GOVERNMENT IN CANADA
How is Canada governed?
Canada is a federation. The federal system of government
means that powers and responsibilities are divided between
the federal government and the 10 Canadian provincial governments.
Canada also has territorial jurisdictions in the far north
of the country.
The federal government includes the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
Government members are members of parliament. The Parliament
buildings are located in Ottawa. The laws passed in parliament
are implemented by different federal departments.
What role does the Queen play?
Queen Elizabeth II is Canada's official head of state. She
is represented in this country by the Governor General at
the federal level and the Lieutenant Governors at the provincial
level. All federal legislation must receive the assent of
the Governor General, within the parameters of the Canadian
institution. This is what makes Canada a constitutional monarchy.
How is Parliament chosen?
Parliament consists of the House of Commons, the Senate and
the Governor General.
The House of Commons is the national legislature elected
by Canadian citizens. It is made up of 301 members. Members
of parliament are usually associated with a political party,
although some members do sit independently.
The Senate is the Upper House of Parliament. Members of the
Senate are appointed by the Governor General upon recommendation
by the Prime Minister. In addition to its consideration of
parliamentary legislation, the Senate is also asked to investigate
important economic and social issues.
With specific exceptions, all parliamentary legislation must
be approved by the House of Commons, the Senate and the Governor
General before it can become law. Most parliamentary legislation
is introduced by the government.
How is the federal government formed?
By convention, the political party with the most elected
members in the House of Commons will take the leading role
in forming the government. If it has a majority of seats (151),
then it automatically forms a majority government. If it has
fewer than 151 seats, the leading party will seek the cooperation
of other parties. The leader of this party becomes the Prime
Minister. The party with the second highest number of seats
usually becomes the Official Opposition. Its leader becomes
the Leader of the Opposition. Since the federal election of
02 June 1997, there are five official parties in the House
of Commons.
The Prime Minister chooses a Cabinet from members of the
leading party in the House of Commons. The Prime Minister
and Cabinet must maintain the confidence of the House of Commons,
a practice known as 'responsible government'.
Each member of Cabinet is responsible for the management
of certain aspects of the federal government. To this end,
most Cabinet members oversee the operations of one or more
federal departments or agencies. The most senior officials
in departments are called Deputy Ministers. They are not elected,
and are, generally career public servants, directly responsible
to the Cabinet Minister.
Top
Next
Previous
Back to Fact List
|
