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Policy: Definition
…an overall plan embracing general goals and procedures and intended to guide and determine decisions.
The Penguin English Dictionary .(2000). Retrieved 04 February 2006,
from xreferplus. http://www.xreferplus.com/entry/1163851 .
Public policy changes initiated by…
Political parties (election promises) International treaties Government departments responding
to environmental influences, e.g. technology, other gov’t policy
Interest groups such as consumer or trade associations
Expert bodies
Public policy documented in… Legislation: bills, statutes, regulations Committee reports, proceedings, evidence Record of debates (Hansard) Case law Annual reports & budgets for ministries,
government agencies Position papers by ministries, NGOs, industry
associations, think tanks, etc. Policy manuals
Event Document1. Legislation introduced2. Debate in parliament at 2nd reading3. Referred to committee for study4. 3rd reading5. Senate6. Royal assent7. In force8. Specific aspects regulated
1st reading billHansard for record of debatesCommittee report
3rd reading billPossible amendmentsAnnual statutesOrder in CouncilRegulations
Public policy research Both primary & secondary sources are
important in understanding public policy
Ask yourself:• What’s the subject of the policy?• What jurisdiction is responsible: federal,
provincial, municipal / local?• Is the policy based on law or some other
authority?• What documents express this policy?
Primary sources Crucial in defining policy Primary public policy documents
produced and distributed by government departments & agencies
Documentary research into public policy involves records of • Intended policy • Implementation & interpretation of
policy• Review of policy
Secondary sources Provide background for in-depth analysis Provide clues to help identify primary
documents Examples:
• Monographs & research reports• Academic journal articles• News articles• Reports from think tanks & policy institutes• Position papers produced by interest groups
(industry, NGOs, consumers, professionals)
How to find policy sources?
Continue by searching for secondary sources that discuss the policy issues raised in the document
Use these both for their content and to identify leads to additional primary sources for further research
How to find policy sources?
START by reading your policy document
Note significant groups, events and documents, especially:• Government (ministries, agencies,
committees)• Interest groups, researchers, lobbyists
(witnesses, submissions)• Legislation, law cases, policy papers• Significant events and dates
Executive Branch – Types of policy documents
Position papers Program reports Studies Proposed budgets Task force & Royal
Commission reports Annual reports & other
administrative materials
Finding Executive Branch documents Search the top level web site at the appropriate
jurisdictional level, e.g. Government of Canada, to identify key gov’t agencies concerned with this topic
Continue by searching/browsing web sites for these specific ministries or government agencies
Use the Canadian Research Index to identify gov’t reports and policy papers by topic
Look for references to gov’t bodies and specific policy documents in academic literature and news articles
Legislative Branch - Types of policy documents
Bills Statutes Regulations, Record of debates (Hansard) Committee reports Minutes & proceedings of
committee meetings
Finding Legislative Branch documents
Pending legislation (bills) found on the Parliamentary web site
Current statutes on the Dept of Justice web site
Search the text of the Debates of the House of Commons in Hansard
Commons /Senate Committee reports via the Parliamentary web site
Use secondary source (specialized encyclopedias, indexes, articles) to find relevant legislation by topic
The Judiciary (law reports) Law reports are published judicial decisions
e.g. CCH Canadian Ltd v. Law Society of Upper Canada
Use secondary sources specific to legal materials to identify case reports by topic:• The Canadian encyclopaedic digest,
western, • The Canadian Abridgement Digests• Index to Canadian Legal Literature
You can also find references to case law in academic literature and news articles
Interest Groups
Legislation & government policy is influenced by consultation with constituents / citizens and with interest groups
Interest groups may focus on a single issue or represent a specific political perspective on many issues
Interest Groups may represent:
Industry Professiona
ls Consumers Citizens Think tanks Trade
unions Bureaucrat
s
Activists NGOs Cultural perspectives
(language, religion) Demographic
perspectives (disabilities, seniors, poverty)
Identifying Interest Groups
Start to identify stakeholders for your policy issue by looking at list of witnesses and submissions in your policy document
Supplement this with individuals or groups named in secondary sources (e.g. news) and on association web sites
Check out the lobbyist registry
Identifying Interest Groups’ Positions Go to the Parliamentary web site to
find Committee proceedings, minutes and evidence
Look for publications by or about these groups on the web, such as: • position papers • listserv discussions• letters to government
Use news sources to search for articles that mention or quote them
Other national policy documents Secondary sources can provide
names of specific documents or agencies
Use article indexes, web searches Can search portal sites for specific
governments OR legislative or executive branch web sites
Government structures or their approach to policy issue may differ from Canada
PROCESS Use the research guides and read your
course notes Take good notes as you go Follow your leads Talk to librarians (in person or via AskAway
) if you encounter difficulties Citation guides for government documents
at the end of the guide