Ministry of Tourism and Culture (Ontario)
The Ministry of Tourism and Culture was created on January 18, 2010 when the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism were combined under one minister. It is responsible for the development of policies and programs and the operation of programs related to tourism, arts, cultural industries, heritage sectors and libraries, in Ontario. The Ministry works in partnership with its agencies, attractions, boards and commissions and the private sector to maximize the economic, cultural and social contributions of its agencies and attractions, while promoting the tourism industry and preserving Ontario's culture and heritage.
Current Minister and Parliamentary Assistant
The current Minister of Tourism and Culture is the Honourable Michael Chan. The current Parliamentary Assistant is Laura Albanese, M.P.P. for York South-Weston.
Organization
The ministry structure includes:
- Minister's Office
- Deputy Minister's Office
- Communications Branch
- Regional and Corporate Services Division (shared with the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration)
- Culture Division
- Assistant Deputy Minister's Office
- Culture Agencies Branch
- Culture Agencies Unit - manages the ministry's relationship with its agencies to achieve shared cultural objectives, including infrastructure renewal and cultural tourism promotion.
- Culture Policy Branch
- Culture Policy Unit - leads the development of cultural policy, sector or industry specific strategies, legislation and regulations for Ontario's arts, heritage, libraries and cultural industries.
- Strategic Policy and Planning Unit - leads the development of strategic policy and multi-year plans, assess research on best practices across jurisdictions and coordinate policy development with other ministries and levels of government.
- Culture Program and Services Branch
- Culture Programs Unit - coordinates and manages all ministry programs and grants for the full range of stakeholder organizations, providing our cultural sector partners with one-window customer service.
- Culture Services Unit - develops and coordinates guidelines and tools for service delivery, provides advice and interpretation of relevant legislation and conducts stakeholder education, training and outreach on key cultural initiatives.
- Tourism Planning and Operations Division
- Tourism Agencies Branch - responsible for policy, financial and program liaison with the ministry's tourism agencies and attractions. In addition, it establishes and maintains an effective accountability relationship between each agency and the ministry within its scope of broader government policy.
- Tourism Policy and Development Division
- Investment and Development Office - works to increase Ontario's competitiveness by supporting destination and experience development in Ontario's tourism sector. In addition, IDO administers the Sport, Culture and Tourism Partnership Program.
- Tourism Policy and Research Branch
- Resource-Based Tourism - works to protect, diversify and enhance resource-based tourism business potential on Ontario's Crown lands and waters. The unit provides strategic policy planning advice, analysis, and facilities alliances with key stakeholders to stimulate tourism business opportunities. It issues Resource-Based Tourism Establishment Licenses under the Tourism Act and Regulation 1037, and supports the development of Resource Stewardship Agreements between the resource-based tourism and forest industries.
- Strategic and Corporate Policy Unit - works with Ontario's tourism industry to implement Ontario's Tourism Strategy; creating and reviewing tourism policy by working with tourism industry associations, and by working with other provincial ministries and the federal government to ensure the needs of Ontario's tourism industry are considered in all areas of policy development. The unit acts as the primary Ministry liaison with Cabinet Office and provides the Minister and Deputy Minister with policy advice on Cabinet/Cabinet committees and Deputy Ministers' committee agenda items. The unit works with ministry staff to develop policy submissions and coordinate their passage through the government decision-making process.
- Tourism Research Unit - guides marketing, policy and product development decisions by providing strategic information and analysis. The section responsibilities include monitoring domestic and international tourism trends and determining their impact on Ontario's tourism industry; forecasting; tourism statistics, e.g., visitation; product research; economic impact analyses; designing and conducting relevant research initiatives (supply-side and demand-side) to increase competitiveness.
- War of 1812 Commemoration Planning
Agencies
Cultural agencies overseen by the ministry include:
Tourism agencies and attractions overseen by the ministry include:
See also
Ontario Heritage Act
External links
The official ministry website: