Off and Running: The Prospects and Pitfalls of Government Transitions in Canada.

AuthorBrock, David M.
PositionBook review

Off and Running: The Prospects and Pitfalls of Government Transitions in Canada, David Zussman, University of Toronto Press, 2013, 299 p.

This autumn, 338 writs of election were issued and Canada's national political parties competed to form our next federal government. Author David Zussman advises major federal parties to commission a transition team 18 months in advance of an election, so preparations should have been well underway for some time. If you are a public servant whose work may be affected by a government transition, I advise that you start preparing by reading this book.

Perhaps no one is better placed than Zussman to have written what has already become the definitive work on government transitions in Canada. Zussman, who twice led federal transition teams, is Jarislowsky Chair at the University of Ottawa and a former president of the Public Policy Forum. In short, his networks are strong, his intelligence is deep, and his experience is unparalleled. This book reflects well on all three attributes.

More fundamentally, this book reminds us how government transitions fit into the broader machinery of Canadian government: when writs of election are issued, legislatures are dissolved, but governments continue to serve at the pleasure of the Crown until such time, perhaps, as a new group of representatives command the confidence of the people's assembly and are appointed to govern. When that happens, a transition takes place.

Peaceful government transitions are fundamental to democracy. In less stable democracies, electoral losers may not consent to hand over power or heads of state may prove unwilling to confer power upon a new governing authority. In the most extreme of cases, the pitfalls of transition can be violence or civil war. In Canada, the more likely pitfalls include negative media coverage, disgruntled party members, a disoriented public service, and insufficient policy implementation.

Zussman emphasizes the importance of sequencing and timing in transition planning by structuring his book into four election-related phases: pre-writ, campaign period, post-election, and consolidation. Although the lessons derived from each of these periods are too numerous to summarize, I will offer a prime example. Zussman writes that "... it is unwise to monopolize the post-election period of a newly appointed minister. It is important to remember that there are many experts and others outside the portfolio who may be helpful in...

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