More than Talking Heads?!? How do administrative tribunals hear from the public? A report prepared for the Consumers’ Association of Canada – Manitoba Branch

Abstract

Consumers and the general public want a say in the decisions which affect them. However, access to meaningful engagement in regulatory decisions is uneven across jurisdictions, as well as across types of tribunals. Scholarship on this subject describes meaningful participation as that which is open to all, is based on reliable data, ensures transparency and accountability, ensures early & ongoing engagement, has potential for participant funding, and is based on the principles of natural justice. But what happens in actual practice? The purpose of this research was to explore how consumers have and can be involved in the decisions which affect them. Specifically, this research: (i) examined how different tribunals implement statutory requirements for public engagement across Canada (ii) explored methods, dynamics, and nature of public engagement programs and, (iii) identified tools for engaging the public.