In Canada the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) is one of the most powerful parts of the government. It is made up of the Prime Minister and his top political staff.

At the federal level, many of the major decisions are made by the prime minister on the advice of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). The PMO is wholly political with staffers appointed by the Prime Minister, not elected members like the Cabinet or full-time civil servants. All of what takes place in the PMO is behind closed doors and the public rarely has any idea who the main figures are.

One of its most important role is in government appointments. The heads of Crown Corporations and Senators are all made by Cabinet, with most of the work behind the decision being made by the PMO. The PMO also includes speechwriters, strategists, and public relations staffers, who shape the Prime Minister's and government's message. It is also the PMO's job to keep the Prime Minister informed about events that take place in the government and the country. It acts as a link between the political party organization and the government.

The provinces of Canada all have similar organizations.

History

The Prime Minister's Office was a fairly weak and secondary group before Pierre Trudeau became Pime Minister. Under Trudeau, it replaced much of what the Privy Council Office once did. Trudeau's PMO became central to his government and many of his economic and constitutional initiatives were launched primarily with the aid and advice of the PMO.

Brian Mulroney also had a strong PMO where he could have advice that was independent from what he considered the Liberal-leaning civil service and the fractious Tory party.

Jean Chrétien at first tried to shrink the PMO, relying more on his cabinet, but as his time in government went on he came to rely more and more on the PMO. Chrétien especially relied on his Chief of Staff and longtime friend Jean Pelletier, who ran the office from 1993 to 2001. New Prime Minister Paul Martin is said to be very reliant on the PMO where he can be sure the members are loyal to him and not to the ousted Chrétien.

Composition

The PMO is presided over by the Chief of Staff. The current Chief of Staff is Tim Murphy a former MPP and then Martin's top assistant at the Finance Ministry. The other top member is the Principal Secretary. Martin's first Principal Secretary was former executive and Trudeau era Cabinet minister Francis Fox. In August 2004, it was announced that Hélène Scherrer would take over the position on October 1. She had been Martin's Minister of Canadian Heritage until she lost her seat in the 2004 Canadian election.

The principal secretary is more concerned with the operation of government while the chief of staff is more concerned with policy and communications.

Below them are separate groups that deal with operations, policy, communications, appointments, finance, personnel, and administration.

The PMO is located in the Langevin Block in Ottawa.

External link

• Website of the Canadian Prime Minister's Office