Article Outline
Nunavut has a territorial government. This territorial government has many of the same political powers assigned to provinces under the Canadian constitution, but powers assigned to Nunavut are delegated to the territory by the national government in Ottawa, Ontario. These powers extend over health care, housing, renewable resources, and social services. In 1998 discussions began regarding the transfer of control over nonrenewable resources (such as minerals, oil, and gas) to the territorial government, but this issue remains unresolved. One reason is that royalties from nonrenewable resources on federal land go to Ottawa, not Iqaluit, and royalties from minerals on Inuit-owned land are split between Ottawa and the Inuit. The federal government has powers over the territory in other areas, such as taxation, foreign affairs, and the armed forces. Residents of Nunavut elect one member to the Canadian House of Commons to represent their interests in Ottawa (see Canadian Parliament).
The premier is the head of the Nunavut government. The premier is elected by the Legislative Assembly, which also selects the members of the cabinet. Nunavut’s first assembly was elected in February 1999. The following month the new assembly chose Paul Okalik as the first premier of Nunavut.They also selected seven cabinet members and a deputy speaker of the legislature. Okalik was reelected in 2004.
The Legislative Assembly of Nunavut has 19 members elected from the ridings, or electoral districts, of Nunavut. Elections must be held at least every five years, and the assembly must meet at least once every 12 months. The assembly has the power to make laws affecting the residents of Nunavut. Unlike its counterpart in the national government, the Nunavut legislature does not operate on a party structure, and members of the Nunavut assembly do not belong to political parties.
The judiciary system of Nunavut takes into account the region’s vast geography and the scattered nature of its communities. The Canadian government amended the Nunavut Act in 1999, creating the Nunavut Court of Justice, a one-level court system that deals with both civil disputes and criminal cases. The Nunavut Court of Justice has the status of a superior court. Having one court handle all legal matters reduces the number of visits the judge and other members of the court have to make to each community. Each community has at least one justice of the peace to rule on violations of territorial statutes and municipal bylaws. The federal government appoints the judges of the Nunavut Court of Justice.
Each year, the government of Nunavut receives a large grant, or transfer of money, from the federal government. In 1999 the federal transfer was C$585 million, which amounted to more than 90 percent of Nunavut’s budget. Without such financial support from the Canadian government, Nunavut would not be able to operate its government or provide basic services to its residents. This level of financial dependency is due partly to Nunavut’s limited powers of taxation. For example, the federal government, not the territorial government, collects the royalties from resource development. This heavy dependency on the federal government is also true for the other northern territories, the Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories. The new government of Nunavut hopes to stimulate economic growth within its territory and reduce this financial dependency.
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