Question Period Note: MANDATE LETTER – MINISTER OF CITIZEN SERVICES

Minister of Citizen Services has not yet been issued a Mandate Letter.

Current mandate letters were published in accordance with the beginning of the mandate in December 2021.

Work will continue where the previous minister responsible for Service Canada, Karina Gould, left off.

The government is focused on leading development and implementation of modern, resilient, secure and reliable services and benefit delivery systems for Canadians and ensuring those services and benefits reach all Canadians regardless of where they live.

For example, on October 1, the government announced Service Canada’s launch of the Retirement Hub, a new, user-friendly, online tool that provides a simple and improved experience for Canadians planning their retirement.

If Pressed (Implementation of modern services and other improvements)

A backlog of 318,000 passports was cleared last year and improvements continue to be made. This includes a new intake system called Tempo, which are new printers five times faster than current systems. The application process is currently being moved online, which will shorten line ups at Service Canada centres.

Digital delivery for the 2.2 million SIN applications that are processed annually has also been announced

As part of the government’s commitment to modernizing services, the Canadian Digital Service has been transferred from Treasury Board Secretariat to ESDC.

The Service has been vital in helping develop new government apps

The Service will provide the technical expertise needed to ensure the continued development of modern and secure digital services and improve the client experience

If Pressed (Retirement Hub and OAS Benefits Estimator)

The Retirement Hub will help Canadians with planning, applying for and receiving retirement income benefits like Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security and the Guaranteed Income Supplement.

A new version of the Old Age Security Benefits Estimator includes access to new features, including spousal estimates, the partial OAS pension and the additional GIS

Both products are client-centric and user-friendly online tools to help Canadians understand and receive the retirement income security benefits they are entitled to.

Over 65,000 site visits have occurred on the Retirement Hub to date, and daily traffic continues to increase. Nearly 200,000 unique visitors have used the OAS Benefits Estimator since its release this summer.

The Retirement Hub is a meaningful first step in centralizing thematic information for Seniors.

Visitors are exploring information, taking the personalization quiz, and receiving a checklist of steps tailored to their individual needs and vision of retirement.  

2021 mandate letter commitments for Minister Gould that apply to the mandate of citizen services:

Work with the Minister of Seniors to provide seniors with a single point of access to a wide range of government services and benefits.

As the Minister responsible for Service Canada, lead the development and implementation of modern, resilient, secure and reliable services and benefit delivery systems for Canadians and ensure those services and benefits reach all Canadians regardless of where they live.

Work with the Minister of National Revenue toward the implementation of a real-time e-payroll system, and ensure that businesses of all sizes benefit from this work.

“Canadians looking for information on government services should have a stress-free, uncomplicated experience. At Service Canada, we are working to improve accessibility to government benefits and services. The Retirement Hub and the OAS Estimator are just two of the online services we now use to make access as convenient as possible for seniors and all Canadians across the country.” – Minister Beech

“Going online is a great way for seniors to find out about the benefits they’re owed and how they can access them. But there’s still too many barriers, and some find it overwhelming or sometimes incomprehensible. I’m glad we’ve listened to seniors and are improving things.” – Minister O’Regan