Beyond the strategic, media and political considerations at play in federal party leadership campaigns, there are constitutional conventions and rules, often less well known, governing the departure of leaders and their replacement in the Senate or the House of Commons. These conventions and rules apply in the event of resignation, death, incapacity or dismissal, as well as during the resulting transfer of responsibilities.
Conventions and Other Rules
Canada’s Constitution is only partly set out in writing. It also consists of unwritten rules. These rules, known as constitutional conventions, include, for example, responsible government and the fact that the Governor General must act on the advice of the Cabinet and the head of government who enjoys the confidence of the House of Commons. These conventions are accompanied by parliamentary and legislative rules.
Prime Minister
While the role of prime minister is not spelled out in Canada’s Constitution, it is governed by constitutional conventions. Thus, while executive power is officially vested in the Crown, represented by the Governor General, it is in practice exercised by the prime minister and the Cabinet. According to one of the conventions, the Governor General appoints as prime minister the leader of the party that can command the confidence of a majority of members of Parliament.
There are several circumstances in which a prime minister may resign, such as a loss by the governing party in a general election, for personal reasons, a revolt in Cabinet or caucus, or after their party has lost the confidence of the House of Commons.
The prime minister who is resigning may remain in office until a successor is sworn in, as was the case, for example, with Justin Trudeau, Jean Chrétien, Brian Mulroney and Pierre Elliot Trudeau. In his resignation letter of 29 February 1984, Pierre Elliot Trudeau stated that he intended to remain in office until the party chose his successor.
A governing party may choose as a leader someone who does not have a seat in Parliament. This was the case with John Turner, who succeeded Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, even though he had not been a member of the House of Commons for several years. Elected leader of the Liberal Party of Canada at the party’s convention on 16 June 1984, Turner was sworn in as prime minister on 30 June 1984.
The Right Hon. Pierre Elliott Trudeau, P.C., Q.C., M.P., and Prime Minister |
The Right Hon. John Napier Turner, P.C., Q.C., M.P., and Prime Minister |
Sometimes, the leader of the winning party following a general election may lose their riding. That was the case with William Lyon Mackenzie King. After his party’s victory in the general election of June 1945, he assumed the duties of prime minister, despite his personal defeat in the riding of Prince Albert. However, he was returned to the House of Commons after winning a by-election in the riding of Glengarry on 6 August 1945.
In the event of the death of the prime minister, the Governor General has no choice but to appoint someone else from the governing party to maintain the confidence of the House of Commons. Two prime ministers have died while in office: Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir John Thompson. After Macdonald died on 6 June 1891, Sir John Abbott, Government Leader in the Senate, was sworn in as prime minister on 16 June 1891. He resigned in December 1892 for health reasons.
The Right Hon. Sir John Alexander Macdonald, P.C., Q.C., G.C.B., K.C.B., M.P., and Prime Minister |
The Hon. Sir John Joseph Caldwell Abbott, P.C., Q.C., M.P., Senator, and Prime Minister |
To date, there has not been a single instance of a prime minister being dismissed by the Governor General.
The election of a leader of the governing party is distinct from their swearing-in as prime minister. A newly elected leader of the governing party becomes prime minister-designate but must be sworn in before taking office. The official resignation of the outgoing prime minister is submitted to the Governor General just before the new prime minister is sworn in.
Finally, neither the Constitution of the Liberal Party of Canada nor the Constitution of the Conservative Party of Canada stipulates that a leader must be a member of Parliament. The same is true of the Constitution of the New Democratic Party of Canada. As for the Bloc Québécois, the Statuts et Règlements du Bloc Québécois [in French] provide that if a leader does not have a seat in Parliament, that person may “decide to appoint a House leader” [translation].
Leader of the Official Opposition
Constitutional documents do not set out a procedure for selecting the Leader of the Official Opposition. According to convention, it is the leader of the opposition party with the greatest number of seats.
Parties forming the Official Opposition sometimes choose a leader from outside their own ranks. The person chosen then runs in a by-election or a general election.
For example, Arthur Meighen was elected leader of Conservative Party on 12 November 1941 while Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, but he was defeated in the York South by-election on 9 February 1942 and thus did not become the Leader of the Official Opposition in the House of Commons. In contrast, Brian Mulroney was elected leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada on 11 June 1983 and won a by-election in Central Nova on 29 August 1983. He became Leader of the Official Opposition that same day.
Interim Leaders
Parties may provide for the designation of an interim leader in their constitution. For example, the Constitution of the Liberal Party of Canada stipulates that if a leader resigns, that person ceases to hold office either upon the appointment of an interim leader or upon the election of a new leader, if no interim leader is appointed. The Constitution of the Conservative Party of Canada states that an interim leader “may but need not be appointed where the Leader has indicated an intention to resign.”
For example, Herbert (Herb) Gray, a long-serving member of Parliament, became interim Leader of the Official Opposition in 1990 after John Turner resigned, serving until a new leader was elected. Rona Ambrose was named interim leader of the Conservative Party of Canada by the Conservative caucus on 5 November 2015 and became interim Leader of the Official Opposition at the same time.
The Constitution of the New Democratic Party of Canada and the Statuts et Règlements du Bloc Québécois also include provisions on interim leaders.
Parliament of Canada Act
Since 2015, the Parliament of Canada Act has allowed caucuses to conduct a leadership review process to endorse or replace their leader by secret ballot. Borrowed from the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the process is adopted or rejected at the first caucus meeting following a general election. The Conservative Party of Canada has used this process in every new Parliament since 2015. This was how Erin O’Toole, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition in the House of Commons, was removed from office on 3 February 2022.
Changes in Senate Leadership
Leader or Representative of the Government
From 1867 to 2016, government leaders in the Senate came from the governing party in the House of Commons. Since March 2016, the prime minister has appointed a government representative in the Senate who is not a member of a party or of a parliamentary group. The prime minister does nonetheless retain the right to dismiss that person if necessary.
In a ruling on 25 April 2023, the Speaker of the Senate determined that the definitions in the Rules of the Senate of Canada, including that of “Leader or Representative of the Government,” are “inherently flexible and depend on context” and “are to be interpreted in light of circumstances.”
Leader of the Opposition
Appendix I (Terminology) of the Rules of the Senate of Canada defines “Leader of the Opposition” as the “Senator recognized as the head of the party, other than the Government party, with the most Senators.” Until now, the Leader of the Opposition has always been elected by the caucus of a party represented in the Senate. At the time of writing, most senators were affiliated with parliamentary groups rather than parties.
The Opposition in the Senate does not always reflect the membership of the House of Commons. In 1993, for instance, the Bloc Québécois formed the Official Opposition in the House of Commons, while the Progressive Conservative Party, with two seats in the House of Commons, served that role in the Senate. The Opposition in the Senate may have more seats than the governing party, as was the case between 1984 and 1990 when Brian Mulroney was prime minister.
Conclusion
Conventions and rules exist to provide continuity and stability after the planned or unplanned departure of a leader in the Senate or House of Commons. While the replacement of a leader is an event that attracts media attention, these conventions and rules are less well known. It should be noted that conventions can also evolve with the law and parliamentary practices.
By François Delisle, Library of Parliament
Categories: Government, Parliament and politics, Law, justice and rights