The Relationships Between Parliament and the Agents of Parliament

Article 8 / 12 , Vol 40 No 2 (Summer)

The Relationships Between Parliament and the Agents of Parliament

Working relationships can be quite challenging at the best of times. But when there is debate or disagreement over the nature of work roles and who answers to whom, this relationship has the potential to be especially tense. A recent seminar (March 31, 2017) organized by the Canadian Study of Parliament Group explored this dynamic by asking stakeholders and observers to come together to discuss the roles played by agents of parliament and the parliamentarians they may variously serve, guide, guard, investigate and answer to. Continue reading “The Relationships Between Parliament and the Agents of Parliament”

Parliamentary Bookshelf: Reviews

Article 9 / 12 , Vol 40 No 2 (Summer)

Parliamentary Bookshelf: Reviews

Constitutional Amendment in Canada, Emmett Macfarlane, ed., University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 2016, 337 pp.

Canada has a very complex system of amending its formal, written Constitution. This collection of essays edited by Emmett Macfarlane is a welcome guide to its intricacies.

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New and Notable Titles

Article 10 / 12 , Vol 40 No 2 (Summer)

New and Notable Titles

A selection of recent publications relating to parliamentary studies prepared with the assistance of the Library of Parliament (March 2017- May 2017)

Alford, Ryan Patrick. “Two cheers for a Cabinet Manual (and a note of caution).” Journal of Parliamentary and Political Law / Revue de droit parlementaire et politique 11 (1): 41-60, March / mars 2017. Continue reading “New and Notable Titles”

Sketches of Parliament and Parliamentarians Past: Shining a Light on Ontario’s Parliamentarians – Chandeliers in the Legislative Chamber

Article 12 / 12 , Vol 40 No 2 (Summer)

Sketches of Parliament and Parliamentarians Past: Shining a Light on Ontario’s Parliamentarians – Chandeliers in the Legislative Chamber

Look up! Look way up in Ontario’s legislative chamber and you’ll be able to marvel at some magnificent chandeliers dating back to the 1890s. Tracing changes from gasoline to electricity, to more modern considerations such as broadcast requirements and energy efficient LED bulbs, the author shines a light on this interesting aspect of parliamentary history.

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Know Your Mace: Quebec Vol 40 No 1

Article 1 / 11 , Vol 40 No. 1 (Spring)

Vol 40 No 1 Know Your Mace: Quebec

The Mace of the Québec National Assembly was made in 1867 by jeweller Charles O. Zollikoffer. It is decorated with acanthus and lotus leaves. Its cup is surmounted by a crown decorated with a cross and the letters “ER” for “Elizabeth Regina”.

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The New Senate: Still in Transition

Article 2 / 11 , Vol 40 No. 1 (Spring)

The New Senate: Still in Transition

Over the course of the past two years, a confluence of events has dramatically altered Canada’s Senate. The upper chamber’s response to the Auditor General’s Report on Senators’ Expenses, the absence of a government caucus in the Senate at the start of the 42nd Parliament, and a new appointment process that brought in a significant number of Independent senators have all contributed to institutional change. In this article, based on his remarks to the 34th Canadian Presiding Officers Conference, Senator George J. Furey provides some observations of the impact of these events from his unique vantage point as Speaker. While acknowledging that these changes have created some tensions, he concludes that this transition can be defined by openness, flexibility, adaptability and a general willingness to move forward slowly without forcing permanent rule changes until the landscape is better defined.

After decades of reform proposals, a recent change has had a significant impact on the Senate. This change is reducing the partisan character of the Senate and making it a more independent, non-affiliated and deliberative body. What is curious about this change, is that it was achieved by non-constitutional means.

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What is a Charter of Budget Honesty? The Case of Australia

Article 3 / 11 , Vol 40 No. 1 (Spring)

What is a Charter of Budget Honesty? The Case of Australia

It is now nearly 20 years since Australia introduced a prominent piece of legislation known as the Charter of Budget Honesty Act (1998) to improve the transparency and the discipline of its budget process. This article examines the success of the charter, as well as its limitations, in the context of Australian budget process, including an analysis of its most pertinent components, so as to then reflect more broadly on the impact of budget honesty mechanisms for parliaments with a similar structure and history, including Canada.

In our time, most Parliamentary democracies in the world are faced with the question of how to maintain budget discipline, particularly with respect to three overarching concerns: a long-run reliance on deficits; the ability to manage unforeseen economic shocks; and the level of transparency and accountability in the budget process. Following the economic crisis of the past decade, more parliaments are finding themselves debating questions of fiscal discipline and fiscal transparency at ever more frequent intervals. Some legislatures have tried to give a more concrete form to their beliefs in budget discipline and budget transparency by enshrining them into charters or acts.

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Who Speaks for Parliament?: Hansard, the Courts and Legislative Intent

Article 4 / 11 , Vol 40 No. 1 (Spring)

Who Speaks for Parliament?: Hansard, the Courts and Legislative Intent

Two significant Supreme Court rulings from the 1990s have opened the door to using Hansard Debates to divine a parliament’s intent in court cases which challenge understandings of laws. Although the Supreme Court rulings stressed that use of Hansard as a source in legal proceedings should be strictly limited, subsequent lower courts have not always observed these limits. In this article, the author outlines these developments and explains how the more liberal use of Hansard in courts can be problematic. He concludes by cautioning parliamentarians to be mindful of how the words they use during debate may be used by the courts in the future, and urges the courts to consider how some parliamentarians might begin using their speeches in parliament to win in court what they could not in a legislature.

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The 2015 Federal Election: More Visible Minority Candidates and MPs

Article 5 / 11 , Vol 40 No. 1 (Spring)

The 2015 Federal Election: More Visible Minority Candidates and MPs

The federal election of October 19, 2015 established a high water mark in the representation of racial diversity in Parliament with the election of 45 MPs with visible minority origins. Their relative presence jumped over four percentage points compared to the 2011 general election and their larger number markedly narrowed the population-based gap in representation. As an account of this improvement in the representation of visible minority MPs, the focus here is on aspects of the candidate nomination process, with an approach informed by the supposition that heightened competition among the three largest parties engendered a greater degree of vote-seeking among immigrant and minority communities.

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