pre-sessional caucus | caucus pre-sessional retreat

Students will understand and experience the pre-Question Period caucus (strategy session) from the points of view of the government, the Official Opposition, a second opposition party, and the media.

It involved developing messages and strategic approaches to budget communications; drafting a speech strategy for the minister's budget speech; managing the timelines and critical path of key budget-related communications; providing creative suggestions, counsel, and planning related to pre- and post-budget events; acting as liaison between the minister's office and the Department of Finance for budget-related communications products; coordinating revisions to communications materials from the minister's office to the Department of Finance; attending detailed budget page-turner meetings, which involved going page-by-page through the budget plan, the briefing book, and fiscal-balance materials; developing and conducting budget lock-up ...[+++] presentations for cabinet ministers and government caucus staff; attending pre-budget speech and media training and practice sessions with the minister; and fact-checking communications materials for accuracy and consistency.