2023-24 Departmental Plan

The Honourable David Lametti, P.C., K.C., M.P.
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Public Prosecution Service of Canada

160 Elgin Street, 12th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H8

www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca ^{Footnote i}

Also available on the Web in PDF and HTML formats

© His Majesty the King in Right of Canada (2023)

Cat. No. J76-5E-PDF
ISSN 2371-7408

Table of contents

• From the Director of Public Prosecutions and Deputy Attorney General of Canada
• Plans at a glance
  • Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks
  • Internal services: planned results
• Planned spending and human resources
  • Planned spending
  • Planned human resources
  • Estimates by vote
  • Future-oriented condensed statement of operations
• 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 Director of Public Prosecutions and Deputy Attorney General of Canada

I am pleased to present the PPSC's Departmental Plan for 2023-24. If 2022-23 was a planning and building year, in 2023-24, the PPSC should reap the rewards of its investments into its people, and into its policy framework.

Given the recent revamping of the PPSC's Mission Statement and Values, the public knows more than ever what it can expect from our organization and from our employees. Where we fail to meet our commitments, our improved policy on feedback and complaints will allow the public, victims, witnesses and accused alike to let us know how we are doing. That feedback is crucial if we wish to continue to improve public safety outcomes, but also to live up to our values.

As we work on our priorities, the PPSC will continue to do its part to improve training of its employees, particularly with respect to the impact of unconscious biases on the decisions we make, and to take concrete steps to reduce the over-representation in the criminal justice system of Indigenous and Black Canadians, among others.

2023-24 should see the PPSC cross important milestones – all of our prosecutors and paralegals will have completed training in respect of GBA Plus and how it can be used in our decision-making. As a next step in understanding and confronting our biases, all employees will embark on cultural competence training, which will be tailored to the various communities we serve across Canada. We will also continue to work on improving our tools, particularly case management and electronic disclosure, to allow us to be more agile and to work more effectively with our partners in the criminal justice system.

The Public Prosecution Service of Canada's Deskbook is our most important tool as it serves to guide prosecutorial decision-making and the important discretion that rests with our folks. As a result, it too will undergo a major revamp in 2023-24. While some of the most seminal chapters, including the Decision to Prosecute, were relaunched last year, this year we will be introducing guidance in respect of sentencing, and continuing our work to eliminate biases that may have crept into our prosecution policies. As always, we invite the public to see the fruits of our labour on our website ^{Footnote ii} and to keep us accountable.

Finally, now that Covid-19 has become somewhat endemic, we will have the opportunity to fully experiment with a hybrid workplace, and flexibility for employees at every level of the organization. As our employees have for the most part already been working sometimes from the office and sometimes from home, we will be able to take stock of our tools, of how we communicate with each other, and of how we onboard new employees. This will allow us to continue to innovate and to enhance the culture of trust and engagement we are seeking to build with our professional workforce.

Thank you to our dedicated employees who give the best of themselves every day to improve our results and to meet our priorities.

Kathleen Roussel
Director of Public Prosecutions and
Deputy Attorney General of Canada

Plans at a glance

The PPSC^{Footnote 1} is an independent and accountable prosecuting authority established by the Parliament of Canada. Its mandate is to prosecute cases under federal law in a fair and equitable manner free from discrimination and improper influence. The PPSC is responsible for prosecuting drug related offences, regulatory and economic offences, terrorism offences and all criminal offences in the northern territories. It also provides high-quality legal advice to investigative agencies.

The PPSC's mandate calls upon its entire workforce to uphold public trust and to contribute to the change necessary to support a criminal justice system that is more equitable and fair to all Canadians. The PPSC recently reviewed and updated its mission statement and corporate values ^{Footnote iii}. After a thorough analysis and a consultation process, it was determined that the previous set did not reflect what the PPSC is as an organization and did not support what the organization is seeking to become. The new set of values is more practical and acts as a guide to PPSC employees in their daily actions, behaviours, and decisions.

The PPSC's four organizational priorities align well with these values and remain an integral part of fulfilling our mandate and responding to the ever-changing realities of Canadian society. Their description and related key activities are outlined below.

Foster a culture of trust and engagement

This priority is about fostering a culture of trust and engagement, where all PPSC employees are treated with respect, dignity, and fairness. It focuses on promoting public trust in the criminal justice system by enhancing its engagement with external stakeholders and court participants.

Key activities for 2023-24 include:

• enhancing the PPSC's engagement with Indigenous, Black and racialized communities and organizations, to better understand their different needs and realities, and take action to address their overrepresentation in the criminal justice system;
• implementing the PPSC's Official Languages Action Plan by demonstrating leadership, innovation and creativity in order to meet the official languages obligations, and to contribute to initiatives that support strengthening the use of Indigenous languages;
• continuing to implement and monitor the PPSC's People Strategy^{Footnote 2} to create, encourage, and maintain an equitable and inclusive environment that supports the wellbeing of all staff, develops talent, and drives excellence and innovation; and,
• continuing to offer support services to employees who are facing difficulties through the provision of the Employee Assistance Program and the Healthy Workplace Services, and make sure we support our employees from equity groups with services that are adapted to their lived experiences and needs.

Advance equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility in the workplace

This priority is about the organization continuing to build an accessible, inclusive, diverse, and equitable workplace environment where all employees can thrive.

Key activities for 2023-24 include:

• increasing the representation of all equity groups across the organization's workforce;
• continuing to implement the PPSC's National Equity, Diversity, Inclusive and Accessibility (EDIA) action plan, which includes, among other things, ongoing engagement with managers to enhance their understanding of bias and barriers in the workplace, and their role in preventing them;
• continuing to review PPSC practices and processes related to recruitment, retention, development and advancement, as well as performance management, to remove systemic barriers, which is being guided by the lived experiences of our National Councils of Employees^{Footnote 3} (NCEs);
• implementing the PPSC's Accessibility plan, which includes addressing barriers identified in the organization's internal national accessibility survey, and providing employees with the appropriate technology, tools, and support.

Take action against systemic discrimination and racism in the criminal justice system

This priority is about the PPSC continuing to contribute to the change necessary to support a criminal justice system that is more equitable and fair to all Canadians.

Key activities in 2023-24 include:

• continuing to implement the PPSC's response to the Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Calls for Justice of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls;
• continuing to educate federal prosecutors on how to incorporate GBA Plus^{Footnote 4} in their work through the delivery of PPSC's new mandatory training: Expanding our Mindset – Applying an Intersectional Lens to Prosecutorial Work (A GBA Plus Approach);
• continuing to accelerate the re-evaluation of all prosecutorial policies using an intersectional and reconciliatory approach to prevent PPSC policies, practices, or procedures from contributing to discrimination, systemic racism, or over-representation of certain groups in the criminal justice system; and,
• implementing more equity and diversity into the agent^{Footnote 5} recruitment process.

Modernize the way we work

Innovation is the way forward to building an agile workforce and a modern criminal justice system. This priority is about continuing to modernize PPSC tools and procedures, as well as prosecutorial policies and practices.

Key activities in 2023-24 include:

• continuing the use of digital resources, e-signatures, and e-documents for court filings, file work, and administrative operations to ensure counsel and support staff have access to useful tools and support;
• continuing to plan and implement system improvements to maximize the use of the new digital platform Amicus^{Footnote 6};
• continuing the implementation of the National Fine Recovery Program^{Footnote 7}'s (NFRP) IT investment plan to create new digital tools to assist with the recovery of outstanding federal fines;

For more information on the PPSC's plans, see the "Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks" section of this plan.

Core responsibilities: planned results and resources, and key risks

This section contains information on the department's planned results and resources for each of its core responsibilities. It also contains information on key risks related to achieving those results.

Prosecution Services

Description

The PPSC prosecutes criminal and regulatory offences under federal law in an independent, impartial and fair manner. It also provides prosecutorial legal advice to investigative agencies.

Planning highlights

The PPSC is responsible for prosecuting all drug-related offences under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA). Although we continue to handle some simple possession charges, most of our resources focus on prosecuting commercial traffickers who are sophisticated and cause serious harm through ever-increasing levels of importation, production and distribution of opioids and other substances.

The PPSC Deskbook sets out the guiding principles that all federal prosecutors, and persons acting as federal prosecutors, must follow, and contains the directives and guidelines for federal prosecutions. In 2023-24, the PPSC's National Prosecution Policy Committee will continue reviewing chapters within the Deskbook with an intersectional lens to ensure it contains guidance directing that prosecution decisions are made in a fair and equitable manner, and its policies are reflective of the evolution of its role and purpose. This also emphasizes the PPSC's strong recognition of the role it plays in the criminal justice system and the impact its decisions have on racialized and marginalized communities.

The PPSC's recent review of Chapter 2.3: Decision to Prosecute ^{Footnote iv} is a good example of this commitment. The decision whether to prosecute is among the most important decisions that is made by Crown counsel. Considerable care must be taken in each case to ensure that the evidence is assessed and the public interest is considered in a principled, fair and unbiased manner. A wrong decision to prosecute and, conversely, a wrong decision not to prosecute tend to undermine confidence of the community in the criminal justice system. The updates to this guideline include an emphasis on the importance of eliminating unconscious bias from all decision-making, taking into account background and systemic factors, and the vital importance of consultation.

The PPSC will continue to monitor the application of its Guideline ^{Footnote v} on the prosecutorial approach to the offence of possession of controlled substances, which directs prosecutors to focus on serious cases raising public safety concerns, and to otherwise pursue suitable alternative measures and diversion from the criminal justice system for simple possession cases.

In addition, as of 2023-24 the PPSC will be receiving additional funds to ensure it is equipped to handle new investigations stemming from the expansion of the Canada Revenue Agency's criminal investigation process. This will ensure that the PPSC can make the necessary investments in the right people, with the right skills and tools, to successfully address complex tax evasion cases.

Drug Treatment Courts

Drug Treatment Courts (DTCs) are vitally important in addressing the issues associated with substances within the criminal justice system. DTCs offer non-violent offenders with problematic substance use the opportunity to complete a court-monitored drug treatment program as an alternative to incarceration. DTCs take a comprehensive approach intended to reduce the number of crimes committed to support substance dependency through judicial supervision, comprehensive substance abuse treatment, random and frequent drug testing, incentives and sanctions, clinical case management, and social services support. This approach supports offenders in addressing their cycle of problematic substance use and criminal behaviour, and it has been successful as a means of reducing criminal recidivism.

The statutory framework for DTCs is provided through the CDSA and the Criminal Code, both of which offer sentencing alternatives to incarceration for eligible offenders. The statutory framework for DTCs also states that the Attorney General must approve a DTC program. The PPSC performs this role on behalf of the Attorney General, which is part of its overall responsibility for prosecutions under the CDSA. The PPSC currently supports a growing number of DTCs across the country. In addition to regular court and administrative responsibilities, PPSC staff and legal agents who work on DTC files also play a large role in opening new DTCs. In 2023-24, the PPSC will review its Deskbook guideline to ensure that it is supporting DTCs in a manner that is consistent with an intersectional and reconciliatory approach, including a review of how to support access to DTCs without requiring an individual to enter a guilty plea.

The PPSC's Response to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls

The PPSC will continue to work diligently to support the Government of Canada's Federal Pathway toward responding to the Calls for Justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). Through Budget 2021, the PPSC received $23.5M over three years to respond to Calls for Justice 5.12, 9.2, 9.2(ii), 10.1, 16.27, 17.20 and 17.8, to improve the level of justice provided to Indigenous victims, witnesses and communities experiencing sexual violence and intimate partner violence in Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The implementation of PPSC's initiatives began in 2021-22 and will continue into the 2023-24 fiscal year.

Increasing prosecutorial capacity across the three territories

Increasing prosecutorial capacity in order to improve support for Indigenous victims and witnesses remains a top priority for the organization. However, despite consistent efforts, hiring in the territorial regions has been incredibly challenging. A new hiring strategy was launched to bolster the organization's outreach capacity, with the goal of attracting candidates to this area and achieve a full staff complement in 2023-24. Given the key role Crown Witness Coordinators^{Footnote 8} (CWCs) play in providing support to victims, aggressive hiring of CWCs is a key part of this hiring strategy.

Creating Inuktut-speaking Inuit paralegal positions

Four Inuktut-speaking Inuit paralegal positions were created as planned. In Nunavut, these Inuit court workers will be acting as the Crown and attend Justice of the Peace court to conduct bail hearings, speak to docket matters and conduct sentencing hearings on low-complexity summary conviction matters. The PPSC has filled three of these positions and, in 2023-24; it will assess the volume, scope of work and ability to train and integrate a fourth paralegal.

Engaging with Indigenous communities in the three territories

The PPSC is committed to engaging with local justice committee members and/or Elders to identify culturally appropriate and trauma-informed approaches for victims and witnesses. The organization is steering its engagement efforts toward a more regional and local approach as part of an integrated and organic approach intended to complement the development of prosecutorial innovations rather than the original pan-northern approach, while it follows the evolution of the Indigenous Justice Strategy ^{Footnote vi}.

Since April 2022, for example, prosecution teams in the Northwest Territories and in Nunavut have been engaging with local NGOs and Indigenous community leaders to address sexual violence issues. The knowledge and lessons learned gathered from these activities will be shared with the Yukon office to assist them in developing a strategy that is meaningful for their region in 2023-24.

Training on historical and current Crown-Indigenous relations, anti-racism, bias and stereotypes of Indigenous peoples, trauma and Gladue reports

The PPSC has developed a training curriculum for its prosecution teams, which is divided into four modules. The first module focuses on the historical relationship between the Crown and Indigenous peoples; the second, on cultural competency and current realities and aims to challenge stereotypes associated with Indigenous, First Nations, Inuit and Métis people; the third focuses on intergenerational trauma and trauma-informed practices; and, the final module provides hands-on training on Gladue principles and the role of the Crown. An Indigenous consulting firm began training delivery in 2022-23 and will continue into the 2023-24 fiscal year.

Gender-based analysis plus

The PPSC is committed to contributing to the change necessary to support a criminal justice system that is more equitable and fair to all Canadians. To support this commitment, the PPSC will continue to raise awareness among federal prosecutors through its mandatory training "Expanding our Mindset – Applying an Intersectional Lens to Prosecutorial Work (A GBA Plus Approach)". Furthermore, the PPSC will broaden its training strategy through specialized workshops for various internal services groups aimed at building capacity for the application of GBA Plus considerations in their particular lines of work.

The GBA Plus Responsibility Centre will continue to support the PPSC with the integration of GBA Plus considerations in decision-making and policies and initiatives that are national in scope. The GBA Plus Responsibility Centre will also continue to collaborate with the Advancement Centre for EDIA to advance and promote various initiatives and key actions outlined in the organization's National EDIA Action Plan.

Key risk(s)

The PPSC is still working on updating its Corporate Risk Profile. Progress on key risks and related mitigation strategies will be monitored and reported in the corresponding Departmental Results Report.

Planned results for Prosecution Services

The following table shows, for Prosecution Services, the planned results, the result indicators, the targets and the target dates for 2023-24, and the actual results for the three most recent fiscal years for which actual results are available.

¹ Level of satisfaction results are taken from the PPSC Survey of Investigative Agencies Report, which is conducted every three years.

² 78% of respondents were "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with the timeliness of the legal advice they received from the PPSC. Although this falls short of the 80% target, it is an increase from the last survey, where 72% of respondents were "satisfied" or "very satisfied". The most commonly cited explanation for why respondents were unsatisfied with the timeliness of the legal advice they received was that the PPSC was slow to respond, unresponsive or it took multiple follow-ups to get a response.

³ 85% of respondents were "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with the comprehensiveness of the legal advice they received from the PPSC. This exceeds the 65% target and is an increase from the last survey, where 80% of respondents were "satisfied" or "very satisfied".

⁴ The percentage of stay of proceedings as a result of delays is determined by case and not by individual charges. If there are more than one stay of proceedings for a case, it is counted as one case being stayed. Stay of proceedings as a result of delays include both agent and in-house cases.

⁵ The results presented are based on data gathered from the regions and on information extracted from the PPSC's internal database. The figures are extracted from a live system and may be subject to revision from time to time, based on changes made to the data for any particular reporting period.

⁶ Of the 20,549 cases closed in 2021-22, 26 resulted in a judicial stay of proceedings due to Crown delay.

⁷ Of the 20,549 cases closed in 2021-22, 34 resulted in the Crown directing a stay of proceedings due to Crown delay.

⁸ 20,489 of the 20,549 cases closed in 2021-22, resulted in a determination on the merits of the evidence.

⁹ Updated result (from 1 to 2) to reflect a late-reported outcome regarding a substantiated complaint.

The financial, human resources and performance information for the PPSC's program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.^{Footnote vii}

Planned budgetary spending for Prosecution Services

The following table shows, for Prosecution Services, budgetary spending for 2023-24, as well as planned spending for that year and for each of the next two fiscal years.

Financial, human resources and performance information for PPSC's program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.^{Footnote viii}

Planned human resources for Prosecution Services

The following table shows, in full-time equivalents, the human resources the department will need to fulfill this core responsibility for 2023-24 and for each of the next two fiscal years.

Financial, human resources and performance information for PPSC's program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.^{Footnote ix}

Internal services: planned results

Description

Internal services are the services that are provided within a department so that it can meet its corporate obligations and deliver its programs. There are 10 categories of internal services:

• management and oversight services
• communications services
• legal services
• human resources management services
• financial management services
• information management services
• information technology services
• real property management services
• materiel management services
• acquisition management services

Planning highlights

Advancement Centre for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility

The Advancement Centre for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility (EDIA), which was launched in December 2021, will continue to play an important role in influencing and accelerating the growth and development of a richly diverse PPSC workplace and an equitable, inclusive and accessible culture. In 2023-24 the Advancement Centre for EDIA will continue to nurture and provoke change to help remove systemic barriers at all levels, while taking a human-centred approach, acknowledging harm and working restoratively to promote a sense of pride and belonging in every employee.

Corporate Services Branch

The Corporate Services Branch (CSB) includes most internal services that support the organization and its prosecution teams as well as two national programs. Like all federal government departments, internal services help to ensure that the organization is effectively governed and meets government policy requirements and administrative responsibilities.

In 2023-24, the CSB will continue to focus on improving its governance and developing an integrated approach to its business and investment planning. This approach will enable the CSB to strategically align its efforts and support its mandate in an efficient and agile manner. The CSB will also continue its development of a performance measurement framework that will provide decision makers and senior management with concrete data and information on which to make effective and evidence-based decisions and continuously improve organizational performance.

Human Resources

The PPSC has established a Centre of Expertise for Character Leadership^{Footnote 9}. In 2023-24, the Centre of Expertise will take Character Leadership beyond the staffing process toward a more holistic approach to the identification and management of our leaders. The PPSC will be developing policies, practices and initiatives related to performance and talent management, HR planning and succession planning programs in consultation with the PPSC's National Councils of Employees.

Administrative Services Division

In addition to leading the development of Amicus, the Administrative Services Division will complete a retrofit of PPSC's national headquarters office. This renovation will support a hybrid work environment that ensures the department maintains an equitable, long-term approach to a modern and functional workplace that supports the delivery of remote and non-remote legal and administrative operations.

National Fine Recovery Program

In 2023-24, the National Fine Recovery Program (NFRP) will continue its consultations with provinces and territories to improve the recovery of outstanding federal fines. The NFRP will also continue to modernize its recovery procedures while ensuring it abides by the Privacy Act.

Agent Affairs Program

The Agent Affairs Program^{Footnote 10} will review its current service delivery model to promote efficiencies, and ensure compliance with the Financial Administrative Act. It will also collaborate with information technology services to develop the new legal case management system, Amicus.

Finance and Acquisitions

In 2023-24, the Finance and Acquisitions Directorate (FAD) will work on procurement and finance modernization. The modernization initiatives aim to reflect modern best practices and lessons learned from the past, which include updating policy instruments and developing an updated costing model. In addition, the FAD will continue the transition to a new legal services invoicing system that will align with Amicus. It will also implement quality assurance protocols/framework to their existing processes.

Planning for Contracts Awarded to Indigenous Businesses

The PPSC plans^{Footnote 11} to support the Government of Canada's commitment to reach a minimum 5% of the total value of our contracts to be awarded to Indigenous-led businesses by:

• Developing annual Indigenous procurement planning;
• Developing and socializing internal policy instruments coupled with ongoing training to stakeholders involved in the procurement process to support the implementation and sustain this initiative moving forward;
• Making it mandatory within the PPSC to include a minimum of one Indigenous business, where capacity exists, when using a Public Services and Procurement Canada mandatory standing offer or supply arrangement; and,
• Employing the use of the Government of Canada's Procurement Strategy for Indigenous businesses to:
  • Set-aside large IT and office furniture procurements
  • Increase use of voluntary set-asides where Indigenous capacity is known; and,
  • Increase use of conditional set-asides where Indigenous capacity is unknown.

The PPSC's methodology does not include the cost of legal agents, which are required to support the mandate of the Director of Public Prosecutions, in accordance with the Director of Public Prosecutions Act.

The following table shows in percentage format the actual, forecasted and planned value for the target.

Planned budgetary spending for internal services

The following table shows, for internal services, budgetary spending for 2023-24, as well as planned spending for that year and for each of the next two fiscal years.

Planned human resources for internal services

The following table shows, in full-time equivalents, the human resources the department will need to carry out its internal services for 2023-24 and for each of the next two fiscal years.

Planned spending and human resources

This section provides an overview of the department's planned spending and human resources for the next three fiscal years and compares planned spending for 2023-24 with actual spending for the current year and the previous year.

Planned spending

Departmental spending 2020-21 to 2025-26

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

Departmental spending graph - Table

Departmental spending graph

	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25	2025-26
Statutory	18,953,002	18,875,806	20,879,878	22,053,315	21,512,819	21,512,819
Voted	173,519,503	182,504,427	194,468,850	192,631,768	186,370,925	186,370,925
Total	192,472,505	201,380,233	215,348,728	214,685,083	207,883,744	207,883,744

1. Spending for 2020-21 and 2021-22 represents the actual expenditures incurred during the respective fiscal years, as reported in Public Accounts.
2. Forecast spending for 2022-23 reflects projected spending to the end of the fiscal year.
3. Planned spending for 2023-24, 2024-25, and 2025-26 reflects funds already brought into the department's reference levels, as well as amounts to be authorized through the Estimates process as presented in the Department's Annual Reference Level Update.

Budgetary planning summary for core responsibilities and internal services (dollars)

The following table shows information on spending for each of PPSC's core responsibilities and for its internal services for 2023-24 and other relevant fiscal years.

The planned spending for 2023-24 includes an increase in costs to assist the Canada Revenue Agency in fighting tax evasion in a complex global and digital environment as well as to support additional drug treatment courts across Canada.

2023-24 budgetary gross and net planned spending summary (dollars)

The following table reconciles gross planned spending with net planned spending for 2023-24.

PPSC's revenue is generated from the authority to recover amounts from other departments and agencies for the provision of legal advice and prosecution services.

Planned human resources

The following table shows information on human resources, in full-time equivalents (FTEs), for each of PPSC's core responsibilities and for its internal services for 2023-24 and the other relevant years.

Human resources planning summary for core responsibilities and internal services

The increase in 2023-24 full-time equivalents is to assist Canada Revenue Agency in fighting tax evasion in a complex global and digital environment, to support additional drug treatment courts across Canada as well as support Canada's efforts to improve access to justice for Indigenous peoples, including victims, offenders and families.

Estimates by vote

Information on PPSC's organizational appropriations is available in the 2023-24 Main Estimates . ^{Footnote x}

Future-oriented condensed statement of operations

The future oriented condensed statement of operations provides an overview of PPSC's operations for 2022-23 to 2023-24.

The forecast and planned amounts in this statement of operations were prepared on an accrual basis. The forecast and planned amounts presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan were prepared on an expenditure basis. Amounts may therefore differ.

A more detailed future oriented statement of operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations with the requested authorities, are available on PPSC'S website ^{Footnote xi}.

The total planned revenues will be higher in 2023-24 due to an anticipated increase in time spent on prosecution services. Additionally, the planned spending for 2023-24 includes an increase in costs to assist the Canada Revenue Agency in fighting tax evasion in a complex global and digital environment as well as to support additional drug treatment courts across Canada. These variances result in a projected decrease in net cost of operations.

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister(s): The Honourable David Lametti

Institutional head: Kathleen Roussel, Director of Public Prosecutions and Deputy Attorney General of Canada

Ministerial portfolio: Justice

Enabling instrument(s): Director of Public Prosecutions Act ^{Footnote xii}

Year of incorporation / commencement: 2006

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 on the PPSC's website ^{Footnote xiii}.

Information on PPSC's mandate letter commitments is available in the Minister's mandate letter^{Footnote xiv}.

Operating context

Information on the operating context is available on PPSC's website ^{Footnote xv}.

Reporting framework

The PPSC's approved departmental results framework and program inventory for 2023-24 are as follows.

Text Version

Departmental Results Framework	Core Responsibility: Prosecution Services		Internal Services
	Departmental Result: Timely and comprehensive legal advice is provided to investigative agencies.	Indicator: Percentage of respondents satisfied with the timeliness of legal advice.
		Indicator: Percentage of respondents satisfied with the comprehensiveness of legal advice.
	Departmental Result: Federal prosecutions are completed in a timely manner.	Indicator: Number and percentage of cases that went to trial and resulted in a judicial stay of proceedings due to Crown delay.
		Indicator: Number and percentage of cases that went to trial and resulted in the Crown directing a stay of proceedings due to Crown delay.
	Departmental Result: Through professionally conducted prosecution related work, the ODPP contributes to the administration of justice.	Indicator: Number and percentage of prosecutions that result in a determination on the merits of the evidence.
		Indicator: Number and nature of judicial stays for abuse of process based on the conduct of a federal prosecutor.
		Indicator: Number and nature of successful malicious prosecution lawsuits.
		Indicator: Number and nature of substantiated complaints made pursuant to the ODPP's Complaints Policy
Program Inventory	Program: Federal Prosecutions

Supporting information on the program inventory

Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to the PPSC's program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.^{Footnote xvi}

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information table is available on PPSC's website ^{Footnote xvii}:

• Gender-based analysis plus

Federal tax expenditures

The PPSC's Departmental Plan does not include information on tax expenditures.

Tax expenditures are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for government­-wide tax expenditures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures.^{Footnote xviii} This report provides detailed information on tax expenditures, including objectives, historical background and references to related federal spending programs, as well as evaluations, research papers and gender-based analysis plus.

Organizational contact information

Mailing address

Public Prosecution Service of Canada
160 Elgin Street, 12th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H8

Telephone:

613-957-7772
1-877-505-7772
Fax: 613-954-2958

Email: info@ppsc.gc.ca
Website(s): PPSC's website ^{Footnote xix}

Appendix: definitions

appropriation (crédit)

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

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)

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

core responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)

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 (plan ministériel)

A document that sets out a department's priorities, programs, expected results and associated resource requirements, covering a three year period beginning with the year indicated in the title of the report. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

departmental result (résultat ministériel)

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

departmental result indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)

A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a departmental result.

departmental results framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)

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

Departmental Results Report (rapport sur les résultats ministériels)

A report on a department's actual performance in a fiscal year against its plans, priorities and expected results set out in its Departmental Plan for that year. Departmental Results Reports are usually tabled in Parliament each fall.

full-time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)

A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person year charge against a departmental budget. Full time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA Plus) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS Plus])

An analytical tool used to support the development of responsive and inclusive policies, programs and other initiatives. GBA Plus is a process for understanding who is impacted by the issue or opportunity being addressed by the initiative; identifying how the initiative could be tailored to meet diverse needs of the people most impacted; and anticipating and mitigating any barriers to accessing or benefitting from the initiative. GBA Plus is an intersectional analysis that goes beyond biological (sex) and socio-cultural (gender) differences to consider other factors, such as age, disability, education, ethnicity, economic status, geography, language, race, religion, and sexual orientation.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)

For the purpose of the 2023-24 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities are the high-level themes outlining the Government's agenda in the 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.

high impact innovation (innovation à impact élevé)

High impact innovation varies per organizational context. In some cases, it could mean trying something significantly new or different from the status quo. In other cases, it might mean making incremental improvements that relate to a high-spending area or addressing problems faced by a significant number of Canadians or public servants.

horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale)

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 (dépenses non budgétaires)

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

performance (rendement)

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.

plan (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 (dépenses prévues)

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 (programme)

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 (répertoire des programmes)

An inventory of a department's programs that describes how resources are organized to carry out the department's core responsibilities and achieve its planned results.

result (résultat)

An external 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 (dépenses législatives)

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 (cible)

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 (dépenses votées)

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:

2023-03-09