Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to search

Political Science Public Affairs & Administration

Canadian Public Finance

Explaining Budgetary Institutions and the Budget Process in Canada

by (author) Geneviève Tellier

Publisher
University of Toronto Press
Initial publish date
Mar 2019
Category
Public Affairs & Administration, Canadian, Public Relations
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781487594428
    Publish Date
    Mar 2019
    List Price
    $97.00
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781487594411
    Publish Date
    Mar 2019
    List Price
    $42.95
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781487594435
    Publish Date
    Apr 2019
    List Price
    $34.95

Add it to your shelf

Where to buy it

Description

Broken down into five sections explaining how public budgets are developed, Canadian Public Finance presents a comprehensive account of the budget process of the federal, provincial, and territorial governments. With a specific focus on the public policy process, Geneviève Tellier walks readers through the five steps involved in the budget process including agenda-setting, formulation, adoption, implementation, and evaluation.

 

Taking a close look at how much influence key decision-makers actually have over the budget process, Tellier highlights recent events that reveal the political, social, and economic constraints that impact budgetary decisions. Tellier uses key words and textboxes at the end of each chapter to reflect on current issues and new developments in the world of public finance, such as gender-sensitive budgets, performance-based budgeting, and fiscal transparency.

About the author

Geneviève Tellier is Professor in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa. Her current research focuses on the role of parliamentary institutions in the budgetary process, the attitude of citizens toward budgetary policies, and the budget decision-making process of federal and provincial governments. She has authored two books, co-edited one, published several scientific papers, and is currently serving as a member of the board of directors of the Canadian Study of Parliament Group.

Geneviève Tellier's profile page

Excerpt: Canadian Public Finance: Explaining Budgetary Institutions and the Budget Process in Canada (by (author) Geneviève Tellier)

Preface to the English Edition

 

This book is the English translation of one written in French at the request of a European publisher. Such a request from abroad gives a good indication of the curiosity that exists outside of Canada about how Canadian public institutions function and, in particular, the country’s budgetary process. Indeed, Canada is often cited for its budgetary control mechanisms, which have been in place for quite a few years now to slow the growth of public expenditures, and its federal system, which emphasizes the sharing of jurisdiction (including fiscal responsibilities) among different levels of government.

 

It quickly became clear, as I was writing this book, that its content also had to target a Canadian readership. Very little has been written explaining how Canadian governments formulate and manage their budgets and addressing the role that budgets play in today’s democracies. Moreover, many of the studies published on Canada are limited in scope, analysing either the federal government or a single province. Although the budgetary systems of the federal and provincial governments are similar, they are not identical, and some provincial and territorial governments have recently undertaken important innovations. Therefore, I wrote this book for both Canadian and foreign readers, and I have tried to present an overall view of budgetary policies and issues across Canada, rather than focusing on the federal scene or on a single province or territory.

 

This edition is not significantly different from the original French one. However, I have made some changes. First, I updated most of the statistical and budgetary data presented in the tables and figures in order to present the most recent information available. Second, I added new English-language references, especially in the reading suggestions at the end of each chapter. I did not remove all the sources in French, since it seemed important to supply the broadest possible range of research on public finance in Canada. Finally, I included certain changes adopted recently that modify the budgetary procedure (for example, the Parliamentary Budget Officer of the Canadian Parliament is now an independent parliamentary agent), although they do not substantially transform the budgetary process. However, some proposed reforms that could have important repercussions, including presentation of gender-sensitive budgets, Senate reforms (notably with regard to adoption of bills), and changes to the information contained in the reports to be submitted to Parliament, have a serious chance of being adopted. At time of writing, these reforms were still on the drawing board, and we will no doubt have to wait several years to evaluate their effects if adopted.

 

In closing, I would like to acknowledge the following people and organizations for their support for this project: Mat Buntin, of University of Toronto Press, for the valuable support he provided since the early stages of this project; Käthe Roth, who translated the book, and whose judicious suggestions helped me focus my thoughts; the external evaluators for their enthusiasm and relevant comments (and I will ask their forgiveness if certain expectations were not fully met); and the Secrétariat du Québec aux relations canadiennes, for the financial assistance provided in the framework of its activities to support the promotion of works by francophone researchers across Canada. Finally, this book could not have been written without the contributions of my students, many of whom, over the years, have asked me questions and proposed avenues for further thought. Teaching is certainly one of the greatest sources of inspiration for academic research.

 

Geneviève Tellier
Ottawa, January 2018

Other titles by

Haïti

Le sous-développement durable

by (author) Vladimir Pierre Antoine Lovinski
series edited by Geneviève Tellier

Populisme et sciences sociales

Perspectives québécoises, canadiennes et transatlantiques

edited by Frédérick Guillaume Dufour & Efe Peker
contributions by Victor Armony, Olivier Audet, Olivier Bélanger-Duchesneau, Olivier Bérubé-Sasseville, Joanie Bouchard, Stéphanie Chouinard, Sylvain Crépon, Allison Harell, Isabel L. Krakoff, Emily Laxer, Mathieu Lizotte, Djamila Mones, Sébastien Mosbah-Natanson, Anke Patzelt, Derek J. Robey, François Tanguay, Annie Verreault & Elke Winter
series edited by Geneviève Tellier

Borders and Migration

The Canadian Experience in Comparative Perspective

contributions by Asad G. Kiyani, Birte Wassenberg, Can E. Mutlu, Claude Beaupré, Donald Galloway, Edward Boyle, Franziska Fischer, Naomi Chi, Sabine Lehr, Scott D. Watson, Solomon Wong, Victoria Simmons & Emmanuel Brunet-Jailly
series edited by Geneviève Tellier
edited by Michael J. Carpenter, Melissa Kelly & Oliver Schmidtke

La ville inclusive

Dans les pas de Caroline Andrew

edited by Anne Gilbert & Guy Chiasson
series edited by Geneviève Tellier

Legislatures in Evolution / Les législatures en transformation

edited by Charles Feldman, Geneviève Tellier & David Groves
contributions by Marie-Ève Belzile, Ian Bushfield, Steven Chaplin, Cristine de Clercy, Noah Laurence, Alex Marland, Katie E. Marshall, Floyd McCormick, Teale N. Phelps Bondaroff, Ranil Prasad, Adriana Thom & Anthony M. Weber

Policy Success in Canada

Cases, Lessons, Challenges

edited by Evert Lindquist, Michael Howlett, Grace Skogstad, Geneviève Tellier & Paul t' Hart

Ordinary People, Extraordinary Actions

Refuge Through Activism at Ottawa’s St. Joe’s Parish

by (author) Stéfanie Morris, Karina Juma, Meredith Terretta & Patti Tamara Lenard
series edited by Geneviève Tellier