1. Canada Government

2. For starters…  Canada created its own constitution in 1982.  However, Canada’s government still has ties to Great Britain- the Queen of England is also the Queen of Canada!  Therefore, Canada is a constitutional monarchy AND a parliamentary democracy

3. Leaders  Chief of State-  Monarch  Queen Elizabeth II  Head of Government-  Prime Minister  Stephen Harper

4. Federal  Canada is a federation  Powers are shared between a central government and a number of political units

5. British Commonwealth  An association of nations consisting of the United Kingdom and several former British colonies that are now independent states but still pay allegiance to the British Crown

6. African British Commonwealth Nations  Botswana  Cameroon  Ghana  Kenya  Lesotho  Malawi  Mauritius  Mozambique  Namibia  Nigeria  Rwanda  Seychelles  Sierra Leone  South Africa  Swaziland  Uganda  United Republic of Tanzania  Zambia

7. Asian British Commonwealth Nations  Bangladesh  Brunei Darussalam  India  Malaysia  Maldives  Pakistan  Singapore  Sri Lanka

8. Caribbean and the Americas British Commonwealth Nations  Antigua and Barbuda  Bahamas, The  Barbados  Belize  Canada  Dominica  Grenada  Guyana  Jamaica  St Kitts and Nevis  St Lucia  St Vincent and The Grenadines  Trinidad and Tobago

9. European British Commonwealth Nations  Cyprus  Malta  United Kingdom

10. Pacific British Commonwealth Nations  Australia  Fiji  Kiribati  Nauru  New Zealand  Papua New Guinea  Samoa  Solomon Islands  Tonga  Tuvalu  Vanuatu

11. Rights and Freedoms  The Canadian constitution guarantees citizens personal rights and freedoms like we have in the U.S.  Citizens vote for representatives in parliament

12. Practice Questions

13. What type of government exists in Canada? a) communist b) parliamentary democracy c) presidential democracy d) monarchy

14. Which activity describes the “right of the people” in Canadian provinces in the federal system of Canada? a) They can choose a new viceroy b) They can print their own money c) People can elect a new king or queen d) People can elect their representatives to provincial parliaments

15. Which term describes how political power is distributed in Canada? a) aristocratic government b) confederation government c) federal government d) unitary government

16. What type of government is NOT found in Canada today? a) constitutional monarchy b) parliamentary democracy c) federation d) absolute monarchy

17. Who is the head of government in Canada? a) President Stephen Harper b) Prime Minster Stephen Harper c) Queen Elizabeth II d) King George III

18. Which would be the BEST statement about “The Commonwealth” today? The Commonwealth… a) is a group of former British colonies. b) is a nuclear arms organization. c) is part of NAFTA. d) is a trade organization.