Browse "Government"

Allotment of Time, rules of the House of Commons, Standing Orders 115, 116 and 117, often confused by the media with the closure rule, S.O. 57. Since 1968 most bills pass the committee stage in the standing committees and may be amended at the report stage, but S.O.

The Autonomy Bills were the 1905 laws that created the provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta out of the North-West Territories (1870–1905). Despite strong support for provincehood, frustrations were evident. The Bills’ most fiercely contested elements revolved around boundaries, the federal government’s ongoing control over public lands and resources and the educational clauses in the Bills.

Although the Reform (that is to say liberal) Party swept the constituencies like a broom, the principle that the majority party controls parliament was not yet established. Colonial government was still firmly in the grip of the governor, who was appointed by London.

Canada's federal and provincial governments follow a budgetary process, designed to ensure control, accountability and planning in the spending of public money.

In Canada's parliamentary system of government, the Cabinet is the committee of ministers that holds executive power. Cabinets are chaired by the Prime Minister (or in the provinces, by a premier) and ministers are most often elected politicians drawn from the party holding the most seats in the House of Commons (or the provincial legislature). Cabinets are traditionally strong, consensus-driven institutions, although some believe their influence is waning in the face of powerful prime ministers and their advisers.

​Canada West, previously known as Upper Canada, formed one-half of the British colony of the Province of Canada.

This page brings together resources on Canadian citizenship and civics. It is meant to provide readers with knowledge of how the Canadian political system came to be and how it works today. This collection is also designed to help those studying for Canada's citizenship test, or for those taking part in Historica Canada’s Citizenship Challenge program.

The Council of Ministers of Education of Canada modelled on the West German Kultursministerkonferenz, was established in 1967 to provide a collective provincial voice on educational matters to federal government offices and agencies and to facilitate interprovincial consultation and co-operation.

 The Council of Twelve was established 1719 in Nova Scotia to advise the governor, deliberate on bills in the legislature's upper house and act as a civil court of appeal. Councillors were appointed by the governor and served for life. Until the 1750s the council was dominated by military officers.

The Council of the Federation (COF, also known as “Canada’s Premiers”) is the organization which supports top-level provincial-territorial (PT) relations in Canada. It was founded in 2003 as a formalization of the Annual Premiers’ Conference, which had occurred annually from 1960 to 2003. Although frequently focused on the federal government, COF also serves as an increasingly important forum for provincial-territorial relations (separate from the federal government) in Canada.

The Conseil du statut de la femme (CSF), or Council on the Status of Women, is a government consultative and review body that has sought to promote and defend the rights and interests of women in Québec since 1973. It reports to Québec’s Minister of Culture, Communications and the Status of Women.

The Crown is an abstract concept or symbol that represents the state and its government.

Crown corporations are wholly owned federal or provincial organizations structured like private or independent companies.

Crown land is the term used to describe land owned by the federal or provincial governments. Authority for control of these public lands rests with the Crown, hence their name. Less than 11% of Canada's land is in private hands; 41% is federal crown land and 48% is provincial crown land.

Decentralization, in federal countries, occurs when there is a substantial sharing of power, authority, financial resources and political support among federal, provincial and local GOVERNMENTS. The less concentrated these resources are in the central government, the more decentralized the system.

Before 1870, the defence of Canada was a costly burden for France and then for Great Britain, invariably against enemies to the south, be they Iroquois, English or the American invaders of 1775-76 (see AMERICAN REVOLUTION) or of 1812-14.

Defence research, initiation and development of weapons or technologies likely to be useful in national defence, is a comparatively recent phenomenon in Canada.

​Distribution of powers refers to the division of legislative powers and responsibilities between the two orders of government — federal and provincial — outlined in the Constitution Act, 1867.

Dominion of Canada is the country's formal — but rarely used — title, first applied to Canada at Confederation in 1867. Today, the word Dominion has fallen away in common usage in both private and government circles.

Double Majority, see MACDONALD, JOHN SANDFIELD.