Canadian Parliament

A

The House of Commons

At its most basic, Commons consists of two parts—the prime minister and Cabinet, which constitute the government, and the MPs. The prime minister and cabinet ministers, usually MPs themselves, function as Canada’s executive branch, proposing and implementing laws and initiatives. The other MPs function as the legislative branch, passing laws. As leader of the government, the prime minister holds the most power in Commons. The prime minister is the leader of the political party with the greatest number of seats in Commons. If the party with the most seats in Commons changes leaders, the governor-general will automatically invite the new leader to form a new government.

As leader of the government, the prime minister has a number of powers that can be used to influence other MPs. First, the prime minister can call for a general election any time within the five-year maximum life of each Parliament. The prime minister can use this power to put opposition parties at a disadvantage, by choosing a time when the government party is most popular. The prime minister can even stifle dissent in his or her own party, since the election of a new Parliament dissolves the old one, and MPs of all parties have to campaign to win reelection. Second, the prime minister controls several thousand appointments to positions in the Cabinet, the Senate, public agencies, the courts, and elsewhere.

In the case of cabinet appointments, prime ministers are technically free to appoint whomever they want, and they usually appoint someone from among the members of their party in Commons. Prime ministers are expected to appoint a balanced Cabinet by considering criteria such as an MP’s region, language (English and French are the official languages), gender, ethnic background, experience, and policy perspective. Generally the only cabinet minister from outside Commons is the leader of the government party in the Senate. The prime minister will sometimes ask additional senators to join the Cabinet if there are no MPs in the governing party to represent a particular region or language group. The prime minister decides the size and structure of the Cabinet, sets its agenda, and presides over its meetings.

A majority government exists when the ruling party holds more than half of the seats in Commons. In this situation the legislative process is quite predictable, and government-sponsored bills and budgets are rarely defeated, since MPs in the government’s party feel bound by party loyalty. Six of the 14 general elections between 1957 and 1997 resulted in minority governments, in which the party that won the most seats held less than half of them. When there is a minority government, the government party must rely on support from members of other parties to pass legislation. In a minority government situation, the opinions of the MPs from other parties supporting the government party carry more weight. There is a growing concern that majority governments concentrate too much power in the hands of the prime minister and Cabinet, leaving other MPs with too little influence in the national policy process.

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The best opportunity for MPs to influence government policies is through work in the standing committees of Commons. Committees in Commons perform three functions: they examine bills, review the estimates (budget proposals for the next fiscal year), and conduct inquiries into public policy issues. Standing committees usually have about ten members representing the parties in proportion to their respective strength in Commons. The committees consider all matters referred to them by Commons, including budgets, and they produce regular reports on the various government departments. Subcommittees form to deal with narrower topics. MPs serve on an average of two committees (cabinet ministers and leaders of opposition parties are not members of Commons committees). The government insists on tight control over the committee proceedings. However, some MPs want to create more independent committees, which would have more freedom to question or change government-sponsored bills.

B

The Senate

The two most notable structural features of the Senate are that it is appointed and that the prime minister and Cabinet do not take part in its proceedings. The Senate has three official roles: to consider regional concerns, to be a chamber of “sober, second thought,” and to protect minorities. (The framers of the constitution were referring not to ethnic minorities, but to any group whose perspective could be trampled by the majority.) Canada’s founders anticipated that the Senate would play a less important role than Commons because its members are not elected. Senators rarely introduce bills but closely evaluate the ones passed up from Commons. Although the Senate can reject or defeat any bill approved by Commons, it rarely does.

The Senate meets less frequently than Commons. It does not have a question period involving ministers, such as the daily event in Commons that draws most of the media attention. Most bills are introduced in Commons, so there is a delay before they reach the Senate. When examining bills, senators may point out the need for technical amendments, but when the government party has a majority in the Senate, the Senate seldom seeks to modify the substance of proposed legislation.

Senators do their most significant work in the standing and special committees. Like their counterparts in Commons, Senate committees review bills, evaluate expenditures and programs, and conduct inquiries into public policy issues. Senate committees often produce more thorough reports than Commons committees for a variety of reasons: Senators do not face reelection pressures; they are less partisan in their approach; and they have more time in office than MPs.

Critics insist that the Senate has failed at carrying out its official duties. They say the Senate does not provide an effective voice for regional concerns because party loyalty has taken precedence. Critics also charge that the Senate has not acted as a chamber of sober second thought and a check on government because, as appointees chosen by the prime minister, senators have endorsed the government’s positions. Finally, critics say that the Senate has failed to protect the rights of minorities, again because the Senate generally follows the majority party’s position. However, many political observers say the complaints about the Senate are overblown. Since senators can often be holdovers appointed by a prior government, they sometimes oppose the current government’s positions for partisan reasons. Many of the Senate’s shortcomings can more appropriately be attributed to its being ignored by successive governments than to a lack of commitment or effort by senators themselves. The Senate occasionally proposes substantive changes to bills, but the government often resists making these changes.

For more than a century critics have called for reforms. Proposed reforms include making the Senate an elected body or one whose members are appointed by the provincial governments. But constitutional and political obstacles have prevented fundamental reforms.

C

The Governor-General

The Constitution Act of 1867 essentially made Canada an independent nation, but stated “the executive government of and over Canada is declared to continue to be vested in the Queen.” Today, Queen Elizabeth II of Britain is also recognized as the hereditary sovereign of Canada. She serves as Canada’s head of state. The governor-general is the queen’s representative in Canada. However, the governor-general has limited powers. No bill may become law without royal assent, but the governor-general has never withheld it. The governor-general follows the advice of the prime minister for almost everything he or she does even though the governor-general retains the right to encourage or warn ministers about their actions.

In short, the role of the governor-general within Parliament has become largely ceremonial, such as reading the Speech from the Throne, the announcement of the government’s legislative plans at the opening of a new Parliament. The governor-general can exercise his or her powers to check the prime minister and Cabinet if they flagrantly disregard the law or the unwritten conventions of the constitution, but this is very rare.

VII

Parliamentary Sessions

Sessions of Parliament begin with a summons from the governor-general. The first session of each new Parliament after a general election opens with a Speech from the Throne read by the governor-general. A session lasts for about eight months, and there must be at least one session per year. In the course of a session adjournments sometimes occur, and MPs can return to their ridings during these adjournments. In practice the government controls the timing of the close of a session and this usually occurs after both houses have finished approving or rejecting all of the government’s bills and estimates. The governor-general makes a speech reviewing what has happened, and then prorogues (officially ends) Parliament until the next session. If a government is defeated on a significant vote in Commons and an election is called, the governor-general dissolves the existing Parliament until a new Commons is elected. By law, campaigns for national election last 36 days. The Senate does not meet during the campaign period.

The House of Commons and the Senate each meet in their own chambers, with provision to meet jointly in the Senate chamber for occasions such as the Speech from the Throne. Both houses occupy the Centre Block of the Parliament buildings in Ottawa, Ontario, with Commons at the west end and the Senate at the east end.

In Commons the prime minister, cabinet ministers, and government supporters sit to the right of the Speaker, who is the presiding officer of Commons. The prime minister occupies the 13th place in the front row, and the cabinet ministers are clustered around him.

Directly opposite the prime minister sit the leader of the official opposition and the members of the shadow cabinet (critics of the government appointed by the opposition leader). The official opposition is the party with the second-largest number of seats in Commons, but other parties can join the official opposition against the government and its party. The opposition is very important in holding the government accountable to the people. As a result, the opposition leaders are allotted extra salary, research funds, and other benefits to enable them to challenge the government.

Members who are not part of the leadership of either the governing or the opposing parties are assigned seats in the back rows; these members are called backbenchers. Seats are assigned by the party whips, who ensure attendance and party voting. The whips are chosen by their party leader.

The presiding officer of Commons is the Speaker. The first order of business when Commons meets after an election is to elect the Speaker by secret ballot. Although the Speaker is usually an MP from the majority party, he or she works to protect the rights of all members. The Speaker applies standing orders (the rules of procedure), makes rulings on points of order, puts matters to vote, and administers the operations of Commons. The Speaker also applies time limits for speeches. All speeches are formally addressed to the Speaker, but private exchanges do break out. To promote civilized exchanges, MPs are expected to refer to one another as the “honorable member,” and certain types of language have been ruled unparliamentary. Successful Speakers are able to read the mood of Commons and use their authority to defuse volatile situations.

Down the hall where the Senate sits, the atmosphere is less intense. While Commons meets five days a week, the Senate rarely sits for more than three days a week. A Speaker presides in the Senate, but the individual is chosen by the prime minister, not elected by Senate members. Most bills do not appear in the Senate until they have passed in Commons, and there are no question periods in the Senate. Unlike MPs, senators do not face reelection pressures and do not have to visit their districts regularly. The media has little interest in the Senate. All of these factors make life in the Senate less demanding than in Commons.

VIII

The Legislative Process

Cabinet ministers, the prime minister, ordinary MPs, and senators all can introduce bills in Parliament. Nearly all bills introduced by the government are passed during the session in which they are introduced. MPs introduce many bills, but only a small number ever reach the floor of Parliament for debate, and even fewer are approved. Only the government can introduce estimates. Government bills and estimates pass through several parliamentary stages before becoming law.

Bills must undergo three readings in Commons. All estimates are consolidated into the appropriation bill (the annual budget), which also undergoes three readings. The first reading is a formality at which point the bill is introduced and an order is given to print it. During the second reading, MPs debate the broad purposes of the bill and approve or reject it in principle. Debate at this stage can be lengthy, but the government can end it with a time allocation or a closure motion. After approval in principle, a bill is referred to a standing committee for detailed review. The committees examine and, to a limited degree, amend bills after second reading. At the report stage, committees present their findings. Often the report stage is combined with the third reading and a final vote on the bill.

The bill is then sent to the Senate to be debated and perhaps amended, in a process similar to that which occurred in Commons. Normally the Senate proposes only technical changes. If a new governing party has not been able to make appointments to the Senate and does not have a majority, the Senate will occasionally strive to defeat or to amend government bills significantly. The Senate can defeat, delay, or modify bills, but it rarely opposes the majority opinion of the popularly elected House of Commons.

The wording of the bills passed by Commons and the Senate must be identical. After any differences in the Commons and Senate versions of a bill are resolved, the governor-general gives royal assent to the bill in a formal ceremony in the Senate chamber, to which MPs are invited. Immediately upon royal assent, a bill becomes an act of Parliament and has the force of law, unless it contains a provision that all or part of the law will be put into effect later. When a law is proclaimed at a later date, it is done by means of an order from the government.

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