OTTAWA - Nationwide focus groups assembled by a federal pollster expressed "frustration" over the Harper government's lack of communication, leaving them in the dark about the Tory agenda.
The newly released findings prompted a federal cabinet minister to say Thursday he's open to loosening the Tories' tight message control.
Treasury Board President Stockwell Day said he'd consider removing the veritable gag on federal public servants that's been in place since the Conservatives introduced a potent messaging tool called the Message Event Proposal four years ago.
An investigation by The Canadian Press revealed in June that MEPs are being used across the federal government to literally script words uttered by cabinet ministers and lowly backbenchers as well as screen media requests for interviews with public servants who have expert knowledge of government policy.
The tools -- aimed at yielding a desired headline or soundbite from a public event -- allow Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Office, through its bureaucratic arm at the Privy Council Office, to stay on message while controlling access to politicians and public servants. They've been used to plan the details of everything from answers for a journalism student seeking information about aid programming to a conference on helping save the polar bear.
When asked about the MEPs, Day told a news conference he's open to ways of making federal public servants more accessible. He noted that the government already makes senior officials available to provide background information before the budget is tabled in Parliament.
"But, again, I'm just being open with you, if you've got ideas on how that could work better, send them in to us and we'll take a look at that," Day said.
The typical Message Event Proposal, leaving little to chance, includes the following subtitles: Event, Event type, Desired headline, Key messages, Media lines, Strategic objectives, Desired soundbite, Ideal speaking backdrop, Ideal event photograph, Tone, Attire, Rollout materials, Background, and Strategic considerations.
Critics say MEPs undermine democracy and transparency because they allow the government to micromanage its message while blurring the time-honoured separation of non-partisan public servants and their political masters.
Canadians who took part in the focus-group research for the Privy Council Office last winter said they were perturbed by the trickle of information from the Conservative government.
"Many expressed frustration over the Government's perceived lack of communication, noting that they did not have a clear idea of either current government initiatives or any future plans or visions for the country," says the January report by the Ipsos Reid polling firm, based on 10 focus groups in five Canadian cities on behalf of the Communications and Consultation Secretariat of the PCO.
"In order to feel confident that the country is doing well, participants emphasized the need for more information about the direction the government is taking," adds the recently released report.
The focus groups were conducted in Vancouver, Winnipeg, Mississauga, Ont., Halifax and Trois-Rivieres, Que. Participants were described as "heads of household or co-heads of household" and were designed to reflect "a mix of gender, age, and education levels," the pollster's report states.
Ipsos Reid acknowledged that the findings were essentially a snapshot that could not be "extrapolated" to the entire Canadian population, but said "they should be viewed as directional."
On the newly released research, Day said Thursday: "I appreciate the level of transparency under which we operate and some people talk about -- some people feel there's not enough information flowing out there; some people feel they're getting buried with information."
Day said he's surprised by the general population's lack of knowledge of government policy. He said when he goes to non-partisan public gatherings he finds that as few as one in 20 people are aware of Canada's "economic miracle," government austerity measures to reign in and freeze spending, and Harper's success at reaching a consensus deficit reduction at the recent G20.
"When I say that our tax plan is regarded as the most competitive in the G7 countries and I ask people that, hardly any of them are aware," Day said.
"Those are called talking points and we believe they're important," the minister added.
"We send that stuff out all the time whether it's talking points, speeches, whatever, we're communicating it daily. If you've got suggestions on how we could do it better, we'd certainly be open to that."
NDP deputy leader Libby Davies said she found Day's words ironic.
She cited the government's refusal to let ministerial aides to testify before Commons committees, its attempts to shield documents about Afghan detainees from Parliament and the mounting delays faced by users of the Access to Information Act.
"We've faced a government, from Day One, that is totally obsessed with control of their own information and how they put it out," she said. "And it's not about public disclosure in the public interest ... it's about disclosure as it suits their political agenda, and we've seen that time and time again.
"And so I think the fact that the public isn't aware of what this government is doing or why reflects on the government itself and their lack of transparency."
