Introducing the Canadian Policy Table

Our simple way of comparing and understanding government plans.

The Canadian Policy Table is a curated table of future plans outlined by governments at the start of their mandate to govern. The political scientists at Political Affairs Analytics Inc. extracted the future plans governments mentioned in their latest Throne Speech, equivalent to the Inaugural Speech in Quebec. Comparing the themes in these governments plans offers interesting insight into regional and national priorities. Trends such as a national fixation on expanding the Health Care workforce, are quickly elucidated from this important dataset.

Throne Speeches are given at the start of a government's session and outline upcoming agenda and priorities. The concrete future plans found in these speeches are classified and sorted thematically.

A statement is included in the policy table the source text

a) Indicates future action*

b) Specifies the action or intended result

* Statements that indicate that something needs to be done are not included unless attached with promises of action to resolve or work on the identified need

Governments starting commitments found in provinces most recent throne speeches.

Provincial Policies Dominate

The plans and policies from the 10 Provinces make up the bulk of the 687 plans in the Policy Table. New Brunswick tops the list with 122 concrete plans outlined on November 19, 2024, almost 4x the amount we found in the Nova Scotia Throne Speech on October 12, 2021.

But are they SMART plans?

Not all plans are created equal. Particularly from a voter's perspective of trying to quickly see what the government is planning. Here at Political Affairs Analytics Inc. , we prefer government plans that are SMART—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Plans that clearly outline objectives (Specific), include metrics to track progress (Measurable), are realistic and feasible (Achievable), align with voter priorities and political realities (Relevant), and have clear deadlines or timelines (Time-bound). These qualities are important for plans that governments publicize, not only to increase clarity but to also empower voters with greater understanding to track government performance.

Unfortunately many, and more of the plans outlined, as seen in the Throne Speeches, lack most of the attributes that make for smart plans. Many of these incomplete plans and policies contain greater clarification and detail in sources outside throne speeches. We would like it if governments included these details in the speech, considering communicating government plans is the intent of this democratic mechanism. Updates will follow if we will be able to curate a further table from the many dispirit sources that the many governments use to further discuss their full and half baked plans.

Example of partial plan in British Columbia Throne Speech

Differing Responsibilities

Looking at the count of throne speech plans by theme count quickly shows how much the priorities, responsibilities and plans of the Federal and Provincial governments vary.

Health Care Crisis

Because the table is provincially dominated, plans about health care are very popular.