Page - 167 - in VULNERABLE - The Law, Policy and Ethics of COVID-19

167Good Governance: Institutions, Processes, and People For an institution known for its risk aversion and its plodding and deliberate nature, the public service has served Canadians well in this crisis to date. The creation, design, and delivery of a benefit like this could have taken months, but the public service rose to the occasion and met the challenge, going from conception to delivery in roughly three weeks. Ministers took the advice of the scientific estab- lishment based in departments like Agriculture, Environment, and, of course, Health. But they came to a judgment on the policy choice by balancing that advice against the economic and social consequences of not doing so. Comparisons internationally will be undertaken in the future. But overall, the professional, non-partisan public service has per- formed well. Coordination and Collaboration As noted, there are several institutions whose primary purpose is to exchange information and coordinate action.8 These institutions allow government departments to coordinate activity, governments to col- laborate in messaging and in action, and subject-matter specialist orga- nizations to learn from each other. These include Federal/Provincial/ Territorial First Ministers tables, the Council of Ministers of Health of Canada, and the Conference of Deputy Ministers of Health (a coor- dinating body with some executive functions), pan-Canadian health organizations such as the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, the Canadian Patient Safety Institute, the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement, the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, and the Canadian Mental Health Commission. First Ministers have used executive federalism, meaning inter- governmental negotiations at the highest levels, to effectively coor- dinate action on COVID-19. Although First Ministers generally meet from time to time, the regular weekly telephone calls during this crisis have been important for First Ministers to share information and coor- dinate policy. The inauguration of a federally funded, provincially differentiated wage top-up for essential workers is the result of this kind of collaboration.9 While these teleconferences and virtual meet- 8. For an elaboration of the need for coordination and collaboration, see Grégoire Webber, this volume, Chapter B-3. 9. Office of the Prime Minister, News Release, “Prime Minister Announces Agreements to Boost Wages for Essential Workers” (7 May 2020), online: Office  of