Day 1: October 20, 2025, from 8:30am to 4:00pm
Attendance
CSAC Members
Dr. Howard Ramos (Chairperson), André Loranger (Ex-officio), Catherine Beaudry, Anke Kessler, Benoit Dostie, Vinamra Mathur, Stephen Tapp
Statistics Canada
Josée Bégin, Geoff Bowlby, Katy Champagne, Eric Rancourt, Étienne Saint-Pierre, Holly Mullin, Rosemary Bender
| Time | Agenda | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00 – 8:40 | Members meet-and-greet | All members |
| 8:45 – 8:55 | Chairperson opening remarks | Howard Ramos Chairperson, CSAC |
| 9:00 – 10:10 | The Future of NSO’s – A Call to Action Presentation and Discussion |
Osama Rahman Office of National Statistics, United Kingdom |
| 10:10 – 10:25 | Break | |
| 10:25 – 11:10 | Update/Hot files from Chief Statistician | André Loranger Chief Statistician of Canada |
| 11:10 – 12:00 | The Credibility of Statistics Presentation and Discussion |
Eric Rancourt Assistant Chief Statistician, Strategic Data Management, Methods and Analysis Field |
| 12:00 – 13:00 | Lunch | |
| 13:00 – 14:10 | Health Data Research Network Canada (HDRN) Presentation and Discussion |
Kim McGrail CEO & Scientific Director, Health Data Research Network Canada |
| 14:10– 14:25 | Break | |
| 14:25– 15:15 | 2026 Census of Population updates Presentation and Discussion |
Patrice Mathieu Director General, Census Program |
| 15:15 – 16:00 | Chairperson closing remarks | Howard Ramos Chairperson, CSAC |
Day 1 Summary
1. Chairperson introductory remarks - Howard Ramos
Mr. Ramos opened the meeting by welcoming members and Assistant Chief Statisticians (ACS) and provided an overview of the meeting agenda.
2. Update/Hot Files from the Chief Statistician – André Loranger
Chief Statistician André Loranger briefed CSAC members on Statistics Canada’s key priorities and challenges, including the agency’s financial position and its impact on human resources during a period of austerity. He provided updates on major statistical programs, including the upcoming Census of Population and Census of Agriculture, and noted the growing interest in statistics related to permanent and temporary immigration status. He also addressed the impact of the Canada Post strike on collection operations. Mr. Loranger thanked the Council for its report published on September 18 and reiterated his support for its recommendations. He remarked that, under the leadership of Assistant Chief Statistician Eric Rancourt, Statistics Canada will begin developing a framework for official statistics. Furthermore, he outlined key transformation initiatives as part of a comprehensive business transformation, including advancements in artificial intelligence, conversion to open-source tools, and active management of emerging technologies and cybersecurity risks.
Council members asked the Chief Statistician about Statistics Canada’s cloud services funding strategy, the potential impact of the upcoming federal budget, strategic plans to address Canada Post strikes, and the financial implications of reduced cost-recovery programs as well as opportunities that may arise from new government priorities. Mr. Loranger reiterated that many financial uncertainties remain but confirmed that financial controls have been implemented in anticipation of austerity.
3. The Future of NSO’s – A Call to Action – Eric Rancourt (on behalf of Osama Rahman who was unavailable to present)
Assistant Chief Statistician Eric Rancourt presented The Future of NSOs, a deck created by Osama Rahman, who was unable to attend. The presentation covered the history and role of official statistics, external challenges facing National Statistical Offices (NSOs), their strengths and opportunities, and a call to action. The call to action emphasized innovative communication, collaboration, agile and flexible work practices, and cultural change. It also highlighted the importance of embracing the future by implementing large language model (LLM)-based services.
Council members discussed the communication and collaboration tranches of the presentation and their potential application to increasing media engagement, particularly through approaches that are related to direct marketing, with trusted media outlets. The discussion also addressed the growing use of artificial intelligence among youth as a vehicle to access statistical information and related insights, and the need to adapt existing statistical dissemination models. As national statistical offices advance toward integrating AI into their production and dissemination processes, members emphasized the critical need to uphold statistical rigor.
4. The Credibility of Statistics – Eric Rancourt
Assistant Chief Statistician Eric Rancourt presented Credibility of Statistics – A Conversation. Mr. Rancourt discussed the concept of credibility in statistics and noted the limited literature available to define it. He proposed the following definition: “Confidence that can be placed in the truth and accuracy of statistics produced.” He then provided context on the topic, addressed concerns related to Statistics Canada data, and explored what it means to produce truly credible statistics.
The Council stressed the importance of staying connected with users and adapting to their needs to maintain statistical credibility. It highlighted improving communication with media and partners to ensure accurate, timely data reaches the right stakeholders. In addition, sharing targeted insights and clearly explaining how and why data is used can further strengthen trust in statistics for data providers.
5. Health Data Research Network Canada (HDRN) – Kim McGrail
Kim McGrail presented on the Health Data Research Network (HDRN) Canada and its relationship with official statistics. She outlined what HDRN is, its initiatives, engagements, and partners. Ms. McGrail emphasized the need for a broader range of official statistics, noting that challenges extend beyond misinformation and disinformation to situations where stakeholders have differing objectives or genuine disagreements about sources and methods. She highlighted the value of partnerships and shared that HDRN and Statistics Canada are collaborating to enable greater analytical flexibility.
Council members discussed the importance of enhancing capabilities in shared analytics. They noted that, under an ideal federated model, data would remain in their original locations (e.g., provinces or StatCan) while code executes remotely to read and process the data. Given that privacy science supporting distributed analytics is mature, federated approaches may offer advantages over pooling all data. The discussion also highlighted the need to consider the social acceptability of federated analytics.
6. 2026 Census of Population – Patrice Mathieu
Mr. Mathieu provided an update on the Census of Population. His presentation covered the 2026 Census collection plan and timeline, key updates and highlights, next steps, and potential innovations for the 2031 Census and beyond. He also provided an overview of the 2026 Census content, focusing on new additions, modifications from the previous Census, and items that were absent in the last cycle but will return in 2026.
The discussion explored how the Census is gathering data on homelessness and the methods for collecting this information. Mr. Mathieu explained that questions related to homelessness primarily target households that include someone experiencing homelessness. He also noted that an enumeration of homeless shelters will take place. Additionally, the Council discussed the addition of the question on sexual orientation and the integration of administrative data in future Censuses.
7. Chairperson closing remarks – Howard Ramos
Mr. Ramos provided closing remarks for the day.
Day 2: October 21, 2025, from 9:00am to 1:00pm
Attendance
CSAC Members
Dr. Howard Ramos (Chairperson), André Loranger (Ex-officio), Catherine Beaudry, Anke Kessler, Benoit Dostie, Vinamra Mathur, Stephen Tapp
Statistics Canada
Josée Bégin, Geoff Bowlby, Katy Champagne, Eric Rancourt, Étienne Saint-Pierre, Holly Mullin, Rosemary Bender
| Time | Agenda | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 9:05 | Chairperson opening remarks | Howard Ramos Chairperson, CSAC |
| 9:05 – 10:15 | International Statistics – Well-being Presentation and Discussion |
Sonia Raizenne Kari Wolanski Brenda Bugge |
| 10:15 – 10:30 | Break | |
| 10:30 – 12:00 | Next Steps - Chairperson Exit Session (In camera) | Howard Ramos Chairperson, CSAC |
| 12:00 – 12:45 | Lunch | |
| 12:45 – 13:00 | Chairperson closing remarks (In Camera) | Howard Ramos Chairperson, CSAC |
Day 2 Summary
1. Chairperson opening remarks
Mr. Ramos opened the meeting by welcoming members and Assistant Chief Statisticians (ACS) and provided an overview of the agenda for the day.
2. International Statistics: Well-being – Sonia Raizenne, Kari Wolanski, Brenda Bugge
The presentation to the Council elaborated on the outcomes and objectives targeted by well-being measurement activities, the international efforts to advance these goals, Statistics Canada’s role in the initiative, and the current status of these objectives. The presenters highlighted gaps and opportunities across social, economic, and environmental domains.
The Council thanked the presenters and discussed how Canada compares with other countries in measuring well-being.
3. Next Steps - Chairperson Exit Session (In camera) – Howard Ramos
Dr. Ramos reflected on the Council’s strengths and reiterated key characteristics that must be preserved, including providing impartial advice, considering the statistical system as a whole, and maintaining independence while preserving its responsibility to the Minister and Chief Statistician. He highlighted the Council’s positive attributes and outlined next steps, which include selecting priority ideas for this year’s CSAC Annual Report.
4. Chairperson closing remarks (In Camera) – Howard Ramos
Mr. Ramos thanked CSAC members, including the Chief Statistician, the Assistant Chief Statisticians and their teams, and the CSAC Secretariat for their support.