2017-18 Departmental Results Report

The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau
Prime Minister of Canada

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Canada. Security Intelligence Review Committee
Departmental Results Report 2017–18.

Annual.
Title in French: Rapport ministériel sur les résultats 2017-2018.
Available also on the Internet: www.sirc-csars.gc.ca^{Endnote i}
PS106-5E-PDF
ISSN:  2561-1054

© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2018.

Table of contents

• Chair’s Message
• Results at a glance
• Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do
  • Raison d’être
  • Mandate and role
• Operating context and key risks
  • Operating context
  • Key risks
• Results: what we achieved
  • Programs
    • Reviews
    • Investigations
  • Internal Services
    • Description
    • Results
• Analysis of trends in spending and human resources
  • Actual expenditures
  • Actual human resources
  • Expenditures by vote
  • Alignment of spending with the whole-of-government framework
  • Financial statements and financial statements highlights
    • Financial statements
    • Financial statements highlights
• Supplementary information
  • Corporate information
    • Reporting framework
  • Supporting information on lower-level programs
  • Supplementary information tables
  • Federal tax expenditures
  • Organizational contact information
• Appendix: definitions
• Endnotes

Chair’s Message

I am pleased to submit the Security Intelligence Review Committee’s (SIRC) Departmental Results Report for 2017–18.

Since its creation in 1984, SIRC has reported to Parliament on the activities of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). By assessing whether CSIS is acting appropriately and lawfully in the performance of its mandate, SIRC provides Canadians with assurance that CSIS is operating in a manner that respects Canada’s core democratic values.

The past year has been an active one for SIRC. Of note, the Annual Report to Parliament, tabled in June, contained the findings of our review of CSIS’s efforts to bring its practices with respect to the retention of non-threat-related information into compliance with the law. The review was requested by the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness following a Federal Court ruling. SIRC also moved to new offices in Ottawa in order to accommodate the influx of personnel made possible by temporary capacity funding.

SIRC is looking ahead to the significant overhaul of the national security accountability framework proposed in Bill C-59. Under this legislation, SIRC would be transformed into a new National Security and Intelligence Review Agency with a mandate to review all national security and intelligence activities across the Government of Canada. SIRC’s experience and our tradition of robust independence has positioned us well to take on this important new role.

This report is intended to provide Parliament with an accurate representation of SIRC’s financial and operational activities over the past year, but it also provides Canadians with broader insight into SIRC’s role in supporting the democratic accountability of CSIS. We look forward to continuing this vital work in the years ahead.

Results at a glance

SIRC continued to enhance its capacity to review CSIS activities by adopting its newly developed risk-based planning matrix to ensure coverage of high-risk issues. Further, a long-term planning approach is being implemented to direct a systematic approach to reviews. 

This year, the Committee remained focused on its first priority: to discharge its mandate under its enabling legislation, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act (CSIS Act). This year’s reviews touched on the full range of CSIS activities. SIRC examined large samples of CSIS’s core activities to support the verification process as well as conducted reviews that delved deeply into specific operational activities.

In response to a request from the Minister of Public Safety invoking section 54 of the CSIS Act, SIRC examined CSIS’s response to the November 2016 Federal Court decision on illegally retained data. Two recommendations resulted from this review in regard to current activities and four were proposed should the dataset provisions of Bill C-59 become law.

The process for SIRC’s investigation of complaints was also further refined and streamlined based on best practices in effort to improve access and timeliness. SIRC finalized four investigations over the course of the year and recommended four actions for CSIS to improve processes and transparency.

For more information on the department’s plans, priorities and results achieved, see the “Results: what we achieved” section of this report.

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

Raison d’être

The Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) is an independent review body which reports to the Parliament of Canada on the operations of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). The Prime Minister is responsible for SIRC.

Parliament has given CSIS powers to enhance the security of Canadians. SIRC reports on whether these powers are used appropriately and in accordance with the rule of law in order to protect Canadians' rights and freedoms. To do this, SIRC examines past operations of CSIS and conducts investigations. It has absolute authority to examine all information concerning CSIS activities, no matter how sensitive and highly classified that information may be. The result of this work, edited to protect national security and personal privacy, are summarized in its Annual Report to Parliament.

Mandate and role

SIRC’s work is designed first and foremost to inform Canadians on whether CSIS investigates threats to national security in a manner that respects Canada’s core democratic values. It also serves to provide expert advice to policymakers and lawmakers on CSIS’s performance. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act (CSIS Act) continues to guide SIRC’s work in assessing CSIS’s performance against the mandate and authorities conferred upon it by Parliament.

For more general information about the department, see the “Supplementary information” section of this report. For more information on the department’s organizational mandate letter commitments, see the Minister’s mandate letter.^{Endnote ii}

Operating context and key risks

Operating context

For several years now the Committee has been at full membership, with a Chairperson and four other members appointed by the Governor in Council. In 2017-18, SIRC engaged with the recently appointed National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians to explore opportunities of cooperation with a view to avoid duplication, as mandate by law.

Benefitting from additional capacity funding, SIRC was able to increase the number of employees to unprecedented levels. This in turn has allowed SIRC to further increase its expertise in support of its programs, both reviews and investigation. This additional capacity funding is set to expire in 2019-20.

SIRC issued its report in response to a request from the Minister of Public Safety invoking section 54 of the CSIS Act. SIRC examined CSIS’s response to the November 2016 Federal Court decision on illegally retained data and made two recommendations in regard to current activities, and four were proposed should the dataset provisions of Bill C-59 become law.

Key risks

On an annual basis, SIRC must manage the inherent risk of being able to review only a fraction of CSIS’s activities. The additional three-year funding that SIRC has been provided will allow it to provide more comprehensive coverage of these activities. Accordingly, SIRC’s annual research plan will need to address a broad range of timely and topical subjects while ensuring careful scrutiny of all areas deemed high-risk. At the same time, SIRC will need to ensure that low-risk areas are reviewed on a continuous basis.

Increased cooperation and information-sharing is a key feature of contemporary intelligence work. Yet, SIRC’s mandate is limited to reviewing CSIS’s activities, meaning that its reviews cannot “follow the thread" of a CSIS investigation when it involves another government department or agency. SIRC has said publicly for a number of years that this situation has meant that its reviews cannot examine and assess national security matters that go beyond CSIS – even though they may be influenced by CSIS’s actions or advice.

SIRC received three-year funding for additional capacity. Any positions associated with this funding will be staffed using short term mechanisms, which will introduce certain risks associated with the impossibility to offer indeterminate employment, the overhead of retention and turn-over. Onboarding plans for Reviews, Investigations and Corporate Services will reduce the learning curve, however, it will not affect the turn-over risk of qualified employees. Due to its small size, SIRC will not be able to reduce this risk.

As the volume of investigation files depends on external factors, such as members of the public filing a complaint or referral of a matter from another institution, SIRC does not control the operational demands of its quasi-judicial function. Investigations will continue to build flexibility in its case management processes to support SIRC members to effectively manage and complete investigations.

Results: what we achieved

Programs

Reviews

Description

SIRC conducts reviews of CSIS activities to evaluate their effectiveness, appropriateness and compliance. The Committee approves an annual research plan identifying reviews to be conducted each year, examines CSIS operations, provides a retrospective examination and assessment of specific CSIS investigations and functions, examines information concerning CSIS's activities, assesses CSIS compliance, and issues findings and recommendations. The objective is to provide Parliament, the Minister of Public Safety and Canadians with a comprehensive picture of CSIS's operational activities, and assurance that CSIS is acting in accordance with the rule of law.

Results

SIRC engaged with CSIS and the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness on the issue of the CSIS Director’s annual report to the Minister. In addition to reviews supporting SIRC’s certification of CSIS’s annual report, SIRC completed nine in-depth reviews of CSIS activities. These reviews examined a cross-section of CSIS’ activities, including threat reduction activities, domestic and foreign operations, information sharing, cooperation and dangerous environments.

At the request of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, SIRC undertook an additional review in light of the October, 2016 Federal Court decision in X(Re), 2016 FC 1105 regarding the illegal retention of non-threat-related metadata acquired under warrant. The objective was to evaluate measures taken by CSIS to bring its practices into compliance with the law in respect to the collection and retention of information under section 12 of the CSIS Act.

SIRC actively engaged a range of government and non-governmental partners including academics, and civil society representatives. Counterpart organizations in Five Eyes countries were engaged in regard to working-level cooperation to match cooperation between the intelligence organizations.

Investigations

Description

The Committee conducts investigations into complaints made against CSIS, denials of security clearances, Minister’s reports in regards to the Citizenship Act and matters referred pursuant to the Canadian Human Rights Act.

If jurisdiction is established, investigations include a quasi-judicial hearing presided over by a Committee member. The time required to complete an investigation will vary in length depending on the complexity of the file, the quantity of documents to be examined, the number of hearing days required, the availability of the participants and the various procedural matters raised by the parties. On completion of an investigation, SIRC issues a final report containing its findings and recommendations, if applicable.

Results

For the first time in more than a decade, this year SIRC received a referral of a matter pursuant to section 45 of the Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA). Usually, with regards to complaints made under the CSIS Act for which a full investigation with hearings is required, the normal timeline for completion is approximately 30 months. However, in this specific case, the referral was governed by the 45-day timeline for completion found in the CHRA. While ensuring that the investigation was thorough, SIRC was able to redistribute internal resources to accomplish its work and meet the 45 day target.

Additional resources have allowed SIRC to action every new complaint received this fiscal year to ensure that new files do not lead to a backlog, at the same time as investigation files carried over from the past fiscal year continued to progress towards completion.

Finally, as part of SIRC’s continued modernization process, investigations completed the first phase of its new case management project. This included the review and update of the entire business process as well as the initial groundwork to prepare for the design and implementation of a government approved technical solution, the deployment of which is scheduled for next fiscal year.

A detailed description of the complaints process is available in SIRC’s Annual Reports^{Endnote iii} which can be found on its website^{Endnote iv}.

Information on the SIRC’s lower-level programs is available on the departmental website^{Endnote v} and in the TBS InfoBase.^{Endnote vi}

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: Management and Oversight Services, Communications Services, Legal Services, Human Resources Management Services, Financial Management Services, Information Management Services, Information Technology Services, Real Property Services, Materiel Services, and Acquisition Services.

Results

SIRC relies heavily on its information resources to effectively fulfill its mandate. This last fiscal year, SIRC continued putting a strong emphasis on changing business processes to include the management of electronic documents as part of day-to-day operations. SIRC also continued with the digitalization of paper documents and has been meeting its planned goal.

The new case management system was implemented. This new addition greatly enhances the organization’s ability to track and manage various investigations and reviews.

Analysis of trends in spending and human resources

Actual expenditures

Departmental spending trend graph

The department’s actual net cost of operations before government funding and transfers in 2017–18 was $1.1M higher than the previous year.

Reviews

The increase in spending regarding reviews is a result of the increased complexity and volume of workload related to SIRC's review of the expanded operations of CSIS. Reviews represents 28% of the total departmental expenses, given that they directly support the central core of SIRC’s mandate to examine CSIS operations. 

Investigations

The increases in spending in Investigations is mainly attributable to the increase in work related to Legal Services support of SIRC reviews, complexity of complaint files, and support to the SIRC Committee and corporate services. Investigations accounts for 21% of the total departmental expenses.

Internal Service

The increase in spending regarding Internal Services is mainly attributable to increased salary expenditures due to staffing of new positions. The staffing is related to activities to support increased SIRC workload and complexity. In addition, the increase in expenditures is also caused by the Relocation of the SIRC office, as well as ongoing Information Management and Information Technology modernization projects which support SIRC's coverage of CSIS activities. Internal Services represents 51% of the total departmental expenses, which include all expenditures related to support the needs of programs.

Actual human resources

Expenditures by vote

For information on the SIRC’s organizational voted and statutory expenditures, consult the Public Accounts of Canada 2018^{Endnote vii}.

Alignment of spending with the whole-of-government framework

Financial statements and financial statements highlights

Financial statements

The SIRC’s financial statements [unaudited] for the year ended March 31, 2018, are available on the departmental website^{Endnote ix}.

Financial Statements Highlights

The department’s Future-Oriented statement of Operations is published on the Reports and Publications section of the SIRC’s website.

Net cost of operations before government funding and transfers:

Difference between 2017–18 Actual results and 2017–18 Actual results

The department’s actual net cost of operations before government funding and transfers in 2017–18 was $1.1M higher than the previous year.

The increase is mainly attributable to increased salary expenditures due to staffing of new positions related to activities to support an increase in the complexity and volume of workload related to the SIRC's review of the expanded operations of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. In addition, the increase in expenditures is also caused by the Relocation and IM/IT modernization project and to further enhance SIRC's coverage of CSIS activities.

As illustrated below, departmental expenses in 2017–18 were highly concentrated in two key areas:

• Program 1.1 – Reviews represents 28% of the total departmental expenses, since it directly supports the central core of SIRC’s mandate to examine CSIS operations.
• Internal Services represents 51% of the total departmental expenses, which include all expenditures related to support the needs of programs.

In 2017–18, the department’s net financial position increased by $0.9M from the previous year. The following charts provide additional information on the department’s net financial position.

In 2017–18, total liabilities increased by $0.4M when compared to 2016–17. This increase is primarily attributable to:

• Spending related to SIRC’s expansion in order to meet its mandate, and
• Accounts payable and accrued liabilities.

Total net financial and non-financial assets were $2.8M in 2017–18, which represents an increase of $1.4M compared to 2016–17.

This increase is primarily attributable to:

• Due from Consolidated Revenue Fund, and
• Relocation project.

Supplementary information

Corporate information

Appropriate minister(s): The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada

Institutional head: The Honourable Pierre Blais, P.C.

Enabling instrument(s): Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act^{Endnote x}

Year of incorporation / commencement: 1984

Reporting framework

The Security Intelligence Review Committee Strategic Outcome and Program Alignment Architecture (PAA) of record for 2017–18 are shown below:

1. Strategic Outcome: Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) performs its duties and functions in accordance with the law, policy and Ministerial Direction

Internal Services

Supporting information on lower-level programs

Supporting information on lower-level programs is available on the SIRC’s website^{Endnote xi}.

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on the SIRC’s website^{Endnote xii}:

• Internal audits and evaluations

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.^{Endnote xiii} This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs. The tax measures presented in this report are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.

Organizational contact information

As presented in the Government Electronic Directory Services

Security Intelligence Review Committee
P.O. Box 2430 Station “D”
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5W5
Telephone: (613) 990-8441
Facsimile: (613) 990-5230
Internet: www.sirc-csars.gc.ca
E-Mail: info@sirc-csars.gc.ca

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)

Provides information on the plans and expected performance of appropriated departments over a three-year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

Departmental Result (résultat ministériel)

A Departmental Result represents the change or changes that the 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)

Consists of the department’s Core Responsibilities, Departmental Results and Departmental Result Indicators.

Departmental Results Report (Rapport sur les résultats ministériels)

Provides information on the actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

Evaluation (évaluation)

In the Government of Canada, the systematic and neutral collection and analysis of evidence to judge merit, worth or value. Evaluation informs decision making, improvements, innovation and accountability. Evaluations typically focus on programs, policies and priorities and examine questions related to relevance, effectiveness and efficiency. Depending on user needs, however, evaluations can also examine other units, themes and issues, including alternatives to existing interventions. Evaluations generally employ social science research methods.

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.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)

For the purpose of the 2016–17 Departmental Results Report, government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2015 Speech from the Throne, namely: Growth for the Middle Class; Open and Transparent Government; A Clean Environment and a Strong Economy; Diversity is Canada's Strength; and Security and Opportunity.

horizontal initiatives (initiative horizontale)

An initiative where two or more federal organizations, through an approved funding agreement, work toward achieving clearly defined shared outcomes, and which has been designated (for example, by Cabinet or a central agency) as a horizontal initiative for managing and reporting purposes.

Management, Resources and Results Structure (Structure de la gestion, des ressources et des résultats)

A comprehensive framework that consists of an organization’s inventory of programs, resources, results, performance indicators and governance information. Programs and results are depicted in their hierarchical relationship to each other and to the Strategic Outcome(s) to which they contribute. The Management, Resources and Results Structure is developed from the Program Alignment Architecture.

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.

performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)

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 (production de rapports sur le rendement)

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

planned spending (dépenses prévues)

For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts that receive Treasury Board approval by February 1. Therefore, planned spending may include amounts incremental to planned expenditures presented in the 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.

plans (plans)

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 up to the expected result.

priorities (priorité)

Plans or projects that an organization 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 Strategic Outcome(s).

program (programme)

A group of related resource inputs and activities that are managed to meet specific needs and to achieve intended results and that are treated as a budgetary unit.

Program Alignment Architecture (architecture d’alignement des programmes)

A structured inventory of an organization’s programs depicting the hierarchical relationship between programs and the Strategic Outcome(s) to which they contribute.

results (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.

Strategic Outcome (résultat stratégique)

A long-term and enduring benefit to Canadians that is linked to the organization’s mandate, vision and core functions.

sunset program (programme temporisé)

A time-limited program that does not have an ongoing funding and policy authority. When the program is set to expire, a decision must be made whether to continue the program. In the case of a renewal, the decision specifies the scope, funding level and duration.

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.