CHV2O Civics

Government in Canada

Governing Canada The British North America Act (or BNA Act) of 1867 did not just establish the right of four colonies — New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and the Canadas — to unite and determine their own laws for their citizens inside their territory The BNA Act also set out exactly how our government would be formed In 1982, the Constitution Act by the government of Pierre Elliot Trudeau changed its supreme law to be the constitution, which all laws have to comply with Only one province did not sign that act: Quebec

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is part of our constitution

Canadian Rights & Freedoms Democratic rights: the right to vote for each citizen within a regular time period unless in times of war, invasion or insurrection, when a two-thirds majority in the Commons can suspend the voting rights of Canadian citizens until the crisis is over Fundamental freedoms: the right to act your conscience, follow your own religious practice, express yourself in public, meet those you want and work together as a group — as long as these actions do not impinge on the freedoms of others

Canadian Rights & Freedoms Mobility rights: the right to move freely in Canada, in and out of Canada, and earn a living (subject to certain limitations) Legal rights: the rights to be treated fairly by the law, including trials in a reasonable time by an impartial jury Equality rights: the right not to be discriminated upon because of your gender, race, national or ethnic origin, religion, age, mental or physical disability, or sexual preference (subject to certain limitations)

Canadian Rights & Freedoms Official language rights: which enshrine in the Constitution that Canadians have the right to be served in their choice of official languages (French and English) by the Government of Canada and any officially bilingual entity Minority language education rights

Notwithstanding Also included in the Constitution is the notwithstanding clause Any province can use the notwithstanding clause to pass a law that overrides the Constitution — except in cases where it affects gender Laws passed with notwithstanding clauses can only last five years but are renewable before then Discuss: Which provinces do you know have used the notwithstanding clause?

Changing the Charter The Charter can only be changed if seven provinces agree to its change AND more than half of the population agrees as well! Challenges to the charter can be made at the Supreme Court of Canada, which is the only body in Canada that can decide what is a “reasonable limit” than be justified in a “free and democratic society” Not everyone agrees with the court on every decision Discuss: Do you believe the Supreme Court of Canada was justified in placing a limit on how long a case may be prepared before it is either tried or thrown out, no matter the crime?

Accountability One very important right that all Canadians have is the right for information from the government so that they can be informed about what their government is doing on their behalf It is called the Freedom of Information Act All citizens need access to the hansard, or written record of what is said (or minutes for municipal meetings) The government — including its agencies of the police, RCMP and CSIS — is also limited to how much information it can collect on its citizens To ensure the government is following the rules of what it can collect, there is a Privacy Commissioner

Accountability To ensure your taxes are being spent responsibly, there is also an Auditor General who’s job is to go through the budget, line by line, and see where all your money is being spent — noting where it is being mis-spent and offering recommendations as to how the government can save money Finally, Canadians can appeal to the Ombudsman to intervene on their behalf and make sure the government is treating them with the respect they deserve

Another key part of accountability is Question Period, when the government must respond to questions posed by the opposition

It the job of the Speaker of the House to make sure that MPs act civil to each other while sitting in the House or Legislature

Canadian Monarchy Because we are a constitutional monarchy, the most powerful person in the government is the monarch As a colony of Britain, our monarch is that of Great Britain At present, the monarch is HRM Queen Elizabeth II It is for this reason she is on our money and postage stamps The Queen may refuse (or veto) any legislation passed by the Canadian government if she feels the law runs against the core principles of the country

Canadian Monarchy The Queen also has final decision as to who is the government In British history, there is an instance of a government being unable to pass legislation and the King choosing to switch the sides (that is, make the government the opposition and the opposition in the government) rather than call an election However, because the Queen is busy in England, her power over the government and to act as Canada’s head of state is shared with the Governor General The Governor General accepts all ambassadors to Canada — not the Prime Minister

Three Branches When it comes to the government itself, power is divided into three: the legislature, the executive and the judiciary The legislature makes the laws It consists of the House of Commons and the Senate The executive manages the government’s business and plans for the future of the country It consists of the Prime Minister and their cabinet The judiciary interprets the laws It consists of the Supreme Court Of Canada

Political Parties When people run for office, they usually do so as members of established political parties Political parties are groups that share the same values and work together to achieve things they believe in The stated values and ideas are called the party platform The party has a member called the whip who’s job is to make sure all members of the party adhere to the party’s policies The main goal of the party is to have enough seats to form the government and direct policy Most Canadians are not members of a political party

The Legislature Members of Parliament (or MPs) sit in the House of Commons Each is elected to represent specific geographic areas — also called ridings or constituencies The party with the most seats after the election forms the government with the permission of the Governor General The leader of the governing party is the Prime Minister To help the Prime Minister make decisions, he selects the Cabinet (usually made of MPs) to direct key parts of the government for him The party with the next number of seats is the Official Opposition

The Cabinet Some key Cabinet positions are: Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Agriculture & Agri-Food Indigenous & Northern Affairs President of the Treasury Board Fisheries, Ocean & Coast Guard Finance Justice (Attorney General) Foreign Affairs Health Families, Children and Social Development Transport La Francophonie Natural Resources Canadian Heritage National Revenue Veteran Affairs Environment & Climate Change National Defense Infrastructure and Communities Status Of Women Employment, Workforce Development International Trade Immigration, Refugees & Citizenship

Canada Today Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Opposition leader Andrew Scheer NDP leader Thomas Mulclair Bloc leader Martine Ouellet

The Legislature Senators means more than players in the NHL: it also refers to people sitting in the Senate Senators are not elected Senators hold their seats until the age of 75 or until they choose to resign from their seat

The Federal System When it comes to the government itself, Canada practices what is called the federal system This means that the power to govern is divided between a body that oversees the country as a whole (our “federal” government in Ottawa) and bodies that look after regions of the country (also called “provincial government”) Lieutenant Governors act as the Governor General for everything except ambassadors (that is federal) There is no provincial Senate — just the Legislature Premiers are the leaders of provincial governments

Ontario Today Premier Kathleen Wynne Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Dowdeswell Opposition leader Patrick Brown NDP leader Andrea Horwath

The Federal System The BNA Act of 1867 separates the powers of province and federal government The federal government is responsible for: peace, order & good government, plus public debt, currency, banking, postal service, employment insurance, defence & criminal law The provincial government is responsible for: direct taxation (such as license fees), prisons, health care, municipal government, education, and anything that is province-related

The Federal System However, there are times when the Prime Minister and his Cabinet must meet and work with the Premiers and their Cabinets This usually occurs when issues of safety, health, taxes, trade and transportation arise because it affects both levels of government For example: Justin Trudeau’s government wants to legalize marijuana but the sale of controlled substances like alcohol and tobacco – as well as the taxes on those substances – is the jurisdiction of the provinces, not Ottawa