Series consists of administration and general subject files created or accumulated in the office of the Deputy Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, and to a limited extent in offices of his successors in the Department of Manpower and Immigration. The series contains files in block 1 covering matters affecting the Department of Citizenship and Immigration as a whole, and to a considerable extent also the activities of the specific branches and programmes at the policy and organizational level. The files are subject-coded in a duplex-numeric system.
In about 1959, this Registry file series was set up in the Office of the Deputy Minister of the new Department of Citizenship and Immigration for records relating to the Deputy Minister's activities and responsibilities. These records parallel those of the various specialized Branches of the Department, and duplicate them to some extent. However, the DM's files tend to contain documentation of a more political nature, or concerning policy-making at a higher level, than is found in the Branch files. The DM's registry filing system was subdivided into about eight blocks, including one general block and seven others for each of the major programs administered by the Department as follows: Block 1, Departmental Administration and General (RG26-A-1-a); Block 2, Citizenship (RG26-A-1-b); Block 3, Immigration (RG26-A-1-c); Block 6, Indian Affairs (RG22); and Block 8, Manpower (RG26-A-1-d).
The records in this series (file block 1) provide information on departmental policy and legislation (generally and with respect to particular programmes); departmental organization, administration, and personnel matters; the activities of internal committees, and participation in Cabinet and interdepartmental committees or boards; involvement in external committees, conferences, meetings and special social or cultural events; answers to questions in the House of Commons; and a wide variety of other topics. There are only a few files on the cultural bodies reporting through the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. See also files on the National Gallery of Canada, 1950-1967 volume 76 file 1-6-30 parts 1-2, the Dominion Carillonneur, 1954-1966, volume 65 file 2-2-2 parts 1-2 and the Immigration Appeal Board, 1955-1965, volume 77 file 1-15-9 parts 1-2.
Volumes 153-161 form a distinct group of files relating to departmental involvement in Cabinet, interdepartmental, and security committees at the highest level. Most relate to immigration and citizenship issues. Among these are files on Cabinet-level security committees (the Security Panel, the Inter-departmental Committee on Security and Intelligence, the Cabinet Committee on Security and Intelligence, the Royal Commission on Security, and NATO bodies); dated 1949-1972, volumes 153-154. There are also files on senior committees and liaison offices relating to both Manpower and Immigration at the Deputy Minister level, 1949-1972, volumes 154-161. Topics covered include departmental organization, federal/provincial and international affairs, northern development, foreign policy and defence, financial and economic policy, social and cultural policy, labour and employment, and the Constitution.
