Transcript The Canadian Government

The Canadian
Government
Grade 8 Social Studies
The Canadian Government
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Canada has a constitutional monarchy,
which means that their head of state is a
monarch (king or queen), but that monarch
has to follow a constitution.
There are three parts to the Canadian
government
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The Sovereign (The King or Queen)
The Parliament (divided into the House of
Commons and the Senate)
The Judiciary Branch (divided into the Supreme
Court, the Federal Court, and the Tax Court)
The Parts of the Government
The Head of the Government
 The
head of the
Canadian
government is the
King or Queen of
Canada.
 They are also the
King or Queen of
Britain
 Currently it is Her
Majesty, Queen
Elizabeth II
The Governor General
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The Governor General is
the monarch’s
representative
Must sign all bills before
they become law.
This person is appointed
by the monarch
Receives the title “The
Right Honourable”
Currently, the Governor
General is The Right
Honourable David
Johnston
The Prime Minister
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Is elected to be the
leader of one of the
parties of Canada by
the members of the
party
Whichever party wins
the most ridings in a
federal election is the
official government of
Canada, and that
party’s leader
becomes the Prime
Minister
Currently, it is Stephen
Harper
The Prime Minister’s Office
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Find suitable candidates for the Prime Minister to
put forward as possible:
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Governor Generals
Lieutenant Governors
Senators
Supreme Court Justices
Chairpersons of ministerial boards
Heads of Crown corporations
Also includes speech writers, strategists, and
communications staffers
Write speeches for the Prime Minister, keep the
Prime Minister informed of government news, and
act as a link between the political party
organization and the government.
The Cabinet
 The
Prime Minister chooses Members of
Parliament from his/her party to become part
of the cabinet
 These people are then appointed by the
Governor General
 They are essentially advisors to the Prime
Minister, and are put in charge of different
National programs and services
 They are called “Ministers” of their program or
service
Ministry
Incumbent
Prime Minister of Canada
Stephen Harper
President of the Treasury Board
Tony Clement
President of the Queen's Privy Council
for Canada
Minister of Infrastructure, Communities
and Intergovernmental Affairs
Denis Lebel
(and Minister of the Economic
Development Agency of Canada for
the Regions of Quebec)
Minister of Veterans Affairs
Julian Fantino
Minister of Transport
Lisa Raitt
Minister of the Environment
(and Minister of the Canadian Northern
Leona Aglukkaq
Economic Development Agency and
the Arctic Council)
Minister of State and Chief
John Duncan
Government Whip
Minister of State (Western Economic
Michelle Rempel
Diversification)
Minister of State (Sport)
Bal Gosal
Minister of State (Social Development) Candice Bergen
Minister of State (Small Business and
Maxime Bernier
Tourism, and Agriculture)
Minister of State (Seniors)
Alice Wong
Minister of State (Science and
Technology)
Minister of State (Federal Economic
Greg Rickford
Development Initiative for Northern
Ontario)
Minister of State (Multiculturalism)
Tim Uppal
Minister of State (Foreign Affairs and
Lynne Yelich
Consular Services)
Minister of State (Finance)
Kevin Sorenson
Minister of State (Federal Economic
Development Agency for Southern
Gary Goodyear
Ontario)
Minister of State (Democratic Reform) Pierre Poilievre
Minister of State (Atlantic Canada
Rob Moore
Opportunities Agency)
Minister of Public Works and
Government Services
Minister of Public Safety and
Emergency Preparedness
Minister of Natural Resources
Minister of National Revenue
Minister of National Defence
Minister of Labour
(and Minister for the Status of Women)
Minister of Justice
Attorney General for Canada
Minister of International Trade
Minister of International Development
(and Minister for La Francophonie)
Minister of Industry
Minister of Health
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
Minister of Finance
Minister of Employment and Social
Development
Minister of Citizenship and Immigration
Minister of Canadian Heritage and
Official Languages
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and
Northern Development
Leader of the Government in the
House of Commons
Diane Finley
Steven Blaney
Joe Oliver
Kerry-Lynne Findlay
Rob Nicholson
Kellie Leitch
Peter MacKay
Ed Fast
Christian Paradis
James Moore
Rona Ambrose
John Baird
Gail Shea
Jim Flaherty
Jason Kenney
Chris Alexander
Shelly Glover
Gerry Ritz
Bernard Valcourt
Peter Van Loan
Privy Council Office
 Coordinates
the day-to-day running of
the government
 Provides non-partisan advice to the Prime
Minister
 Works with many of the Ministries on their
publicity and public image
The Parliament
 The
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is made up of two branches
The House of Commons
The Senate
 They
handle the actual government
business and the running of the country
The House of Commons
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Referred to as the Lower House
Is elected by the people of the country in a federal
election
Each province is divided into constituencies or ridings, and
each riding has a seat in the House of Commons
Has 308 seats – this will change to 338 in the next election
The leader of the House of Commons is the Prime Minister
The party with the most seats is the official government of
Canada (currently this is the Conservative Party)
The party with the second most seats is the official
opposition (currently this is the New Democratic Party)
The Senate
 Referred
to as the Upper House
 Appointed by the Governor General
upon the advice of the Prime Minister
 There are 105 senators
 There is no set term, instead, they serve on
the Senate until they are 75
 They approve the bills that are passed by
the House of Commons
The Supreme Court
 The
highest court in Canada
 Has 9 judges
 They hear cases from the lower judicial courts
 Are the final court of appeals for the Canadian
justice system
 Their decisions are final
The Federal Court
 Was
split into two courts in 2003 – The Federal
Court – Trial Division, and the Federal Court of
Appeal
 The Federal Court hears mostly cases dealing
with immigration or plagiarism/piracy, and
cases involving the federal government
 The Court of Appeal hears cases appealed
from provincial courts before they are taken to
the Supreme Court
 Cases from the Trial Division MAY be heard in
the Appeal Court, but only in special
circumstances
The Tax Court
 Deals
only with tax issues
 Deals with companies and individuals