety risks of purchasing illicit cannabis.

Drug-Impaired Driving

The Drug-Impaired Driving (DID) initiative aims to protect public safety on roadways in Canada by equipping law enforcement with the tools, technology and training necessary to enforce drug-impaired driving legislation, as well as through research, public awareness and the development of evidence-based policies.

With respect to law enforcement training, the DID initiative aims to ensure that at least 33% of all front-line officers have been trained in the use of Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST), and that 1,250 officers are certified Drug Recognition Evaluation Experts (DREs) by the end of the initiative. Both of these targets have been met, with a total of 42% of front-line officers trained in SFST as of 2022–23, and the number of active DREs is now at 1,286.

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada worked with provinces and territories through established funding agreements to advance the law enforcement training objectives and increase the number of approved drug screening devices, with eleven of the thirteen jurisdictions having procured devices in 2022–23. Additionally, the Department worked with provinces and territories to improve the collection and reporting on data relating to trends and patterns in drug-impaired driving, leading to the release of the third annual data report.

Public Safety Canada continued to support the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) to conduct laboratory studies on the impacts of cannabis on driving abilities. CAMH completed the study on the impairing effects of smoked cannabis, the results of which show that overall, higher doses of cannabis have larger significant effects on maximum speed, lane deviation, and reaction time.

In 2022-2023, Public Safety Canada also worked to establish a funding agreement over three years with the University of British Columbia to support the continuation of a major study collecting toxicological data among injured drivers in 15 hospitals across the country.

Results: Strengthening border policy

In 2022–23, in coordination with portfolio agencies and key international partners, Public Safety Canada continued to strengthen the integrity and efficient management of Canada's borders. For example, the Department played a leadership role in the policy development of Bill C-20, An Act establishing the Public Complaints and Review Commission and amending certain Acts and Statutory instruments, which was tabled in May 2022. Bill C-20 will establish the Public Complaints and Review Commission, an independent civilian review body for the RCMP and the CBSA. The Bill also seeks to enhance RCMP and CBSA accountability and transparency by introducing codified timelines, annual reporting to the Minister of Public Safety, and collection of disaggregated race-based data.

The Department also led the expansion of United States (U.S.) preclearance operations at Alaska Marine Highway Ferry Terminal in Prince Rupert, British Columbia. Effective on June 20, 2022, it became the first marine preclearance location in Canada. In addition to enabling travellers to clear United States customs at the point of departure, resulting in a quicker and easier arrival in Alaska, this facility contributed to the restoration of cultural and family ties for the people of Metlakatla First Nation in British Columbia and the Metlakatla Indian Community in Alaska, who rely on the ferry service.

Moreover, the Department and portfolio partners supported Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and U.S. counterparts to expand application of the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) across the entire land border, including internal waterways. The expanded application of the STCA came into effect on March 25, 2023.

Results: Gender-based analysis Plus (GBA Plus)

Public Safety Canada continued to use GBA Plus to ensure inclusive outcomes for Canadians. Specific examples of these efforts undertaken under the Community Safety core responsibility include:

• The National Crime Prevention Strategy applied GBA Plus principles in finalizing its assessment of funding applications submitted in response to the 2021 Crime Prevention Action Fund (CPAF) Call for Applications. The CPAF Application Form collected information about the participant target group for the project. This information was analyzed as part of the proposal review process in order to ensure the priority populations would be reached by projects selected for implementation.
• The Aboriginal Community Safety Planning Initiative (ACSPI) continued to maintain a dataset of GBA Plus outcomes and indicators collected during the Community Safety Planning process (e.g., community safety issues that primarily affect Elders, women, and youth). ACSPI conducted regular analyses to identify persistent and emerging trends identified in the CSPs, including but not limited to substance abuse and interpersonal violence. Data collected continued to be used to inform a consolidated picture of Indigenous programming and support the work on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
• Public Safety Canada has actively sought alternate data sources to identify GBA Plus considerations of online child sexual exploitation, particularly with respect to vulnerable groups and at-risk populations. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada entered into an agreement with Statistics Canada to prioritize and explore alternative sources of information that may provide insight on GBA Plus and online child sexual exploitation.
• In 2022–23, the Department's anti-online child sexual exploitation team entered into a working-level agreement with Public Safety Canada's Research Division to identify and prioritize steps to enhance the National Strategy for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation on the Internet's (the Strategy) understanding of GBA Plus aspects of online child sexual exploitation. The GBA Plus report is expected to be available in Fall 2023, and will also cover 2SLGBTQIA+, Indigenous, and racialized minority groups. Public Safety Canada also began work to refine the Strategy's Performance Measurement Framework to ensure that GBA Plus data can be collected and better demonstrate impacts.
• Canada's National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking is informed by gender and diversity perspectives, as well as an assessment of disproportionate impacts on certain at-risk populations, which helps to identify gaps in existing supports and supports culturally-informed services. The need to enhance governmental efforts concerning the human trafficking of Indigenous women and girls continues to be a key concern for the Department. In 2022-2023, Public Safety Canada continued to engage in discussions, including within governance tables, on appropriate approaches and solutions to address the sex trafficking-related Calls for Justice in The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
• Data collected by the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline provides insight into the characteristics of individuals who are impacted directly by human trafficking, including victims and survivors. Using a trauma-informed, person-centred approach, the Hotline collects non-identifying, disaggregated data such as gender, age, geographic location, and trafficking typology. The Human Trafficking Task Force sub-working group on data also began work to identify sources and respond to challenges to enhance data collection to enable more robust GBA Plus analysis.
• No evaluation was completed in 2022–23 as the Automated Sequestering of Criminal Records (ASCR) system was not yet in place and will not be for a number of years. Engagement with all levels of government and non-profit groups representing women, marginalized, and racialized communities on a potential ASCR system took place in 2022 to discuss the implications of adoption of such a system in Canada. Public Safety Canada will lead a program evaluation on the Record Suspension Program (RSP), including outcomes for marginalized groups related to the ASCR, once the system is in place. The Parole Board of Canada continues to report on the RSP through its annual Performance Monitoring Report, Departmental Plan and Departmental Results Report, and through its RSP Report to Parliament.

Results: United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals

Under the Core Responsibility of Community Safety, Public Safety Canada advanced SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) through the following targets:

• SDGs 16.a, 16.1: Public Safety Canada continued to advance SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) by preventing crime and building safer communities through the work of the National Crime Prevention Strategy (NCPS). In 2022–23, the NCPS supported the implementation of 200 community-based crime prevention initiatives to address the root causes and factors that put individuals at risk of offending. Successful and well-designed interventions have a positive influence on behaviours and reduce not only crime and victimization but also the social and economic costs that result from criminal activities.
• SDGs 8.5, 16.a: Public Safety Canada was not able to measure the impact of the Federal Framework to Reduce Recidivism's impact on reoffending rates of people released from federal correctional institutions, which will contribute to SDG 16. The Framework's implementation plan was under development during 2022–23. The Department will be able to measure the impact once that plan is in place and sufficient time and action have taken place to collect meaningful measures of recidivism. Reporting of the contribution towards SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) is the responsibility of the Correctional Service of Canada.
• SDGs 16.1, 16.2: Public Safety Canada's efforts to counter online child sexual exploitation are contributing to the advancement of SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). Through the National Strategy for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation on the Internet, the Department is providing funding for initiatives that protect children from online sexual exploitation (OSE) including through Cybertip.ca and Project Arachnid; and raising awareness about identifying and preventing OSE, including through a National Awareness Campaign, the perpetrator prevention program "Talking for Change" and funding to provincial and municipal Internet Child Exploitation units.
• SDGs 8.7, 16.1, 16.2: Public Safety Canada contributed to the advancement of SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) through its leadership on countering human trafficking for both sex and labour. Through the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking, the Department led ongoing initiatives focused on prevention, protection, prosecution, partnerships, and survivor empowerment; and invested in community-based projects, awareness raising initiatives, etc.
• SDGs 16.4,16.5, 16.6: Public Safety Canada's efforts to combat organized and economic crimes contribute to advancing SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada made efforts to increase understanding of emerging trends and strengthen information sharing across Canada. The Department also continued to encourage collaboration domestically and internationally and participated in discussions with partners and stakeholders through a range of national and international fora.
• SDG 16.3: The Record Suspension Program contributes to the advancement of SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). The Corrections and Criminal Justice Division continued to advance Record Suspension Program reforms by establishing contribution agreements with National Voluntary Organizations to help people navigate the record suspension application process. As well, engagement was undertaken with key criminal justice stakeholders and provinces and territories regarding the potential implementation of an automated sequestering of criminal records system in Canada.

Results: Innovation

Further to the Experimentation Direction for Deputy Heads from the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), Public Safety Canada developed its own Experimentation Framework in 2020–21, which continued to guide the Department's efforts in testing new approaches to existing problems, measuring their effectiveness, and building on their results in 2022–23.

This fiscal year, the Department continued efforts, in line with TBS guidelines, to advance experimentation and innovation by exploring innovative ideas and solutions across its program areas.

Results: Key risks

Public Safety Canada's mission is to build a safe and resilient Canada. The Department must exercise a high level of awareness, engagement and adaptability to keep Canadians safe, maintain a cohesive and coordinated approach to safety and security, and generate results for Canadians while managing a variety of risks.

At the corporate level, there are risks that may affect the Department's capacity to deliver on its mandate. Some of the key risks are that:

• Some program outcomes relying on the actions of partners will not be met;
• There is a risk that Public Safety Canada will be unable to keep pace with and take advantage of technological advances;
• The Department may not respond effectively to the pace and magnitude of change in the evolving, all-hazards threat environment; and
• the Department will not attract and retain the employees required to achieve its organizational objectives.

These risks challenge the ability to deliver on the Department's capacity to ensure that community safety practices are strengthened, Canadian communities are safe and crime is prevented and addressed in populations / communities most at-risk. As such, initiatives were developed to address and mitigate the risks. For example:

• In r response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Aboriginal Community Safety Planning Initiative (ACSPI) developed a suite of virtual engagement and participation tools and processes which were used to support communities in their development of proposals when in-person engagement and participation could not be conducted. Program officers adapted engagement and workshop content to be delivered virtually and continue to communicate with communities by telephone where video conferencing is not feasible. The ACSPI responded effectively to the pace and magnitude of change in light of COVID-19 pandemic, mitigating any risk to the delivery of the program.
• Public Safety Canada's newly created Indigenous Affairs Branch continued to engage with Inuit and Métis to identify their community safety and policing priorities with a view to ensuring that their unique needs and priorities were considered in future program developments designed to help keep communities safe and reduce crime. Federal-Provincial-Territorial meetings and engagements were held with provincial and territorial partners in the implementation of the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program to try to align governance so that timelines and needs of communities were met.

Initiatives such as these help mitigate the risks associated with the achievement of our departmental results, and additional control and mitigation strategies are managed through Public Safety Canada's Corporate Risk Profile.

Results achieved

Results achieved for Community Safety

The following table shows, for Community Safety, the results achieved, the performance indicators, the targets and the target dates for 2022–23, and the actual results for the three most recent fiscal years for which actual results are available.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Budgetary financial resources

The following table shows, for Community Safety, budgetary spending for 2022–23, as well as actual spending for that year.

The variance between actual and planned spending in 2022–23 is primarily the result of new funding received through the Supplementary Estimates to support the National Capital Extraordinary Policing Costs program, for the First Nations and Inuit Policing Facilities program, the Memorial Grant Program for First Responders and to support the design and development of a buyback program for prohibited assault-style firearms. The new funding is offset by a transfer to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for the First Nations Community Policing Service as well as by funding that was not spent but is expected to be transferred to future years under the Building Safer Communities Fund, the First Nations and Inuit Policing program and the First Nations and Inuit Policing Facilities program.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety Canada's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Human resources

The following table shows, in full‑time equivalents (FTEs), the human resources the Department needed to fulfill this core responsibility for 2022–23.

The variance between actual and planned Full-Time Equivalents in 2022–23 is primarily the result of new salary funding received through the Supplementary Estimates to support the design and development of a buyback program for prohibited assault-style firearms.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Core responsibility: Emergency Management

Description

Public Safety Canada works to strengthen national emergency management to help prevent, mitigate, prepare for, respond to and recover from all-hazards events. Public Safety provides resources and expertise to Canadian communities in support of emergency preparedness, disaster mitigation and recovery.

Results: Emergency Prevention/Mitigation

Emergency Management Strategy and Action Plan

As the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic, devastating wildfires, flooding and hurricane seasons, and telecommunications outage in 2022–23 demonstrated, there is an increased need for all emergency management partners to bolster disaster resilience, emergency preparedness and response capabilities in Canada. Federal, Provincial, and Territorial (FPT) Ministers responsible for emergency management met in-person in December 2022 to discuss progress made on shared emergency management priorities via the existing 2021-22 FPT Emergency Management Strategy Interim Action Plan, and a proposal for the next Action Plan that would be developed.

Some of the milestones achieved through the plan included:

• The completion of risk and capability assessments for wildland fire, earthquake, and flood through the federally-led National Risk Profile (NRP) throughout 2022–23 (released in May 2023);
• Publication of the Flood Insurance and Relocation Task Force's final report in August 2022;
• Accelerated FPT discussions to explore alternative governance and funding models to strengthen and sustain the National Public Alerting System (NPAS);
• Publication of the Expert Advisory Panel's final report on the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) in November 2022; and,
• FPT Ministers met with representatives from three National Indigenous Organizations: Assembly of First Nations, Métis National Council, and the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami to discuss emergency management priorities, and the need for increased collaboration going forward.

Whole-of-society disaster prevention and mitigation

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada expanded efforts to improve public awareness and preparedness for natural hazards through existing mechanisms such as the Emergency Preparedness (EP) Week. During EP Week 2022, the Department led a multi-stakeholder planning group, comprised of federal, provincial/territorial, industry, and non-governmental partners in order to engage Canadians. There was an increase in the volume of communications activities produced by Public Safety Canada compared to previous years, which included new digital tactics such as the social media tag challenge and creative video content involving the Minister of Emergency Preparedness. Radio spots were syndicated and outputted 70 times across various radio stations and websites in order to reach populations that do not use social media. These efforts resulted in more Canadians hearing the important emergency preparedness information through different means.

Federal Emergency Management Modernization Project

The Federal Emergency Management Modernization Project (FEMMP) was established in 2017 to improve the alignment and coherence of emergency management practices across the federal government in support of provincial and territorial partners. Key 2022–23 milestones included:

• Advancing the renewal of the Federal Emergency Response Plan (FERP) by focusing on defining and providing options for addressing the gaps in the federal response doctrine. This approach addresses the practical aspects of what federal institutions need to be prepared to do, including reinforcing more consistent collaboration and engagement between institutions so that the FERP can be applied.
• Re-establishing engagement with key federal partners toward creating a federal Functional Community for Emergency Management which will provide structure and oversight of federal training and workforce development to ensure and sustain a prepared, capable workforce at all levels of federal organizations. Priorities for action included defining a core, common curriculum on emergency management and opportunities to work with the Canada School of Public Service to provide a common platform for courses.
• Implementing a multi-departmental process to define a Federal Emergency Management Information Management Strategy which will establish the parameters for a common, data-driven approach to managing emergency response functions and information.
• Working with Public Services and Procurement Canada and Shared Services Canada to fully implement the fit-up of the new facility for the Government Operations Centre (GOC). The Construction Phase commenced in February 2022. Public Services and Procurement and Shared Services Canada continue to work with the Department to support the GOC move to the new facility, projected for July 2024.

National Adaptation Strategy on Climate Change

In December 2020, as part of its strengthened climate plan, A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy, the Government of Canada committed to developing Canada's first ever National Adaptation Strategy (NAS), with provincial, territorial and municipal governments, Indigenous Peoples, and other key partners. The NAS establishes a shared vision for climate resilience in Canada, key priorities for collaboration, and aligns collective and individual actions for faster, coordinated, and systemic adaptation. The first iteration was released on November 24, 2022, and a final consultation period was undertaken to review the goals, targets and objectives in the NAS with key partners to inform a final version published in June 2023.

The Government of Canada Adaptation Action Plan (GOCAAP) was released alongside the NAS and serves as the federal plan to implement the NAS through organizing federal efforts on adaptation and providing an inventory of federal adaptation actions.

Engagement of the Disaster Resilience and Security Advisory Table, co-chaired by Public Safety Canada and the Insurance Bureau of Canada and consisting of diverse stakeholders, demonstrated the desire for significant, immediate and tangible actions in the area of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. As such, the Advisory Table identified actions to strengthen Canada's preparedness and readiness to disaster events with a focus on floods, heat events, wildfires and recovery, and the NAS will help ensure that all parties have clarity on roles and responsibilities in disaster risk management, and support adaptation actions that are cohesive, targeted, and strategic.

National Action Plan on Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to advance Canada's first-ever National Action Plan on Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries (PTSI) for public safety personnel. This included financial support for the National Research Consortium on PTSI among public safety personnel. The Consortium continued to undertake research and develop research summaries to better inform both public safety leadership and the front line, and produce webinars on a variety of mental health subjects.

The Department also continued to support a $10 million pilot project focused on the delivery of Internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy in Ontario, Saskatchewan, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia which has supported over 1000 public safety personnel. Public Safety Canada also provided $1 million to the Runnymede Healthcare Centre to examine the feasibility of developing a facility dedicated to comprehensive mental health programs and services for public safety personnel.

In order to assess results and effectiveness, as well as to identify potential gaps, the Department undertook an evaluation of the PTSI program in 2022–23. The evaluation results showed a growing need for public safety personnel-specific mental health supports, and indicated that the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment was the only organization in Canada that was positioned to help provide these supports.

Finally, the Department also supported the recognition of emergency management practitioners across the country through the Emergency Management Exemplary Service Award nomination and selection process in 2022.

Results: Emergency Preparedness

Emergency Management Public Awareness Contribution Program

To improve understanding of disaster risks in various sectors of society, Public Safety Canada's Emergency Management Public Awareness Contribution Program (EMPACP) was established to increase the level of preparedness and readiness of vulnerable groups to natural hazards.

In 2020-21, the EMPACP provided funding to the Canadian Red Cross (CRC) for its 5-year project, Driving Risk Awareness to Action and Building Resiliency for Vulnerable Canadians in High-Risk Areas. In 2022–23, the CRC undertook a number of initiatives to raise awareness of the risks faced by vulnerable populations in Canada and to promote actions that improve individual and community resiliency, including:

• Development and implementation of a monitoring and evaluation process in order to tailor messaging to seniors, new Canadians, and Indigenous populations at higher risk of floods, wildfires, and earthquakes.
• Launch of the Earthquakes and Newcomers Awareness to Action campaign, where over 1.1 million ads alerted residents that they lived in a high-risk earthquake area. Furthermore, six videos were developed in collaboration with the BC Earthquake Alliance addressing common questions around earthquake preparedness.
• Development of an Indigenous preparedness campaign in collaboration with several Indigenous communities. The campaign will be fully launched in 2023–24, and will include community outreach packages with tailored messaging.
• Development of a Social Vulnerability Index, with maps overlaying flood hazard exposure/propensity and socioeconomic vulnerability at the census track level for several selected communities. A report will be disseminated in 2023-24.

EMPACP strives to differentiate between communities, ensuring that realistic and pragmatic preventative measures, which are unique to each community's specific circumstances, are taken. Upon completion of activities related to the education and preventative measures, an assessment of the percentage of Canadians aware of risks in their area will be completed.

Planning for and responding to emergencies

The Government Operations Centre (GOC) undertook five emergency exercises in 2022–23 including three building block exercises in preparation for the National Priority Exercise: Coastal Response 2023. Exercise Coastal Response 2023 was a culmination of over three years of planning, and involved approximately 200 partners from across the emergency management community.

To fulfill Public Safety Canada's major disaster logistics and operations responsibility outlined in the Federal Emergency Response Plan, the GOC led the development of the Federal Emergency Logistics Plan (FELP). A series of scenarios were exercised, tested, and validated by key partners and exercise participants through the National Priority Exercise Coastal Response 2023. The FELP was proven to be a key addition to the existing suite of emergency response plans.

In 2022–23, the GOC responded to 23 Requests for Federal Assistance. Examples include responses to COVID-19, Hurricane Fiona and the Ukrainian Charter Flight events.

Following the response to Hurricane Fiona in September 2022, the GOC's Continuous Improvement Program initiated a multi-part after-action review, solicited input from key stakeholders and travelled to the Atlantic Region to conduct in-person after-action discussions and evaluations with provincial and industry partners. The engagement sessions proved valuable to both improving products, tools and processes, but also for building relationships, improving coordination, and better information sharing.

National Risk Profile

Led by Public Safety Canada, the National Risk Profile (NRP) is a Ministerial mandate letter commitment, a core deliverable for advancing the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada, and a key critical action in direct support of the National Adaptation Strategy disaster resilience system. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada completed the first round of NRP risk and capability assessments, which focused on earthquakes, wildland fires and floods, as well as the cascading impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on these hazards. Multi-stakeholder participation ensured the outcomes reflected a national perspective on disaster risk. Findings from the first round of NRP were published in the first report of the NRP in early 2023-24 and further supported various federal initiatives related to disaster risk reduction and emergency management. Public Safety Canada also began the second round of risk and capability assessments, which are ongoing, and focus on hurricanes, extreme heat events and space weather events.

Results: Emergency Response/Recovery

National Public Alerting System and public safety broadband network

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to support collaborative work to enhance the National Public Alerting System and advance a future Public Safety Broadband Network (PSBN).

In December 2022, federal, provincial, and territorial (FPT) Ministers responsible for Emergency Management met and discussed collaborative work to strengthen the overall use, sustainability, continuity of service and governance of the National Public Alerting System, instructed officials to explore alternative funding models and reiterated their desire to accelerate the work currently underway. The Department supported FPT efforts to advance this work, as well as to enable a pilot project proposed by Quebec's public safety minister to test the relevance and feasibility of an intrusive Silver alert (in French only) to help find missing senior citizens with major neurocognitive disorders using the National Public Alerting System.

FPT Ministers also discussed the importance of advancing a Public Safety Broadband Network (PSBN) in Canada and reiterated their commitment to a coordinated pan-Canadian approach, and discussed key next steps related to governance and priorities for moving forward on a PSBN.

Humanitarian Workforce

In the Fall Economic Statement 2020, the Government of Canada announced its intention to provide up to $150 million over two years, starting in 2021-22, to support the Canadian Red Cross and other non-governmental organizations in building and maintaining a humanitarian workforce. In 2022–23, $52.6 million in funding was committed to the Canadian Red Cross, St. John Ambulance, The Salvation Army and the Search and Rescue Volunteer Association of Canada (SARVAC) to ensure they continued to have the capacity to mobilize quickly in response to emerging all-hazards events and deploy critical on-the-ground support to provincial, territorial and local governments. Additionally, a SARVAC deployment was funded (totaling $147,000) to provide support to a First Nations community in Ontario to experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak.

Heavy Urban Search and Rescue (HUSAR)

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada finalized the National Concept of Operations document and began the process of promoting it with emergency management key players at all levels of government. Work towards the establishment of a national Heavy Urban Search and Rescue (HUSAR) team accreditation process included enhanced engagement with the United Nations International Search and Rescue Advisory Group and the launch of a multi-year contract to assess the best options for the placement of a HUSAR National Accreditation Body in Canada. Following this contract, with the accredited HUSAR Teams expected by 2028, Canada will be well placed to start the process of building the National Accreditation Body.

International COSPAS-SARSAT Programme

The COSPAS-SARSAT Programme is an international satellite-based search and rescue (SAR) distress alerting system that directly contributes to the efficient and effective use of SAR resources in Canada and around the world. In 2022–23, the COSPAS-SARSAT system provided the distress alerts that saved 50 Canadian lives, higher than the annual average of 45.

Public Safety Canada continues to provide leadership for Canada's engagement and participation in the International COSPAS-SARSAT Programme. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada's Permanent Representative to COSPAS-SARSAT Council coordinated efforts to update procedures and specifications to install, test and approve equipment around the world to detect a new type of Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) known as an ELT-Distress Tracking (DT) beacon, which has been mandated on all airliner-sized aircraft by the International Civil Aviation Organization.

The Government of Canada (GoC) continues to make substantial investments in new COSPAS-SARSAT capabilities, including in the international Medium Earth Orbit Search and Rescue (MEOSAR) system. The MEOSAR System improves the detection speed of distress alerts and the accuracy of location data from the legacy system. The GoC played a significant role in coordinating and documenting the requirements that resulted in the Initial Operational Capability in 2022, with Full Operational Capability expected in 2025. In 2022–23, the GoC also installed two new MEOSAR receiver stations in Goose Bay and Edmonton, which are currently undergoing site acceptance testing, and is upgrading its Mission Control Center in Trenton to be able to process data received from the MEOSAR System.

BC Wildfires, Flood and Extreme Weather, and Hurricane Fiona in Canada Appeal

In 2021, the Government of Canada and the Government of British Columbia announced that they would match individual and corporate donations made to the Canadian Red Cross' British Columbia Wildfire Appeal and British Columbia Floods and Extreme Weather Appeal, meaning that every dollar donated would become $3 to support those affected by the fires. Likewise, in September 2022, the Government of Canada announced it would match individual and corporate donations made to the Canadian Red Cross' Hurricane Fiona in Canada Appeal, meaning that every dollar donated would become $2 to support those affected by the storm. In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada began to provide this funding through the Canadian Red Cross COVID-19, Floods, and Wildfires transfer payment program. This funding is intended to provide direct support to communities and individuals most impacted by these weather events, including to address intermediate and long-term recovery needs of those impacted by the atmospheric river event.

Flood Insurance and Relocation Project

To support whole-of-society disaster prevention and mitigation activities, Public Safety Canada established an interdisciplinary Task Force on Flood Insurance and Relocation (Task Force) to continue the efforts of the Advisory Council on Flooding. Accomplishments of the Task Force in 2022–23 included:

• Exploring options to protect homeowners at high risk of flooding who lack adequate insurance protection;
• Examining the viability of a low-cost national flood insurance program and considering options for the potential relocation for residents of areas at the highest risk of recurrent flooding; and
• Providing Canadians and their elected representatives with a report to communicate the Task Force's findings. The Task Force's report described the significant, worsening, and disproportionate impacts and costs of future flooding disasters and the importance of flood insurance as a financial risk transfer tool. The Task Force report also highlights important challenges for the design and delivery of a national program, given Canada's regional diversity, vastness, and significant rural and remote vs urban population.

In parallel to the work of the Task Force, Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) worked with the Assembly of First Nations on a dedicated Steering Committee on First Nations Home Flood Insurance Needs (Steering Committee) to examine the unique context of flood insurance on reserves, and culminated the engagement with the report, First Nations Engagement on the Steering Committee on First Nations Home Flood Insurance Needs Initiative. The Task Force and the Steering Committee worked closely together to share information and engage with various Indigenous community and organizational partners. Both entities began their work in January 2021 and published their findings in the Summer of 2022.

Finally, Budget 2023 announced the federal government's intention to stand-up a low-cost flood insurance program, aimed at protecting households at high risk of flooding and without access to adequate insurance. This would include offering reinsurance through a federal Crown corporation and a separate insurance subsidy program, and its development is being informed by the results and considerations of the Task Force's report.

Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements

Public Safety Canada initiated a review of the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) in 2021. The review was based on internal research, a departmental Joint Audit and Evaluation of the DFAA, consultation with Provinces/Territories, and external inputs and contributions.

In 2022–23, the Department established a panel of external advisors, primarily academics and industry practitioners, to provide advice and recommendations on the DFAA, taking into account the interdependencies of the arrangements with provincial and territorial programming. A final report contained 10 recommendations aimed at aligning disaster financial assistance with broader objectives for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation to increase Canada's resilience. Seven of the recommendations could be made within the DFAA, and three could be made across all federal disaster resilience programs to enable the DFAA program to be successful in achieving its purpose. The proposed recommendations will directly inform the Department's upcoming DFAA Modernization work.

Results: Gender-based analysis plus (GBA Plus)

Public Safety Canada continued to use GBA Plus to ensure inclusive outcomes for Canadians. Specific examples of these efforts undertaken under the Emergency Management core responsibility include:

• GBA Plus principles were embedded in the engagement process for the first round of National Risk Profile (NRP) risk and capability assessments. To ensure that NRP assessment findings reflected the diverse and varying realities of Canadians, whole-of-society stakeholders across a number of sectors were included as a part of the assessment process. For example, Public Safety Canada contracted the services of Cambium Indigenous Professional Services to conduct targeted engagement sessions, research and literature reviews on Inuit, Métis, and First Nations perspectives on Emergency Management. Further, participants were asked to consider GBA Plus dimensions, such as socio-economic vulnerabilities, region, age, etc. in their risk assessment feedback to more accurately capture the range of factors that contribute to disaster risk.
• The Department's support to the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment (CIPSRT), as the Knowledge Exchange Hub of the National Research Consortium on PTSI, ensures that CIPSRT staff take into account GBA Plus factors when engaging in staffing actions, and developing the Academic, Research and Clinician Network of researchers across the country. In addition, given that public safety officers are predominately male, training spots in webinars are set aside for female public safety officers to ensure that they have an opportunity to participate.
• The Department's support to CIPSRT's Internet-based cognitive behavioural pilot, known as PSPNET, incorporates GBA Plus by making the programming available to people in rural settings where mental health services, particularly those specifically targeted to public safety officers, are scarce. PSPNET enables access for those without high-speed, continuous Internet access by making it easy for users to use the program over many sittings. The program also enables less represented groups, such as women, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, people of colour), and 2SLGBTQIA+ ^{Footnote 42} individuals to have completely confidential access to programming.
• GBA Plus was a major component of the Flood Insurance and Relocation Project. In the early phases of the project, the Task Force on Flood Insurance and Relocation identified strategic public policy objectives that included how to make insurance affordable, with specific consideration for marginalized, vulnerable, and/or diverse populations. The Department also conducted data analysis of social vulnerability factors and flood hazard exposure to identify where in Canada there are areas that are at high risk of flooding and also have high social vulnerability, to further drive the shaping of policy options and how these areas would need to be addressed. Finally, three of the Task Force's ten Key Findings were specific to equity considerations, including affordability for vulnerable populations, other non-financial barriers for accessing insurance, and the unique considerations for Indigenous people in Canada.
• The GOC's Initial Planning Guidance is sent to federal partners that are engaged in the annual emergency planning process and outlines key factors to be considered in the preparation of the response plans. In 2022–23, the GOC integrated a GBA Plus section that outlines factors that could influence the plan or that should be addressed to ensure successful emergency response. Although still at an early stage, this inclusion has enabled emergency practitioners to familiarize themselves with the concept and to integrate intersectionality into the planning process.

Results: United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals

Under the Core Responsibility of Emergency Management, Public Safety Canada advanced SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 15 (Life on Land), and SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals) through the following targets:

• SDG 13.1: The Government Operations Centre's (GOC) Watch service provides 24/7 monitoring of natural as well as human-induced disasters. These include climate-related emergencies such as flooding and wildfires. Early emergency identification and warning is undertaken by the Watch, then the GOC coordinates the federal response. Further, the GOC's other core mandate functions ensure resilience through advanced planning and exercising of these events. Similarly, the GOC supported the development of the National Risk Profile (NRP). The NRP provides a national picture of the disaster risks facing Canada, and the existing measures and resources in the emergency management systems to address them. The GOC also undertook its annual review of the NRP, with the aim to ensure the federal government is prepared to respond if and when a climate-related emergency were to occur.
• SDGs 11.5: 11.b: The Emergency Management Strategy for Canada (EM Strategy) builds on the foundational principles, roles and responsibilities articulated in the EM Framework and the Sendai Framework to establish federal, provincial, and territorial (FPT) priorities to strengthen the resilience of Canadian society by 2030. Four of the EM Strategy's priority areas align with the Sendai Framework's four priorities for action, and the initiatives under the EM Strategy implemented in 2022–23 contributed to increasing Canadian's awareness and action to reduce the negative impacts of disasters.
• SDGs 9,11,13,15: The Flood Insurance and Relocation Project (FIRP) supported several UN 2030 SDGs including 13, Climate Action; 15, Life on Land; 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities; and 9, Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure.
• SDGs 3,10,11,17: Public Safety Canada's Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements program is carried out in collaboration with both provincial and territorial stakeholders. The DFAA supported a number of UN Sustainable Development Goals, such as SDG 3, Good Health and Well-being; SDG 10, Reduced Inequalities; SDG 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities; and SDG 17, Build Strong Partnerships for the Goals.

Results: Innovation

Further to the Experimentation Direction for Deputy Heads from the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), Public Safety Canada developed its own Experimentation Framework in 2020-21, which continued to guide the Department's efforts in testing new approaches to existing problems, measuring their effectiveness, and building on their results in 2022–23.

This fiscal year, the Department continued efforts, in line with TBS guidelines, to advance experimentation and innovation by exploring innovative ideas and solutions across its program areas.

Results: Key risks

Public Safety Canada's mission is to build a safe and resilient Canada. The Department must exercise a high level of awareness, engagement and adaptability to keep Canadians safe, maintain a cohesive and coordinated approach to safety and security, and generate results for Canadians while managing a variety of risks.

At the corporate level, there are risks that may affect the Department's capacity to deliver on its mandate. Some of the key risks are that:

• Some program outcomes relying on the actions of partners will not be met;
• Public Safety Canada will be unable to keep pace with and take advantage of technological advances;
• The Department may not respond effectively to the pace and magnitude of change in the evolving, all-hazards threat environment; and
• The Department will not attract and retain the employees required to achieve its organizational objectives.

These risks challenge the ability to deliver on the Department's capacity to ensure that Canada can effectively mitigate, prepare for, respond to and recover from all-hazards events. As such, initiatives were developed to address and mitigate the risks. For example:

• The Department maintained ongoing engagements and communication with whole of society stakeholders, including Indigenous communities, to support policies and programs, including identifying gaps in the design and implementation of key policy and program commitments. Other jurisdictions (e.g. provinces, territories, municipalities) were also consulted to ensure successful delivery of programs and services and reforms in inter-jurisdictional areas of operation.
• Ministerial commitments were monitored through departmental governance efforts and ongoing communication occurred during the year, tracking departmental results on programs and policies.
• Established clear priorities and allocated resources appropriately to meet organizational priorities and objectives.

Initiatives such as these help mitigate the risks associated with the achievement of our departmental results, and additional control and mitigation strategies are managed through Public Safety Canada's Corporate Risk Profile.

Results achieved

Results achieved for Emergency Management

The following table shows, for Emergency Management, the results achieved, the performance indicators, the targets and the target dates for 2022–23, and the actual results for the three most recent fiscal years for which actual results are available.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety Canada's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Budgetary financial resources

The following table shows, for Emergency Management, budgetary spending for 2022–23, as well as actual spending for that year.

The variance between actual and planned spending in 2022–23 is primarily the result of new funding received through the Supplementary Estimates to support the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements contribution program, for the Supporting a Humanitarian Workforce to Respond to COVID-19 and Other Large-Scale Emergencies contribution program and to support the matching of donations raised by the Canadian Red Cross in response to Hurricane Fiona and the 2021 British Columbia flood and wildfire events.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety Canada's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Human resources

The following table shows, in full‑time equivalents, the human resources the Department needed to fulfill this core responsibility for 2022–23.

The variance between actual and planned Full-Time Equivalents in 2022–23 is primarily the result of new salary funding received through the Supplementary Estimates for the stabilization and modernization of the Government Operations Centre and emergency management capacity and to continue to advance Canada's Flood Risk Plan.

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety Canada's Program Inventory is available in GC InfoBase.

Internal Services

Description

Internal services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct service categories that support program delivery in the organization, regardless of the internal services delivery model in a department. The 10 service categories are:

• acquisition management services
• communication services
• financial management services
• human resources management services
• information management services
• information technology services
• legal services
• material management services
• management and oversight services
• real property management services

Results

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada supported Internal Services through the following activities.

Diversity and inclusion

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada advanced its efforts to create a more diverse, anti-racist, equitable, and inclusive Public Service through its ongoing implementation of the Strategic Framework on Diversity and Inclusion. Through coordination and collaboration with key internal and external diversity and inclusion partners, the Department:

• Implemented the internal Equitable, Diverse and Inclusive Recruitment Strategy. Of the ten deliverables identified in this strategy, eight have been completed and two activities are underway. Any ongoing or outstanding activities will be integrated in the next Employment Equity and Diversity Action Plan.
• Capacity has been developed to enhance the reporting of results on diversity, inclusion and employment equity via the launch of the Organizational Health Dashboard. This interactive dashboard provides all staff at Public Safety Canada with an overview of employment equity group representation, existing gaps relative to workforce availability, and tracks progress quarterly.
• Launched the Mentorship Plus Program designed to support the professional growth and development of employees from employment equity and equity-seeking groups. A total of 14 mentees and 10 mentors participated. Both mentees and mentors reported mutually beneficial experiences from participating in the program, including career growth and helpful guidance by mentees and personal satisfaction for mentors.
• Completed the Public Safety Canada - Accessibility Plan 2023-26 through a consultative working group comprised of employees with disabilities, branch representatives, and key diversity and inclusion stakeholders. An implementation project team composed of key stakeholders and subject matter experts in areas involved in the plan was formed.
• Supported Public Safety Canada's Black Employee Network to provide learning and development activities for Black History Month on topics like Black history and anti-Black racism in Canada, and facilitated a book club on Black history themes resulting in increased employee participation, engagement, and lessons learned from lived experiences of the Black community.
• Organized and facilitated awareness-building and educational opportunities for all employees through departmental and inter-departmental initiatives like Pride Learning Journey and Bystander Intervention training.
• Organized safe space sessions ('Trust Circles') for employees in equity-impacted communities. Employees who attended felt a sense of inclusion, as well as being supported and safe to share their lived experiences and the impacts of systemic discrimination.
• Launched the Diversity and Inclusion Forum, which brings together departmental employees and employee networks to advance anti-racism, equity, diversity and inclusion in line with the Clerk's Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion in the Federal Public Service.

In November 2022, Public Safety Canada also celebrated its fourth annual Diversity and Inclusion Week. The Department brought together portfolio partners to engage in a diversity and inclusion discussion and also held an event highlighting the challenges of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities from an international perspective.

People management

To ensure a strong focus on results through effective performance measurement and sound management practices, Public Safety Canada continued to build the Department's people management capacity and enhance human resources (HR) services through innovative approaches.

Key initiatives for 2022–23 included:

• Reviewing flexibility profiles for all departmental positions and updated guidance was provided to managers on making staffing decisions that support a distributed workforce while ensuring operational and security requirements are met regardless of the work location. Guidelines and tools were also developed to support the Department in monitoring and reporting on the development of work arrangements for all employees. HR also supported the delivery of employee and management teams sessions on hybrid team management and change management to facilitate the gradual implementation of the TBS Directive on prescribed presence in the workplace.
• Implementing the Administration Services (AS) Development Program which targeted recruitment and retention of classifications with high movement and turnover. In January 2023, the Department hired 10 new employees through the AS program, who were given a comprehensive onboarding program and a tailored training program in the administrative field. Upon completion of the program, these employees were assigned to various branches across the Department. The Department also introduced a Student Recruitment Hub that helps managers across Public Safety Canada with the recruitment, assessment and retention of co-op and FSWEP students and which facilitated the hiring of 226 students in 2022–23.

Program and Administration Services (PA) Conversion, originally planned for 2022–23, was delayed due to the lack of readiness from departments and no new timelines have yet been established by the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer. The Department continued to prepare for the conversion by evaluating PA job descriptions under the new Classification Standards and is in the process of developing new Standardized Job Descriptions for PA positions to be applied at time of Conversion.

Sustained pandemic management

In 2022–23, the Department continued to pursue its commitment to foster a healthy work environment and effectively respond to the pandemic. These efforts included:

• Regular meetings of the Workforce Planning Committee to review pandemic protocols based on federal workplace guidance to reduce workplace risks. This included ensuring that employees were notified of risks in the workplace, unions were engaged in discussions regarding risk levels and protocols and employees and managers were kept informed of the measures in place to protect them and their personal responsibilities.
• During the pandemic, the impact of COVID-19 on the availability of departmental resources and the delivery of critical services was continuously monitored. A reporting process was put in place for management teams to assess and report on impacts to the Workforce Planning Committee. Resource availability concerns were mitigated internally and no impacts to critical services materialized.

Workforce planning and modernization

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to define and direct the implementation of the Treasury Board Secretariat Hybrid Workforce Vision within the Department by:

• Revising and communicating the Departmental Hybrid Workforce Framework to align with new Direction on prescribed presence in the workplace. To support implementation of the framework, guidelines, tools and information sessions were offered to all employees and managers on the development of flexible work arrangements. As of March 31, 2023, more than 81% of departmental employees had developed, documented and implemented new work arrangements in the TBS myWorkArrangement application.
• Equipping workstations in branch neighborhoods and service hubs, investing in new boardroom and Wi-Fi technologies, deploying ergonomic furniture and communicating updated workplace etiquette and cleaning protocols to support the hybrid workforce. These modern tools facilitated the transition to unassigned seating and the coordination and engagement within and across teams in the hybrid environment.
• Undertaking an analysis of security requirements, systems and controls to inform internal information security practices in the post-pandemic environment and communicating the results to all employees. All employee work arrangements in place consider and are in line with new security policy requirements.
• Responding to employee feedback and emerging needs by introducing workplace ambassadors to facilitate troubleshooting and improve technological literacy and introducing flexible parking options and updating internal forms and processes to support e-signatures.
• Standing up a dedicated Integration Secretariat to support effective change management. The Secretariat is engaged with employees and management teams on the transition to hybrid via monthly information and feedback sessions with all employees, quarterly meetings with employee networks and branch management teams, and maintaining an online hybrid information center and toolbox. The feedback collected was integrated into internal services decision making and improvement plans.

Government of Canada Business Continuity Management Program renewal

In 2022–23, Public Safety Canada continued to advance the Business Continuity Management (BCM) Program renewal across the federal government. Firstly, the Centre for Resiliency and Continuity Management (CRCM) finalized the research of BCM standards and development of key BCM methodologies, which culminated in the launch of the Business Continuity Management Program Guide: A Government of Canada approach to building organizational resilience, 2023 Edition. The guide outlines the Government of Canada's approach for integrating continuity concepts and establishing a common foundation, and standards for establishing, managing, and evaluating BCM programs, ensuring that the BCM community is better equipped to establish and manage a BCM program.

Secondly, the CRCM conducted significant engagement with the BCM community as the Lead Security Agency (LSA). Some examples of collaboration include: quarterly meetings of the BCM Community of Practice, and coordination of guest presentations with subject matter experts from various fields. The Department also collaborated with working groups comprised of various organizational subject matter experts for feedback on development of new methodologies. These efforts continue to increase the profile of the LSA within the BCM community and allows the Department to further engage and support the BCM community in their efforts to ensure continuity and stability of government business for Canadians in adverse conditions.

Thirdly, the CRCM submitted a formal request to the Canada School of Public Service to update and redesign the BCM training course, which will provide more nuanced information for government departments to develop effective business continuity plans and ensure business continuity in an array of modern adverse conditions.

Finally, the CRCM began development of indicators to form the basis of a BCM Program Self-Assessment. In partnership with TBS, the Self-Assessment will be further developed during fiscal year 2023–24.

Contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses

Public Safety Canada is a Phase 1 department and as such must ensure that a minimum 5% of the total value of the contracts it awards to Indigenous businesses by the end of 2022–23. In its 2023–24 Departmental Plan, the Department forecasted that, by the end of 2022–23, it would award 10% of the total value of its contracts to Indigenous businesses.

As shown in the following table, Public Safety Canada awarded 11.83% of the total value of its contracts to Indigenous businesses in 2022–23.

During fiscal year 2022–23, Public Safety Canada had seven Standing Offers (SO) valued at up to $2 million each that were set-aside under the mandatory Set-Aside Program for Indigenous Business for the Workshop Delivery for the Aboriginal Community Safety Development Contribution Program. Under these SOs, facilitators deliver strategic planning workshops and provide support to communities in the development of Community Safety Plans (CSP), which Indigenous communities use to foster safer communities in a culturally relevant manner. Since COVID-19, the Department has worked with its SO holders as well as Indigenous communities to pivot to virtual facilitation services to ensure that the community safety planning continues to advance. The Department is currently working on establishing new SOs which will be set aside according to the Procurement Strategy for Indigenous Business (PSIB) program.

Public Safety Canada also has a translation standing offer in place which was set aside according to the PSIB program. In 2022–23, the Department issued approximately $1.4 million of call-ups against this SO.

To further encourage contracts awarded to Indigenous businesses, Public Safety Canada has been promoting engagement sessions with Indigenous and Inuit suppliers as part of Request for Proposal processes. The engagement sessions provide an opportunity for the department to explain the government procurement process to suppliers, and to answer any questions.

Four of Public Safety Canada's procurement officers have taken the Indigenous Considerations in procurement and the course Procurement in the Nunavut Settlement Area from the Canada School of Public Service. The full team will have completed both courses in 2023–24.

Budgetary financial resources

The following table shows, for internal services, budgetary spending for 2022–23, as well as spending for that year.

The variance between actual and planned spending in 2022–23 is primarily the result of new funding received through the Supplementary Estimates to support the design and development of a buyback program for prohibited assault-style firearms, to improve federal emergency management capacity, and for Minister Office Budgets.

Human resources

The following table shows, in full‑time equivalents, the human resources the Department needed to carry out its internal services for 2022–23.

The variance between actual and planned Full-Time Equivalents in 2022–23 is primarily the result of new salary funding received through the Supplementary Estimates to support the design and development of a buyback program for prohibited assault-style firearms and the stabilization and modernization of the Government Operations Centre and emergency management capacity.

Spending and human resources

Spending: 2020–21 to 2025–26

The following graph presents planned (voted and statutory spending) over time.

Budgetary performance summary for core responsibilities and internal services

The "Budgetary performance summary for core responsibilities and internal services" table presents the budgetary financial resources allocated for Public Safety Canada's core responsibilities and for internal service

In 2022–23, the total authorities available for use was $3.5 billion, representing a $2.6 billion (292%) increase from the 2022–23 planned spending. This increase is primarily attributable to funding for:

• the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) contribution program to support provincial and territorial disaster response and recovery efforts, including the 2021 disasters in British Columbia ($2.3 billion);
• the Nation's Capital Extraordinary Policing Costs Program to reimburse the City of Ottawa and its policing partners for costs related to 2022 "Freedom Convoy" protests ($83.8 million); and
• the Humanitarian Workforce (HWF) to Respond to COVID-19 and Other Large-Scale Emergencies contribution program ($77 million).

These increases were offset by a transfer to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for the First Nations Community Policing Service ($66.6 million), which takes place annually through the Supplementary Estimates.

There is a decrease of $46.3 million (5%) in planned spending from 2022–23 to 2023–24. This is mainly attributable to a decrease of $78 million for the maturation of the Initiative to Take Action Against Gun and Gang Violence, which is in the process of being renewed. In addition, a decrease of $28.5 million in funding levels for the relocation and accommodations for the Government Operations Centre, as the project is moving towards completion. These decreases are mainly offset by an increase of $61.2 million in funding for the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program.

Actual spending for 2022–23 is $155.3 million (4%) lower than total authorities available for use. This variance is primarily attributable to the following programs:

• the Building Safer Communities Fund (BSCF) ($43.0 million) which is anticipated to be fully transferred for use in future fiscal years, due to delays in program announcement and launch;
• the First Nation and Inuit Policing Facilities Program (FNIPFP) ($17.5 million) which is anticipated to be transferred for use in future fiscal years, due to unforeseen project delays. Such delays included supply chain issues, labour challenges and elevated costs requiring new approvals necessitating re-negotiation. This resulted in planned activities needing to be pushed to the following fiscal year;
• the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program (FNIPP) ($17.4 million) which is anticipated to be transferred for use in future fiscal years, due to program delays such as provincial-territorial partners facing challenges securing their cost-share fund. This resulted in a delay for a number of approved, discrete one-time activities which will need to be pushed into future fiscal years^{Footnote 56}; and
• the relocation and accommodations for the Government Operations Centre ($14.3 million) which has been transferred for use in future fiscal years due to unforeseen project delays.

Compared to actual spending in 2021-22, actual spending for 2022–23 is $2.2 billion (210%) higher. This increase is primarily attributable to the increase in payments under the DFAA program to support provincial and territorial disaster response and recovery efforts, including the 2021 disasters in British Columbia.

Human resources

The "Human resources summary for core responsibilities and internal services" table presents the full-time equivalents (FTEs) allocated to each of Public Safety Canada's core responsibilities and to internal services.

The increase of 207 FTEs (16%) from 1,298 FTEs in 2021-22 to 1,505 FTEs in 2022–23, as well as the increase of 182 FTEs (14%) from the 2022–23 Planned FTEs to the 2022–23 Actual FTEs, are primarily the result of the new funding that was received through the Supplementary Estimates, such as for the design and development of a buyback program for prohibited assault-style firearms and the stabilization and modernization of Government Operations Centre and emergency management capacity. The increase is also attributable to additional salary resources required in internal service provision to support the growth of the Department.

Expenditures by vote

For information on Public Safety Canada's organizational voted and statutory expenditures, consult the Public Accounts of Canada.

Government of Canada spending and activities

Information on the alignment of Public Safety Canada's spending with Government of Canada's spending and activities is available in GC InfoBase.

Financial statements and financial statements highlights

Financial statements

Public Safety Canada's financial statements (unaudited) for the year ended March 31, 2023, are available on the departmental website.

Financial statement highlights

Total departmental expenses have decreased by $4,958 million, from $5,757 million in 2021-22 to $799 million in 2022–23. This decrease can be attributed primarily to a significant decrease in accrued transfer payment expenses, mainly related to the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements. Last year, Public Safety Canada accrued an expense of $5 billion due to the four (4) major British Columbia 2020 and 2021 disasters, whereas only $644 million was accrued as an expense in 2022–23 resulting from 11 new approved Orders in Council.

The 2022–23 planned results information is provided in Public Safety Canada's Future-Oriented Statement of Operations and Notes 2022–23.

N.B.: due to rounding, combined percentages may not add to 100%

Public Safety Canada's total net liabilities of $6,265 million is primarily comprised of Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) ($4,730 million) program liabilities, accounts payables and accrued liabilities ($1,522 million), vacation pay and compensatory leave ($11 million) and employee future benefits ($4 million).

There was a decrease of $1,879 million in total net liabilities when compared to 2021-22. This variance is mainly attributed to a significant decrease in the DFAA accrued liabilities (i.e., previously outstanding payments made, new approved Orders in Council and changes in estimates of existing events).

The total net financial assets of $1,526 million include $1,518 million due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund and accounts receivables and advances of $8 million. The increase in the total net financial assets is mainly due to the increase in the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

Total non-financial assets has increased in 2022–23 by $21 million when compared to 2021-22 due to the capitalization of the Government Operations Centre accommodation project.

The following chart shows total net liabilities by type of liability.

The 2022–23 planned results information is provided in Public Safety Canada's Future-Oriented Statement of Operations and Notes 2022–23.

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister[s]:
The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, P.C., K.C., M.P.
The Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, P.C., O.M.M., M.S.M., C.D., M.P.

Institutional head:
Mr. Shawn Tupper

Ministerial portfolio:
Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Enabling instrument(s):
Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Act (2005), Emergency Management Act (2007)

Year of incorporation/commencement:
2003

Raison d'être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do

"Raison d'être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do" is available Public Safety Canada's website.

For more information on the department's organizational mandate letter commitments, see the Minister of Public Safety's mandate letter and the President of the King's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness' mandate letter.

Operating context

Information on the operating context is available on Public Safety Canada's website.

Reporting framework

Public Safety Canada's Departmental Results Framework and Program Inventory of record for 2022–23 are shown below.

2022–23 Departmental Reporting Framework by Core Responsibility

Supporting information on the program inventory

Financial, human resources and performance information for Public Safety Canada's program inventory is available in the in GC InfoBase.

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables will be available on Public Safety Canada's website:

• Reporting on Green Procurement
• Details on transfer payment programs
• Gender-based Analysis Plus
• Horizontal initiatives
• Response to parliamentary committees and external audits
• Up front multi-year funding
• United Nations 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals

Federal tax expenditures

The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures. This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs as well as evaluations and GBA Plus of tax expenditures.

Organizational contact information

Mailing address: 269 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A 0P8

• Telephone: 613-944-4875 or 1-800-830-3118
• TTY: 1-866-865-5667
• Fax: 613-954-5186
• Email: ps.mediarelations-relationsaveclesmedias.sp@ps-sp.gc.ca
• Website(s): Public Safety Canada

Appendix: definitions

appropriation

Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures

Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

core responsibility

An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a core responsibility are reflected in one or more related departmental results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan

A report on the plans and expected performance of an appropriated department over a 3 year period. Departmental Plans are usually tabled in Parliament each spring.

departmental priority

A plan or project that a department has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired departmental results.

departmental result

A consequence or outcome that a department seeks to achieve. A departmental result is often outside departments' immediate control, but it should be influenced by program-level outcomes.

departmental result indicator

A quantitative measure of progress on a departmental result.

departmental results framework

A framework that connects the department's core responsibilities to its departmental results and departmental result indicators.

Departmental Results Report

A report on a department's actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

full‑time equivalent

A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person year charge against a departmental budget. For a particular position, the full time equivalent figure is the ratio of number of hours the person actually works divided by the standard number of hours set out in the person's collective agreement.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA Plus)

An analytical tool used to support the development of responsive and inclusive policies, programs and other initiatives; and understand how factors such as sex, race, national and ethnic origin, Indigenous origin or identity, age, sexual orientation, socio-economic conditions, geography, culture and disability, impact experiences and outcomes, and can affect access to and experience of government programs.

government-wide priorities

For the purpose of the 2022–23 Departmental Results Report, government-wide priorities are the high-level themes outlining the government's agenda in November 23, 2021, Speech from the Throne: building a healthier today and tomorrow; growing a more resilient economy; bolder climate action; fighter harder for safer communities; standing up for diversity and inclusion; moving faster on the path to reconciliation; and fighting for a secure, just and equitable world.

horizontal initiative

An initiative where two or more federal organizations are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.

non‑budgetary expenditures

Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance

What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

performance indicator

A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

performance reporting

The process of communicating evidence‑based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision making, accountability and transparency.

plan

The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally, a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead to the expected result.

planned spending

For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in Main Estimates. A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

program

Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within the Department and focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.

program inventory

Identifies all the department's programs and describes how resources are organized to contribute to the department's core responsibilities and results.

result

A consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization's influence.

statutory expenditures

Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

target

A measurable performance or success level that an organization, program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures

Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an appropriation act. The vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.

Date modified:

2023-11-10