Permanent Advisory Committee members named

Permanent Advisory Committee members named

August 23, 2019
Press release

The federal government has announced the full membership of the permanent Advisory Committee on the Charitable Sector. The creation of the Committee was announced in late 2018, responding to recommendations made by the Consultation Panel on charities’ political activities. Imagine Canada President & CEO Bruce MacDonald, alongside Hilary Pearson (former President & CEO of Philanthropic Foundations Canada) were earlier named the sector co-chairs of the Committee.

“This is a very exciting development,” said Bruce MacDonald. “From a galaxy of potential stars, the Committee members announced today are a real all-star team. Their breadth and depth of front-line experience and their expertise on sector-wide issues give us a chance to really hit the ground running.”

The Advisory Committee members appointed today are:

  • Peter Robinson, former CEO of the David Suzuki Foundation 
  • Kevin McCort, President & CEO of the Vancouver Foundation 
  • Susan Manwaring, national lead of the Social Impact Group at Miller Thomson
  • Peter Dinsdale, President & CEO of YMCA Canada
  • Terrance Carter, Managing Partner at Carters Professional Corporation 
  • Paulette Senior, President & CEO of the Canadian Women’s Foundation
  • Arlene MacDonald, Executive Director of the Community Sector Council of Nova Scotia 
  • Paula Speevak, President & CEO of Volunteer Canada 
  • Bruce Lawson, President of The Counselling Foundation of Canada 
  • Peter Elson, Co-Director of PhiLab
  • Denise Byrnes, Executive Director of Oxfam Quebec
  • Andrea McManus, Chair of the ViTreo Group.

The Advisory Committee on the Charitable Sector is established to provide the federal government with advice on legislation, regulations, and policies that affect the charitable sector. While housed in the Canada Revenue Agency, other relevant federal departments are expected to participate depending on the issues being considered.

“We see the Advisory Committee playing two major roles,” added MacDonald. “First, we can help to identify and propose solutions when government departments propose policies that may have unintended consequences for the sector. By heading off some of these issues before final decisions are made, we can avoid the need to try to fix things after the fact.

“Much more exciting, though, is the opportunity to identify and shape new policies that can help charities better pursue their missions. As a starting point, I anticipate we’ll take a close look at the recommendations recently made by the Senate Special Committee on the Charitable Sector, which lay out an ambitious but realistic roadmap towards a modern and much more healthy relationship between our sector and the federal government.”