Task force of ex-CEOs, public servants to advise government on public service reform
Some former CEOs and senior public servants have assembled a task force to advise the federal government on how it can make better decisions and be more accountable in key areas.
The nine-member task force includes a former national security adviser to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a former CEO of energy giant Trans Mountain Corporation and former deputy ministers in several departments.
The Task Force for Modernizing Government, launched Thursday, says it wants to improve how the federal public service gets things done.
In a press release, the group says it will consider reforms in three priority areas: digital government and AI, major projects and Arctic sovereignty.
"In each area, the task force will consider what changes can be made for faster, simplified decision-making, more agile operational implementation, better internal and external coordination, and clearer accountabilities with results," says the release.
"In doing so, it will identify the big horizontal issues and barriers across government affecting coherence and effectiveness in moving these and other priorities ahead."
The group says it's planning to give Ottawa independent advice on how to simplify decision-making, co-ordinate internally and modernize the public service. It says it has a yearlong mandate.
Its financial backers include the Clean Economy Fund, the Hewitt Foundation, the Ivey Foundation and the Jarislowsky Foundation.
The task force's executive director is David McLaughlin, former provincial clerk, cabinet secretary, deputy minister and chief of staff to Prime Minister Brian Mulroney.
Its members include: Ian Anderson, former president and CEO of Trans Mountain Corporation; Peter Wallace, former secretary of the Treasury Board of Canada and former head of the Ontario Public Service; and Jody Thomas, former deputy minister of national defence and national security adviser to Trudeau.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 23, 2026.
By Sarah Ritchie and Catherine Morrison | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.