RECOMMENDATIONS

• That the role and purpose of government policies and spending be the improvement of the well-being of individual Canadians;
  
  
• that social equity be the primary value and goal of government policies and spending;
  
  
• that increased funding be available for accessible, high quality, affordable child care services;
  
  
• that voluntary organizations play an integral role in the delivery of social services;
  
  
• that government provide voluntary organizations with more financial assistance for hiring paid staff;
  
  
• that voluntary organizations be consulted in the development and implementation of social policies and programs;
  
  
• that special funding be made available to voluntary organizations for consultations with government.

NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

Citizen Participation in Government

In a liberal, democratic society such as Canada, the citizens are individuals who are responsible for their own well-being, and as such, are obliged for the sake of their own interests, to participate in the making of decisions (government decisions and otherwise) that may have consequences for their well-being. From this perspective, responsibility of the members of society does not mean that these persons passively accept the policies made for society as a whole, by the elected governmental representatives. Rather, it means that the individuals actively engage in the decision-making process of government that produces public policies for the members of society as a whole. It means being informed about policy problems and the various alternatives available for solving these problems. It means expressing preferences for social policies to government. Indeed, the citizens of a democratic society would not be acting responsibly if they did not participate in the decision or policy-making process of their government.

The liberal argument for citizen participation in the government's decision- making process stresses the psychological, educational and political benefits of such participation to citizens, and to some extent, the government.