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The Role of the Clerk

I am honoured to have one of the most exciting jobs in the country.

As the Clerk of the Privy Council, I have three core duties:

1. As Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister of Canada, I provide direct advice and support to the Prime Minister on all issues that may affect the Government;
2. As Secretary to the Cabinet, I support the Prime Minister in his role as Chair of Cabinet and support the Cabinet in its deliberations. As part of this work, I ensure that the Public Service understands Cabinet direction and implements it in an effective, co-ordinated fashion; and,
3. As Head of the federal Public Service, I work with the Treasury Board Secretariat and the senior leadership of the federal civil service to ensure that the Government of Canada has the policy, management and human resources capacity it needs to design and deliver high quality programs and services to and for Canadians.

To deliver on these responsibilities, my team and I at the Privy Council Office work with departments and agencies to make sure that the public service has the right people, direction, tools and work environment to support our duly elected Government and to implement Government decisions. As part of these efforts, we:

• advise the Prime Minister on issues and public policy challenges we are facing as a country;
• work with departments and agencies to develop policy options and choices for the Government to consider;
• advise and support discussion and dialogue by Ministers in making policy decisions through their Cabinet committee deliberations; and
• record and communicate Cabinet decisions to departments and agencies so they can effectively implement decisions made by our elected leaders.

In short, my job is to help advise the Prime Minister and our elected Government officials in managing the country from an objective, non-partisan, public policy perspective, and to help ensure the effective leadership and management of Canada's federal civil service.