PCO Clerk Sabia challenges his 50 deputy ministers to come up with bold ideas, and he’s given them a deadline

Michael Sabia says the current moment 'calls for an entrepreneurial mindset, with measured risk-taking and a willingness to seize opportunities to drive meaningful, long-term change.' The 50 deputy ministers have until next March to deliver bold ideas.

PCO Clerk Michael Sabia, pictured before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics on Nov. 19, 2025. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY CAMPBELL MORRISON

August 24, 2026

OTTAWA—It is hard to imagine what the deputy ministers thought when they received their unusual directive from their new boss.

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