School of Public Policy and Administration

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Open Access
The Growing Influence of the Courts over the Fate of Refugees
(Review of European and Russian Affairs, 2008) Soennecken, Dagmar
A number of migration scholars suggest that domestic courts have become the key protective institution for refugees. How can we explain this claim? One prominent explanation identifies group litigation as the key source of the increasing influence of the courts. How well does this explanation travel empirically? The article evaluates this explanation by examining the puzzling behaviour of German refugee NGOs. They have not entered the legal arena directly (either as parties or as interveners), nor have they concentrated on developing extensive litigation campaigns. Still, they are remarkably ‘judicialized’: their frequent engagement with the law in other respects has heightened their legal consciousness. Why have German refugee NGOs made such different choices than their North American counterparts and what do these choices tell us about the expanding influence of the courts over the fate of refugees in Germany and North America? To make sense of the different choices that these organizations have made, we need to understand the role that institutional norms and procedures, in particular policy legacies, have played in directing the behaviour and identity of these groups. For a number of reasons, German refugee NGOs historically have been discouraged from directly accessing the courts in favour of indirect participation. Since Canadian and American refugee organizations follow a pattern closer to the expectations of the (largely North American) literature on the subject, we need to be more careful in thinking through our presuppositions when constructing a theory of the worldwide expansion of judicial power.
Open Access
Extending Hospitality? History, Courts and the Executive
(Studies in Law, Politics and Society, 2013) Soennecken, Dagmar
While many consider court involvement in immigration matters a given, in liberal nation-states, there is actually a substantial degree of variation. This chapter revisits two “critical junctures” in the early immigration histories of Canada and Germany to show that institutions and policy legacies are not just historical backdrop, but actually shaped the strategies of political actors, subsequent institutional configurations, and policy options for long periods of time, thereby revealing unintended consequences, as well as alternative paths that the involvement of the courts (and other actors) could have taken.
Open Access
The Managerialization of Refugee Determinations in Canada
(Droit et Société, 2013) Soennecken, Dagmar
Although refugees are protected by a myriad of legal norms, this article shows that the domestic process of determining who is awarded this status has become more and more managerialized, even in a country like Canada, which has generally been considered a leader among refugee-receiving countries. This privileging of efficiency-based standards has gradually sidelined an earlier push to judicialize refugee determination procedures to the extent that access to the courts for refugees more generally is now considered problematic and ultimately suspect. The article uses historic institutional tools to highlight the critical role that the external, political environment has played in gradually managerializing refugee determination procedures.
Open Access
Shifting Back and Up: The European Turn in Canadian Refugee Policy
(Comparative Migration Studies, 2014) Soennecken, Dagmar
During the last decade, Canada’s immigration and citizenship policies have been radically transformed. Hardly any aspect has been left untouched. That humanitarian migration has also been restricted and transformed has generally been linked to the worldwide “securitization” of migration. This paper argues that the timing and character of a number of key changes also represent a European turn of Canada’s refugee policy, which has seen Canada change from a policy innovator and humanitarian leader to a student, follower and adaptor of a key set of restrictionist asylum policies practiced in Europe.
Open Access
Germany and the Janus Face of Immigration Federalism: Devolution vs. Centralization
(Springer, 2014-03) Soennecken, Dagmar
What challenges and opportunities has federalism held for countries like Germany, one of Europe’s most ‘reluctant’ states of immigration? Although the formal, constitutional division of powers between the German central government (Bund) and the federal states (Länder) has certainly shaped Germany’s response to immigration and integration, federalism is only one aspect of a broader, ‘semisovereign’ model of governance that has dominated German state-society relations for decades (Katzenstein 1987). This model sees a range of decentralized state actors, among them constantly negotiating with a set of highly centralized societal (or “parapublic”) organizations, such as churches, labour and employer associations, leading to at best incremental policy change over the years. While some observers argue that this model will endure and likely also impair Germany’s ability to successfully navigate future immigration and integration challenges (Green and Paterson 2005), others argue that German political actors have been quite successful all along in shifting “venues” to suit their policy preferences, be that “up” (to the intergovernmental/EU level), “down” (to the local level) or “out” (to non-state actors) (Guiraudon and Lahav 2000). The chapter will argue that Germany’s particular version of immigration federalism has facilitated both incrementalism and venue shifting.
Open Access
The Paradox of Docket Control: Empowering Judges, Frustrating Refugees
(Law & Policy, 2016-10) Soennecken, Dagmar
This article focuses on the gradual expansion of docket control mechanisms in refugee (or asylum) law proceedings in Germany. It shows that granting judges more and more control over their asylum dockets was a central policy tool repeatedly employed by German politicians over the decades in the hope that it would stem the flow of refugees into the courts and ultimately make it easier (and faster) to deport failed claimants. Politicians were much more willing to limit access to asylum appeals than to appeals in general administrative law, illustrating how the pressure to come up with solutions for the flood of asylum applications overcame established norms for maintaining equal access to the courts for all claimants. Surprisingly, the Constitutional Court remained largely unaffected by these efforts except for a paradigm shift that occurred with the amendment of the constitutional asylum provision in 1993.
Open Access
Year 1, The Experience of Syrian Refugees in Toronto: Government-Assisted versus Privately Sponsored Refugees.
(2017-08) Salti, Shireen; Couto, Naomi
Research Questions – What are the most useful services and programs offered to Syrian refugees during their first year of arrival? In particular, how have these services differed in the way they offer support to government-assisted refugees and privately sponsored refugees? How do integration trajectories differ between government-assisted refugees and privately sponsored refugees within their first year of arrival? Design/methodology/approach – This study utilizes qualitative interviewing strategies to address the research questions. I have adopted an inductive approach for this research where the theory was derived by gathering data through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with eight government- assisted and seven privately sponsored Syrian refugees in Toronto a year following arrival. I used the social inclusion versus social exclusion framework and the social capital theory as key concepts when analyzing the data. My approach in this research was fueled by social justice and equity issues that emerged within my own life history as a female Palestinian immigrant in Canada. With that perspective in mind, the inception and design of this study was guided by feminist research. Interviews were analyzed for emergent categories and common themes. Findings – The most useful services and programs offered to Syrian refugees during their first year of arrival were government agencies and community organizations. These services differed in the ways that they offered support to government assisted and privately sponsored refugees. Government assisted refugees often referred to individuals they have established connections with such as host volunteers or settlement workers when faced with challenges, as opposed to privately sponsored refugees who depended on their sponsor for access to a wide range of services and resources. Moreover, my findings illustrate that trust influences the building of bonding and bridging social capital and the way in which the host society responded to Syrian refugees’ language challenges influenced their sense of social inclusion and/or social exclusion. Findings also suggest that the orientation session was found to be insufficient by most Syrian refugees as it did not cover the most useful information needed for their early integration period. In general, the integration trajectories of privately sponsored refugees are currently considered to be more positive than government assisted refugees as privately sponsored refugees have less language challenges post migration and have access to sponsors who sustain a social connection beyond the early months of resettlement. Research limitations/implications – By investigating stories of Syrian refugees in Toronto, the study explores subjective views of refugee experiences in this unique and rarely examined group. A larger sample will increase the confidence of the study’s findings and future studies should examine dynamics of these issues over time. Originality/value – This paper presents insight onto the integration trajectories of Syrian refugees from their own perspectives in the short term and how trust and empathy can play a role in facilitating a sense of social inclusion and the building of bonding and bridging social capital. The study’s qualitative approach enabled the examination of pre and post migration challenges experienced by Syrian refugees beyond those typically studied in this literature and led to unique recommendations that provide useful data for program and policy design.
Open Access
Taking the Harper Government’s Refugee Policy to Court
(University of Toronto, 2018) Soennecken, Dagmar; Anderson, Christopher G.
There is no question that significant changes occurred in Canadian refugee policy under the Conservative government of Stephen Harper during its near ten years in power. Indeed, observers note that virtually no aspect was left untouched. The effects of many of these alterations are still unfolding, and while the subsequent Liberal government of Justin Trudeau committed itself to reversing or altering some of them, many will likely be preserved. In this chapter, we focus on changes that occurred to Canada’s inland refugee policy with two larger goals in mind. First, we de-mystify the role of the courts in shaping refugee policy in Canada. Second, we contribute to a growing body of work that reflects on the contentious relationship between the Harper government and the courts. In particular, the chapter examines the mobilization that occurred through and beyond the courts in response to the government’s 2012 cuts to the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) for refugees. Our research shows that while the role of the courts in overseeing Canadian refugee policy is generally quite limited, significant mobilization on behalf of refugees inside and outside the courts occurred in response to the Harper government’s particularly rights-restrictive approach. Overall, we argue that in order to understand the relationship between the courts and public policy, it is necessary to appreciate the broader policy and political contours within which court rulings emerge, and the specific contexts that prompt court involvement in the first instance.
Open Access
Mobilizing European law
(Journal of European Public Policy, 2018) Conant, Lisa; Hofman, Andreas; Soennecken, Dagmar; Vanhala, Lisa
The literature on European legal mobilization asks why individuals, groups and companies go to court and explores the impact of litigation on policy, institutions and the balance of power among actors. Surveying the literature we find that legal mobilization efforts vary across policy areas and jurisdictions. This article introduces a three-level theoretical framework that organizes research on the causes of these variations: macro-level systemic factors that originate in Europe; meso-level factors that vary nationally; and micro-level factors that characterize the actors engaged in (or disengaged from) litigation. We argue that until we understand more about how and why different parties mobilize law, it is difficult to respond to normative questions about whether European legal mobilization is a positive or negative development for democracy and rights.
Open Access
Patrolling the boundaries of belonging? Courts, law and citizenship
(Elgar, 2019) Conant, Lisa; Hofmann, Andreas; Soennecken, Dagmar; Vanhala, Lisa
This chapter explores how courts and law have contributed to the evolution of citizenship. Theoretically, it draws on Christian Joppke’s distinctions between citizenship as status, rights, and identity as a means to analyse different facets of belonging within political communities. Substantively, it emphasizes the United States (US) and European Union (EU) as historical projects where law and courts were particularly important in constructing national and supranational citizenship, respectively. It also examines tensions evident in postnational memberships, such as the de facto partial citizenship of unauthorized immigrants and exclusion of many refugees from any citizenship.
Open Access
An Embedded Systems Perspective in Conceptualizing Canada’s Healthcare Sustainability
(MDPI, 2019) Tsasis, Peter; Agrawal, Nirupama; Guriel, Natalie
Healthcare sustainability has been dominated by a strong fiscal orientation. In an era of budget cuts and staff reductions, the financial challenges in Canadian healthcare are immediate and must be addressed. However, an independent focus on financial viability is too narrow a framing; too limited to allow for the kind of creative, novel, and even radical thinking that is required to fundamentally alter the current course of healthcare in Canada and internationally. Prospects for solving the current financial challenges are likely to be greatly enhanced if we simultaneously account for the broad and interrelated dimensions of sustainability. What would a healthcare system look like if sustainability were adopted as the focal and principal goal? And what might a “deep” sustainability orientation imply for how we think about and manage healthcare systems? This analysis is informed by the notion that healthcare systems are fully contained within the societal system, which is itself fully contained within the broader ecological system. This model, which foregrounds nature as the most fundamental and important system, has both greater ecological validity and particular relevance to the healthcare context given the interdependence between the health of natural systems and the health of humans. Our understanding of nature in relation to health may be key to solving or at least reducing the economic burden of healthcare. A multidimensional systems orientation thus has the potential to unveil new modes of thinking that highlight intersectoral relations, communications, collaboration, and cross-boundary learning for improved health and wellbeing, healthcare performance, and sustainability.
Open Access
Summer Of The Gun - Part 2: The City Of Toronto's Approach To Addressing Gun Violence.
(2019-05) Clancy, Ryan; Soennecken, Dagmar
Research Questions - Why does gun violence in the City of Toronto continue to increase? How are gun violence intervention policies being designed, implemented, and evaluated in the City of Toronto? How are funding decisions being influenced and made in the City of Toronto in response to gun violence? Design/Methodology/Approach – This research paper utilizes qualitative interview and data triangulation strategies to respond to the research questions. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with civil servants, politicians, and researchers who have experience in gun violence intervention policy. The Policy Analytical Capacity and Punctuated Equilibrium theories were used as the primary frameworks in interpreting and analyzing the qualitative interview data. The Policy Window theory was also considered but its ultimate use was limited. Interview data was analyzed, coded, and then explained through identification of common themes. Upon identification of common themes, research data was juxtaposed with other data sources (quantitative statistics, briefing notes, reports, academic journals, literature reviews, jurisdictional evaluations, etc.). Results – The rise of income and social inequality in the City of Toronto is a major contributor to the rise in gun violence. Youth living in marginalized communities do not feel safe and are obtaining and using guns as a form of protection and for a sense of safety. Poor community-police relations and the frequency and severity of violence in marginalized communities are contributing to the reduced feelings of safety. Funding allocations and political decision-making is being heavily influenced by the Toronto Police Service and Toronto Police Service Association. Research findings revealed characteristics of an ‘Iron Triangle’ relationship between the Mayor, the Toronto Police Service, and Toronto Police Service Association. The organization, resources, and inside access of the Toronto Police Service relative to community actors maintains the enforcement-centric policy-approach. The City of Toronto has a strong capacity for evidence- based decision making in the area of gun violence intervention policy. The Toronto Public Service has demonstrated application of best-practice contemporary policy-design approaches in formulating the Toronto Youth Equity Strategies. The short-term nature of funding cycles presents challenges in the implementation stage. Limited resources allocated to program evaluation, the trade-offs involved, high-cost of external evaluations, limited internal capacity for research, and under-utilization of reports prevent the institutionalization of the policy evaluation stage. Recommendations – Opportunities for further research include examining the role of social media in gun violence and the impact for policy-making, the applicability of effective public-health approaches (Ceasefire) for local adoption, longitudinal empirical studies using the policy-windows theory, and social return on investment studies of effective gun violence intervention initiatives. Establishment of new cooperative research partnerships with graduate programs with a focus on program evaluation to build internal capacity for evaluation. Development of an organization to unify the voice of community actors is recommended to balance the power imbalance policy-influence with respect to gun violence intervention policy-making. Research Limitations: The major research paper is a qualitative-focused research study on individual interviewee participants perceptions augmented by data triangulation strategies. This study was conducted at a specific point of time. A larger sample would increase confidence of the study’s findings. As the sample is not a probability-based sample, it is not intended to be used as representative of what is happening in other jurisdictions. Originality/Value: This paper presents insights into the perceptions of policy actors within the field of gun violence intervention policy in the City of Toronto. This local-perspective provides a unique examination of how policies are being formulated, implemented, and evaluated during a time of record-breaking levels of gun violence.
Open Access
Where the Work Gets Done? Functions of Ontario Legislative Committees: A Content Analysis
(2020-04) Gajic, Sara; Klassen, Thomas
There is limited literature examining the functions of Canadian legislative committees as they relate to the creation of public policy. Given the uniquely high level of partisan discipline in Canadian legislatures, it is possible that the political context in which Canadian legislative committees exist make it uniquely difficult for committees to perform the same functions as legislative committees in other nations. Therefore, this study conducts a content analysis of Hansard from 1990 to 2007 to examine the role(s) Ontario legislative committees may play in the development of public policy. The paper hypothesizes that the centralization of power in the Premier’s Office and high level of partisan discipline affects the ability of Ontario committees to affect the development of public policy. The paper searched for instances of the term “committee” in Ontario Hansard documents from 1990 to 2007, a period spanning three governments led by three political parties, and categorized instances in a random sample based on the topic alluded to in each instance of the word’s use. The results indicated that the top two contexts in which committees were mentioned were in the context of altering legislation/motions and consultation. Consultation emerged as a uniquely Canadian committee function that may be related to the high level of partisan discipline in the Ontario legislature, while altering legislation/motions is a function of committees in many legislatures across the world.
Open Access
The Impact Assessment Act, 2019, Climate Change, and Political Priorities in Canada
(2020-04) Offenheim, Alyssa; Spotton Visano, Brenda
The Impact Assessment Act, 2019 was presented as establishing stronger rules to protect the country’s environment and renewing public trust in the decision-making about resource development. The purpose of this study is to constructively assess the extent to which the Act can be used to support Canada’s climate change commitments. Through political analysis, this study finds that as a discretion-based tool, the Impact Assessment Act is designed to accommodate the longstanding economic vision of a Canada, with the attempts to accommodate environmental and social issues highly dependent on context and application. This research can contribute to understanding of the extent to which this tool aligns with Canada’s international commitment to addressing climate change, which can stimulate attention to whether this tool is appropriate in today’s context of growing environmental concern.
Open Access
Public Funding of Ontario Catholic Schools: To Caesar What is Caesar's and to God What is God's
(2020-07) Bustos, Andres Urrutia; Karimi, Sirvan; Ingram, Susan
Section 93 of the Constitution Act 1867, the linchpin of the public funding of Catholic schools, conferred the right to public funding to Catholic schools (and Protestant schools) to protect religious minorities and to secure the Confederation. Since then, Catholic schools in Ontario have enjoyed this exclusive privilege despite the fact that Catholics are not a minority anymore and that Canada has evolved toward a secular, multicultural, and human rights based society. Section 93 has perpetuated this discriminatory practice by a loophole that pits Section 15 against Section 93 of the constitution. Contrary to popular belief, the abrogation of Section 93 can be accomplished through a straightforward legislative enactment, which has not been carried out due to a combination of political and societal factors, rather than legal and constitutional obstacles. It is very difficult to expect that any politician in Ontario will advance a proposal to abrogate Section 93 when a substantial part of Ontario’s population still supports Catholic schools or their public funding; this is despite of polls showing that rejection for continued public funding is marginally superior to its support and despite the difference in academic performance between secular and Catholic schools being less than 7%. Therefore, the proposed “ecumenical” public schools herein may serve as a temporary compromise or as a first step to the complete secularization of Ontario’s education system.
Open Access
Officers of the Assembly and the Ontario Legislature: Reconsidering the Relationship
(2020-07) McCauley, Jocelyn; Constantinou, Peter
Officers of Parliament, or as the are referred to in Ontario, "officers of the Assembly", have emerged within Westminster systems as a recognized tool for enhancing parliamentary oversight and increasing transparency in government. However, in Ontario, the absence of a clearly defined relationship with the provincial legislature has meant that certain officers of the Assembly have felt it necessary to "lobby" individual members and committees, as well as the media, in order to carry out their accountability and oversight functions. This lack of clarity places unnecessary stress on the relationship between independent officers, the Ontario Legislature, and the public sector, and can also negatively impact the public's perception of government overall. This paper looks specifically at the relationship between the Ontario Legislature and officers of the Assembly, in terms of their governance structures, their appearances in legislative committees, and references to their work in House and committee proceedings. It finds that reforms are needed in order to strengthen officers' relationships with the Legislature. Independent officers possess few powers of enforcement and as such, strong ties to the Assembly are necessary to ensure that recommended action is taken by legislators defend public trust and dollars.
Open Access
The Accessibility of Elections to Canadians with Cognitive Disabilities
(2020-09) Lai, Jennifer; Spotton Visano, Brenda
It is enshrined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that all Canadian citizens are guaranteed the right to vote. This research paper explores whether persons with cognitive disabilities are able to exercise this right based on the accessibility provisions provided for in Canadian electoral law. A mixed methodology approach was used to investigate this topic, where qualitative interviews with persons with cognitive disabilities from countries and regions with similar social and policy contexts to Canada’s were used to identify facilitators and barriers to voting. Canada’s 14 different electoral acts were ranked based on the number of accessibility provisions they possessed that could facilitate voting. Ontario was identified as the jurisdiction with the most provisions that could facilitate voting in persons with cognitive disabilities. Trends in the secondary sourced data also revealed that a lack of electoral knowledge and a lack of social support were the most significant barriers to voting for persons with cognitive disabilities. A supportive social network was unanimously identified in the secondary data as a significant facilitator to voting. In fact, it was identified in the secondary data sources that persons with cognitive disabilities that did not have a supportive social network were unable to use the existing accessibility provisions in their region. This finding represents the limitations of Canada’s current accessibility provisions in their ability to facilitate voting for persons with cognitive disabilities. None of Canada’s provisions mandate that social service workers or election officials ensure that persons with cognitive disabilities receive the support they need to understand the electoral process prior to election day. This research paper makes the recommendation that such policy provisions are implemented in Canadian electoral law in order to increase the accessibility of elections to Canadians with cognitive disabilities.
Open Access
Diversity training in the workplace: Assessing effectiveness and outcomes
(2021-04) Kovacs, Gyula; Couto, Naomi
Purpose: This paper reviews the existing literature regarding the effectiveness of diversity training within organizations and examines the empirical evidence and theoretical foundations that support claims that such initiatives can help reduce racist attitudes and behaviours. Methodology: The author conducted a thorough examination of relevant research reported in academic and practitioner publications. Findings: On balance, the evidence supports the contention that diversity training can lead to positive outcomes, but results vary depending on (i) the culture of an organization; (ii) the quality of its leadership; and (iii) the type of diversity training that is offered. Implications: Findings support the assertion that training alone will not eliminate racist attitudes and behaviours in the workplace and must be supported by additional measures to affect positive change. The author concludes with recommendations in this regard. Limitations: The author of this paper did not conduct any independent empirical research. Findings are based on studies conducted by others that likely contain their own limitations and weaknesses, including small sample sizes, inadequate use of diversity training metrics, and an over-reliance on self-reported evaluations (Alhejji et al., 2016, p. 140).
Open Access
Asylum Law in North America
(Springer, 2022-02-16) Soennecken, Dagmar
Canada and the United States are both international leaders in the admission of refugees. The chapter first discusses and compares the domestic asylum determination system in Canada with that of the United States, followed by an overview of their respective refugee resettlement programs overseas, which largely take place outside of the rule of law. The Canadian section includes an overview of the 2002 Canada-US Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA), which remains in effect but has twice been challenged on constitutional grounds thus far. The chapter makes reference to the tension between domestic constitutional norms, the rights of refugees in international law (Hathaway, The rights of refugees under international Law, 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2021), and the growing preference of both Canada and the United States to treat refugees as “migrant[s] who the government may have reason to select” (Galloway Rights and the re-identified refugee: An analysis of recent shifts in Canadian law. In Kneebone S, Stevens D, Baldassar L (eds) Refugee protection and the role of Law: conflicting identities. Routledge, London and New York, 2014, 38) by securitizing asylum and by deterritorializing their borders throughout. It shows that this preference is at least in part anchored in a much older tradition of admitting refugees via discretionary humanitarian admission schemes, shielded from judicial oversight.
Open Access
Bursting the Ottawa bubble: Government Dispersal & Localization in the Context of a Diversity Strategy
(2022-07) Holmes Weier, Jennifer
The Canadian Public Service envisions a future where they are an inclusive institution where all can belong, powered by a diverse workforce that is representative and reflective of Canada. I was curious about how this commitment to reflect and represent Canada could be achieved when much of the policy workforce is assigned to the National Capital Region (HR Datahub, 2021). Could greater government dispersal and localization foster a more diverse policy workforce? To explore this question, a research project was designed that would a) review and synthesize the relevant literature, b) conduct background research on relevant legislation, policy, and data, and c) conduct a micro case study of the knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and lived experiences of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) policy leaders on both diversity and the role of geography in diversity. The review of the evidence suggests that greater dispersal of federal policy jobs to communities across Canada could foster a more representative workforce. This finding comes with a caution that equity-conscious hiring and workplace locational flexibility alone does not create an inclusive work environment. Leaders must also be ready to centre diversity and inclusion in their approach to leadership and have the personal and professional tools to do so. Interviews with ESDC leaders, as a window into the leadership of Canada’s public service, reveals more support and intentionality is needed in this regard. To remove geographic restrictions for diversity purposes with a meaningful inclusion strategy behind it could act as a catalyst for transformation toward the diversity and inclusion vision.