Political Parties in Canada

What is Politics? Politics is the way in which we organize ourselves so that members of our society can live together in peace and security. Politics is the system we have for working out a balance among the interests of different groups in our society. Our political system gives each of these groups a variety of ways to make their concerns felt.

Canada is governed as a democracy. Democracy is a political government either carried out by the people, or the power to govern is granted to elected representatives. One of the strongest values we share is the right of people to participate in the way they are governed.

Because Canada is made up of very diverse groups of people it is important that elected governments respond in many different ways. When we think about government we need to think about three different levels of government: Federal Provincial/Territorial Municipal

Federal Government Canada’s federal government is based out of Ottawa. The federal government deals with the concerns of the country as a whole. What concerns do you think would be a country wide concern?

Provincial/Territorial Government Provincial and Territorial governments deal with regional concerns and are based out of provincial capitals. New Brunswick’s government in based out of Fredericton. What regional concerns do you think are handled by the provincial government?

Built in 1882, the present Legislative Assembly Building in Fredericton is the seat and symbol of democracy in New Brunswick.

Municipal Government Municipal governments or local councils, look after local matters under the direction and authority of the provincial government. The head of Oromocto local council is Fay L Tidd.

What are the five main federal political parties in Canada? Conservative Party of Canada Liberal Party of Canada New Democratic Party Bloc Quebecois Green Party of Canada

The Conservatives Also known as the “Tories” Is a right wing political party Is a merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservatives Currently forms the government of Canada.

Some Positive Initiatives Lowered the GST Started a Universal Childcare Introduced the idea of Quebec as a nation within a united Canada.

Some Controversial Issues Extended the Canadian mission in Afghanistan. Tried to open up a debate to ban same sex marriages. Allegations of bribing a member of the opposition to cross over to the Conservatives with a million dollar insurance pay-out. Did not create childcare spaces as promised. Taking a hard stance on youth criminals. Cuts to the arts.

Party Platform For Recent Election Cost of living and the quality of life Jobs for the future A strong, united, independent and free Canada Ensuring health and environmental well being Protecting the safety and security of Canadians Costing the plan.

Wrap Up What are your thoughts on the Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party?

Liberal Party of Canada Leader: Michael Ignatieff

Nickname – “The Grits” Have a liberal social policy with moderate economic policies. Strong champion of balanced budgets. Legalized same sex marriages. Legalized the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

Liberal Party Platform Introduction of a national childcare program. Immediate tax cut of 1% for low income earners. Tougher firearms laws-ban on hand guns and semi-automatic weapons. Reducing wait times for medical patients. Strongly for universal healthcare. Increased support and opportunities for seniors, immigrants and aboriginal populations. Increased spending on the military. More funding for research and higher education.

The Controversy Introduction of a carbon tax. Sponsorship scandal.

New Democratic Party of Canada Leader: Jack Layton

Some Background Have a strong presence at federal and provincial elections – have formed provincial governments in Manitoba, Ontario, BC, Saskatchewan and the Yukon. Advocates issues such as gay rights, peace and environmentalism, reducing poverty, increasing public transportation, increasing minimum wage, Aboriginal treaty and land rights, and advocates humanitarian and peace keeping for the military instead of offensive military action.

NDP Platform Make life more affordable - keep jobs in Canada, new energy solutions, affordable housing, and education and training for workers and young people. Family Health - against privatization of healthcare, hire more doctors and nurses so everyone has a family doctor. Reduce wait times and make prescription drugs affordable for everyone. For Our Environment - make tough laws so that polluters have to clean up, protect air, land, water, fish and wildlife.

Bloc Quebecois Leader: Gilles Duceppe

Green Party of Canada Leader: Elizabeth May

Green Party Platform The climate crisis - move to a low-carbon economy and dramatically reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Invest in peace. Using renewable energy sources.

Student Council Think about our classroom representative. This student is responsible to keep the rest of us up to date on what will be happening at the school. What information do you think would class rep. would need to share with the rest of the class?

Every class in every grade has a representative . Our system of government works on a similar principle. Canada is divided into ridings or constituencies. The voters in each riding elect one person to represent them on each of the three levels or government.

The Representitives elected to the federal level of government are called Ministers of Parliament (MP’s). In the Maritimes these Representatives are called Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) but in Newfoundland they are called Members of the House of Assembly (MHAa). On a local level the representatives are usually called councillors. The votes in all levels are called constituents.

Does Our Federal System Work? Read page 126 and answer questions 1 b)

The Power of the Vote How does our political system (democracy) ensure that politicians represent their constituents fairly?

Elections By asking all citizens 18 years of age or older to vote for their representatives the government can be held accountable for everything they do. In an election, voters choose from a list of candidates. Depending on the riding, and what is happening leading up to an election, voters may choose a candidate that best represents their needs.

If a politician fails to represent his or her constituency during their term they stand a chance of not being re-elected. Historically, in Canada, federal and provincial elections must be called no later then 5 years after the previous election. In recent years Parliament is currently (in 2007) examining Bill C-16, which would implement fixed election dates every four years on the third Monday in October, subject to an earlier dissolution of Parliament.

The Party System A political party is a group formed by individuals who have similar views on public issues. The function of the party is to give a stronger, collective voice to people who hold these views. Legally, an individual can be a politician without belonging to a political party, however, in practice these independents are rarely elected because they have little power.

After an election, the party with the most elected representatives normally forms the Government. Its leader becomes the Prime Minister and chooses people (usually members of the House of Commons of his or her party) to head the various government departments under the designation of ministers. The Prime Minister can also appoint ministers without portfolio – known as ministers of State – or members of the Senate to Cabinet.

The leader of the party with the second-largest number of elected representatives acts as the Leader of the Official Opposition. The Opposition will act as critics of the Government.

If the party with the largest number of seats in the House of Commons does not have a simple majority of seats, its leader, the Prime Minister, may attempt to maintain a minority government by seeking strategic support from members who are in the opposition.

Minority Government In Canada, the party which wins the most seats in a general election forms the government. If the party wins just half or fewer than half of the seats in the House of Commons or legislative assembly, then the party forms a minority government. A minority government has to negotiate with other parties and adjust policies to get enough votes from other parties to pass legislation. A minority government must constantly work to maintain the confidence of the House of Commons or legislative assembly to stay in power.

Majority Government A party would need to win 154 seats in order to have a majority government. Anything less, is a minority. In Canada, the party which wins the most seats in a general election forms the government. If the party wins more than half of the seats in the House of Commons or legislative assembly, then the party forms a majority government. A majority government can pass legislation and maintain the confidence of the House of Commons or legislative assembly to stay in power much more easily than a minority government.

All members vote on new proposals, which are called bills. Once passed, bills are called Acts and become the law.

The Party System The MPs of each party meet regularly as a group, known as a caucus. At these private caucus meeting, MPs can express the needs and concerns of their constituents and argue for particular policies. In each caucus, one MP called the “whip” must ensure that all members are present for votes and “follow the party line.”

Cabinet Government Why do you think members of government are expected to follow the party line? When a government is elected, some of the representatives from the winning party are chosen to be in the cabinet. These party members are called ministers. Click HERE to see current MP list and the breakdown of the Party Standings.

House of Commons

Democracy in Action Read page 133-134 Read the Case Study on page 135-136 Complete questions 1,2 &4 on page 138

What we have been learning about during this social studies unit on politics is only a brief introduction to Canada’s political system. What do you think about Canadian politics so far? What questions do you have about politics in Canada?