Site MenuMeeting Summary – Annual General Meeting of June 13–14, 2013
Closing Remarks by Marc Mayrand
The CEO thanked ACPP members for their participation and noted that suggestions made by members during the annual general meeting will be useful to the agency.
Once new legislation is announced, Elections Canada plans to host a special information session or general meeting with ACPP members to present changes that will have been introduced, and their implications for political parties. A number of privacy-related concerns were raised during the meeting. Some of these may be addressed in the legislation; if not, Elections Canada may hold more discussions with political parties. The CEO noted that not only are privacy issues an Elections Canada matter, but that it is also in the interest of political parties to perform due diligence when dealing with privacy issues.
Many members referred to the regulatory burden. Elections Canada has put forward recommendations to PROC previously to help address this, such as removing the requirement for audits for small parties. This change may be reflected in the upcoming legislation. Elections Canada continues to be open to suggestions on how to address the administrative burden. It is important to note, however, that Elections Canada's role is to administer the Canada Elections Act and that it cannot change what is prescribed by the law.
If there is no legislation in time for the 2015 election, there are a number of administrative measures that Elections Canada can put in place to facilitate compliance with rules and regulations. Elections Canada plans to run a campaign to raise awareness about fraudulent activities. The agency's approach to monitoring compliance will be adjusted. Lastly, all parties are encouraged to provide detailed examples of processes that do not work; Elections Canada receives many anecdotal examples, but it is difficult to act on them if they are not supported by evidence.
The next annual general meeting of the ACPP is anticipated to take place in June 2014.