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    Civics Lessons 2.3 & 2.4

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    of 17
    Parliament 2.3 and Government estion a The Three Levels of Focus Qui ; : Government + How are federal and provincial governments organizeg | in Canada? Canada isa parliamentary democracy in which people elect individuals to represent them in Parliament. Power—and the responsibilty for making laws, regulations, policies, and decisions-—is divided between the federal government and those of the provinces. Thisis called a federal system. The Constitution ‘outlines the responsibilities of the federal and provincial governments. Some of these responsibilities overlap. Sir John A. Macdonald Sir John A. Macdonald was one of the Fathers of Confederation and ¥ Canada’s first prime minister. He believed in a ‘strong central government 4 and would have preferred to give the provinces little or no power. Other A Powerful leaders argued that strong provinces were necessary to preserve local culture and tradition. The eventual compromise on a federal structure was necessary to achieve Confederation, | Question ) _ Do you agree or disagree wth Sir John A. Macdonald that a strong megs Mectona _cental government is important? Explain your reasoning Perec 2 store ae Lg J federal government. 46 | The Informed Citizen We often think of municipalities as a third level of government Civy, town, and community governments have many of the features of ederal and provincial governments, but the provincial governments can create, abolish, or change the powers and responsibilities of municipalities. fecohabits) ernment and Students Work Together to Protect Local Lakes * + hiring students from local high schools to tal awareness and action. perform a sanitary survey on the most onted with an. iitical areasfor example, soap, shampoo, ‘municipal governments and other household cleaning products following up the survey with corrections through its bylaw enforcement officers promoting a boycott on detergents by hiring E ee Prowcing students to visit each cottage and trade a ‘a box of phosphate-free soap for the ‘or bylaws, on sewage cottager’s detergent + passing bylaws to limit development of at-risk ‘environmental locations on the waterfront you can make a difference to the environment in your community. 4 Clean water, lke this lake in Muskola, is important to our environment and cour community, Young people can help protect from pollution, Patliament and Government | 47 Caray Sag Skim the headings, char, and Photos. Can you predict the content of this topic? Before You start to read, look atthe chart and think about what you already know about each branch of goveriment. Jot down your ideas. > A. This is the Supreme Court of Canada building in Ottawa, foal otters Y Government Organization onstitutional monarchy based on the British head of the Canadian goye, the governor genera ne AE KOVEENOT repens Canada is ac : oo which is why the queen iS Since the queen is rarely in Canad her atthe federal level and a lieute each province. Within the federal and the prov and the judiciary naa, three branches of Government exis at yg cial levels: the executive, the legis _ ‘The Three Branches of Government in Canada Branches Federal Provincial Executive Queen Lieutenant Gover (Governor General) (Queen) Prime Minister Premier Federal Cabinet Cabinet Chil Service Civil Service Legislative Pariament Provincial Legisatwe Governor General Lieutenant Goverot (Queen) (Queen) House of Commons, Elected house Senate suiciay Federal Judiciary Provincial Judiciary The Federal Parliament In the parliamentay tary’) make new laws and roe ‘The federal Parliame tem of government, voters give the pees 'egulations to elected Members rate "NE consists of the queen (represe/ied by a : tlected House of Commons, 2! 110 20° letilcues are organ Provincial levels, the == The Queen is represented by the governor general at the federal level, and a Jn ovr constitutional monarchy, the queen is the head of state. She | Jieutenant governor in each provine nor in Although her role is now inainly ceremonial, she is still an important part of our overnment. In order for bills to become law, they must receive royal assent (signing) by the queen or her representative The Governor General The governor general and the lieuter qusen as head of state. No bill, fede fit governors represent the I or provincial, becomes law NERC without being signed by the governor general at the federal level or 4 Queen Elizabeth I's Car the lieutenant governor at the provincial level. This is known as head of state. royal asser . The queen's representatives are ceremonial positions with little actual power or authority. Ob Links Parts of Our Government For a good overview of the many parts of our goverment system, go to wwwwnelson.com/civicsnow. The role of the Senate has long been the subject of controversy. | Some people want the Senate abolished, while others would like to see senators elected, Research the role ofthe Senate | ‘and list three reasons why you think it should be abolished The Senate and tree reasons why you The Senate is parr of our Parliament. Iris not lected. The governor __ kit should be kept. general, “on the recommendation ofthe prime minist,” appoints its_§ —— = members. This means thac the prime minister does the actual appointing, and the governor general approves each appointment. ; The Sena revewsandstgiese Giangerolesilaion pased by he Civics Now DVEQD House of Commons, In theory, it has the power to refuse to pass legislation from the House of Commons, but it does this very rar ‘4. Goverior General Michaélle Jean was appointed in September 2005 She represents the queen in Canada as head of state. ‘Senators in Waiting from Civics Now DVD, : Patlament and Government | 49 ew House of Commons 1c, the House of mons is part of Parliameny, ccted, It is the most powerful branch of Pari people inthe federal House of Commons Like the S However, itis Here are the key amen, Members of Parliament (MPs) Members of Parliament, as a group, are referred (0 a8 the House gf Commons. MPs meet in the House of Commons to debate and yor, ‘on proposed legislation, MPs are elected to represent voters ing particular riding. They are usually members ofa political party ang xe and act the way their party leader tells them to. MPs who belong to or support the party that forms the government sit on the government side ofthe House of Commons. Other MPs are members ofthe opposition parties, and they sit on the opposites, speaker of the House ‘The speaker of the house is an MP elected by MPs. He or she is responsible for keeping order in debates and makes many decisions ‘on the day-to-day running of the House of Commons, Prime Minister ‘The prime minister is usually the leader of the political party that has the most seats in the House of Commons. He or she is the most powerful person in Parliament. Cabinet Ministers ‘The prime minister selects ministers to be responsible for different Civics Now Dv areas. All ofthese ministers together are known as the cabinet. They are usually chosen from the MPs of the prime minister's ow» Party, but on some occasions, Senators have served in the cabinet. ‘The prime minister and the cabinet direct government policy. “Parliamentary Tour” from Gries Now DVD. Leader of the Offici Ome Lats The leader of the official opposition is usually the leader of the second-largest party in Parliament, He or she is responsible for Parliament Presenting clear alternatives to government policy. To get an actve view of your federal Parliament and discover ‘Shadow Cabinet who does what, go to “Members of the shadow cabinet criticize government policy. {icy tk ‘wwww.nelson.com/civicsnow. ‘on the same areas of responsibility as ministers of the actual © Dine 50 | The informed Citizen = rhe House of Commons a Shadow Cabinet ‘Members of Parliament (ups) Leader of Second:-Largest Opposition Party we and locations of the House of Commons. The provincial governments ¢ (representing the queen) and eer roles in the provincial legi Here are the key people in a provincial referred to as a provincial Parliament) _Patiament and Government | 51 of the Provincial Legislatures Members eee Oem Sxiagy- embers of the provincial legslatur include Members of, | ‘Necmbly (MLAs) (fr MOS€ PrOVINCES), Member, As you read, king, | egislative Seed ons Pes ne = iat Parliament (MPPs) (Ontario), or Members ofthe te government and the roles people | National Assembly (MNAs) (Quebec). ie people are elegy fa Play in your world This might Narr and serve te ort in thei ings. They are ln help you better understand the aor members of «political party: They usually follow the government process. a ns ftir party leader when they vore in the legion government, they will support govern, i t rns one of the opposition parties, thir i It atives to government policy. If their party forms the policy. If their party for is to present clear altern: Speaker of the House ‘The speaker ofthe house is a member of the legislature who i lected by his or her peers by secret ballot. She or he is responsible for keeping order in debates, and makes many decisions on the day-to-day running ofthe legislature. Premier “The premier is usually the leader of the political party that hath most seats in the legislature. Comparable to the prime ministerin the federal Parliament, the premier is the most powerful person in e the legislature. Cabinet Ministers The premier selects ministers to be responsible for different area. All of these ministers together are known as the cabinet. Ministers are usually chosen from members of the legislature of the premier’ ‘own party. They may, however, be chosen from other members ofthe legislature. The premier and the cabinet direct government polis Leader of the Official Opposition ‘The leader of the official opposition is usually the leacier of th | AM Lats second-largest party in the legislature. This person is responsi «riticizing and putting forward alternatives to government Pol eft The Ontario Legislative Assembly shadow Cabinet ‘To view some photos and ‘The leader of the official inet ficial opposition selects the shadow a" artifacts regarding the Ontario job is to “shadow” the cabinet by naa ai + policy legislature, go to Members of the shadow cabinet take on the same are’ of responsibility as members of the cabinet: 52. | The Informed Citizen ‘provincial Legislature Speaker of the House Leader ofthe ee ficial Opposition lek and Table wa Officers = shadow Cabinet Mace ea Members of pears the Legislature (MLAs, MPPs, or MINAS) Leader of Secondtargest Opposition Party arts, and locations of a provincial legislature. Jand Government 33 24 Public Policy Focus Question + How do the federal and provincial governments mate public policy? What Is Public Policy? Every government sets public policy. Public policy is a broad statement of what the government does. Each political party presents a platform of its ideas at election time, and these ideas Royal Commission: often form the basis for public policy if the party forms a A government-appointed government. OF course, governments do not have to follow the group of citizens responsible agenda laid out in thei election platform. Sometimes the report for investigating in detail and a Royal Commission or another type of public consultation restks making recommendations in changes to public policy. New public policy may also come in about an issue of national or response to a variety of problems, such as a natural disaster, provincial concern, 4 Publ consultation is importantin chan discuss the SARS g in Torone, ¢Pidemic of 2003 at a Health Canada 54 | The Informed Citizen The Civil Service poth federal and provincial civil services do many things for the government and citizens of Canada, cad servants to carry out the policies th Gil servants occupy many roles and nurses, to ministry employ Jovernments use their civil \ey pass in Parliament. ranging from teachers, doctors, ees and experts in specific fields, Our system of goverment could not function without these workers. Cabinet ministers need the expertise of civil servants so they can run their departments. Because civil servants often spend considerable time in their jobs, they are able to contribute experience that a cabinet minister, who may serve for a short time, may not have. Itis the civil service that ensures thar governments run efficiently. Ministries and Public Policy The prime minister and cabinet are responsible for setting government policy. Withi responsibility for specific departments, such as finance, transportation, and agriculture. Ministers often compete for funds for their own departments, in order to pay for new government programs. Ministers who have great political influence or are in the ‘most powerful departments have the most effect on public policy Governments want to be reelected, so they often pass popular new laws, such as tax euts oF public spending in key arcas, just before the next election. When an election loomed in Ottawa in late 2005, the Minister of Finance, Ralph Goodale, delivered what was called a mini-budget. In it, the Liberal government offered $30 billion in tax euts to Canadian citizens. They also promised to spend money on education, immigration, and other areas they hoped voters would appreciate. This sort of popular spending is common just before elections. ‘A government is more likely to introduce unpopular legislation at the beginning or in the middle of its term. The party in power always hopes voters have short memories and forget past mistakes and unpopular legislation, and remember only the most recent, popular accomplishments. the cabinet, ministers usually take ‘a. Parks Canada civil servants receive search-and-rescue training ets Diisanss_ In your own experie you ever promised to do something in order to g e, have something in return? Share your experiences th the class Public Policy| Dividing the Duties of Government Canada's three levels of gover he following chart shows Catt a ay fe the dates of each. in different places, different Iministrigg Name something you did last d So weekend that was made | agencies are responsible for some of these is “As wes Possible by the government. such as taking care of natural resources, are shared, Which level of government | palate /s Three Levels of Government and Some of Theip, | municipal) was responsible for | Canada’s Three ute, + natural resources + water on and environment + post office a sewage = census ee + waste collection, + health, hospitals EopNet Heal + public transit + property and + national defence Gl ighs + land use planning + employment ae + aries insrence Bee a + money and banking if + social services + animal control + criminal law aon , + citizenship ean local economy “orci afi Functions of Government Focus Question _ | + What are the powers and functions of the federc! Provincial, and municipal governments? Canada’s Constitution outlines specific responsibilities (©. !%© federal and provincial governments, 56 | The Informed Citizen Federal Responsibilities sederal cesponsbilities affect the entire country. These include ‘s finaneial, monetary, and economic policy fe aation «» borrowing money for government spending + national defence foreign affairs oo + trade ‘ oti + shipping and navigation + sea coast and inland fisheries terprovineial ferries ent insurance | laws and penitentiaries it responsibilities for services fovince. These include mndary education Each level of government has its own responsibilities. Many clubs or teams also have levels of responsibilities, or duties. ‘Make a list of duties in one of your clubs or teams. Who isin charge of each duty? Compare ‘your list with a lassmate's. Making A - Jean Chrétien Foreign afar isa federal esponsibility, Whe, the United States led the invasion of iraq in 2003, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien refused tg send Canadian troops without the approval of the United Nations. This was not the frst ime that the Canadian federal government disagreeg with American foreign policy. However, it was very important and controversial decision Many prominent Americans denounced Prime Minister Chrétien and Canada because of it, Questions 1. Research the causes of the Iraqi war. Do you agree with Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's decision not to be part of this invasion? Why or why not? Be prepared to defend your response. 2. Research other times that Canada disagreed with American foreign policy Discuss your findings with the class. ‘4. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien refused to take Partin the invasion of traq in 2003. This decision was a defining moment in Canadian foreign policy Shared Responsibilities Certain responsibilities are shared between federal and provincial governments, These include * the judicial system © agriculture and farming * old-age security * immigration * environmental protection When governments disagree about which one isin charie of a0 ie they usually try to settle these disputes through negotiation they do not succeed, the courts may be asked to interp

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