The Auditor General's latest annual report gave rise to the usual expose of the government's latest weak points. The media and the opposition immediately pounced on the most newsworthy and critical parts of that report. Lost in the furor over Hydro One and the Social Assistance Management System was the section on Better Accountability. Certainly not as much of a trigger issue, but at the same time, the biggest issue facing government.
The Open Government initiative was Kathleen Wynne's response to one of the most criticized actions of her predecessor. The gas plant scandal enraged Ontario voters and demanded action from government that would ensure it never happened again.
The Open Government panel, chaired by Don Lenihan, quickly put together an excellent report that appears to have been accepted in large part, by the Liberal government. It involves nothing less than a wholesale change in government culture in order to restore voter trust in their elected representatives. Bureaucrats who have historically relied on back room deliberations and carefully scripted media points are now expected to engage in public consultations and justify their plans with facts from accepted sources.
One Ministry, in particular, seems to be having trouble making the transition. Northern Development and Mines continues to avoid open public consultations about the future of Ontario Northland, one of the biggest economic drivers in the region. It is one thing to be a maverick and run against the tide, but if a Ministry chooses that path, it is vital that they are seen as a positive influence. Otherwise, they are just getting in the way.
So, lets examine the record of the only Regional Ministry in Ontario.
In the book Governance in Northern Ontario Economic Development and Policy Making, Professor Bob Segsworth of Laurentian University writes a chapter on Results Measurement and Economic Development in Northern Ontario.
Critical of the measurements used by MNDM, Prof. Segsworth suggests 14 more relevant criteria, based on statistical information that is already available. (used with permission)
I have presented those numbers here, in a format that hopefully illustrates how Northern Ontario has fared with a separate regional ministry in charge, in relation to the overall performance of the province.
As Professor Segsworth points out, over the time period government has dedicated efforts to the economic well-being of our region, Northern Ontario has lagged the province as a whole in all of the indicators except one.
The Dependency Rate 1 is the ratio of people under age 15 and over 64 divided by the number of people of workforce age 15 to 64 and is the only measure where Northern Ontario has an advantage over Ontario. Dependency Rate 2, however is the number of people aged 65 and over divided by the workforce age bracket and shows a much higher ratio. Given the trend toward longer lifespans and declining birthrate, our advantage has likely eroded since 2006.
MNDM is not much help in providing any evidence to the contrary as their Annual Report does not show any measures that might reasonably be expected to disprove these results. This, in spite of findings by the Drummond Report, the Auditor General and other Associations that Northern Ontario needs specific economic measurements in order to gauge government's response to the challenges.
We now have the Northern Policy Institute where the various data collections that do exist can be warehoused, and Northerners of all stripes can voice their concerns about government policy. The Ministry of Northern Development and Mines has not produced any meaningful benefit for the region and according to the Auditor General, may have caused other provincially mandated Ministries to bypass the North in their service.
Perhaps the time has come to restructure provincial government services by dismantling MNDM in favour of a more efficient delivery system and actually invest the savings in much needed infrastructure.
