Reading Time: 2 minutesDisponible en français. For about 150 years, the term “omnibus bill” went without a firm definition in the procedural rules of either the Senate or the House of Commons. Often when omnibus bills were introduced, questions arose about their nature,… Read More ›
Reading Time: 6 minutesDisponible en français. Following Royal Assent, a federal bill becomes an Act of Parliament and is printed as a chapter in the Statutes of Canada. However, the provisions in that Act do not produce legal effects until they have come… Read More ›
Reading Time: 5 minutesDisponible en français. In June 2017, the Government of Canada released its most recent defence policy statement: Strong, Secure, Engaged: Canada’s Defence Policy (SSE). SSE outlines Canada’s defence priorities for a 20-year period. In the 2022 federal budget, the government… Read More ›
Reading Time: 5 minutesDisponible en français. In June 2022, the Minister of Public Safety announced that all members of Parliament are to receive mobile duress devices, or “panic buttons.” This was in response to threats and safety concerns that are on the rise for… Read More ›
Reading Time: 5 minutesDisponible en français. On 8 July 2022, a Canadian parliamentarian [in French] was elected president of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF) for a two-year term. The APF is the parliamentary arm of what is referred to as the “institutional… Read More ›
Reading Time: 2 minutesDisponible en français. The distribution of legislative powers among the various levels of government is a key feature of federalism. To guide this distribution, the Constitution Act, 1867 divides legislative powers between the Parliament of Canada and the provincial legislatures. These powers are… Read More ›
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDisponible en français. The COVID-19 pandemic forced many legislatures around the world to adopt or expand their use of digital technologies in order to continue exercising their core functions of legislating, studying issues of public policy, scrutinizing governments and representing… Read More ›
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDisponible en français. New government initiatives are announced through different sources, including the Speech from the Throne, the federal budget, international agreements, federal–provincial-territorial agreements, ministerial mandate letters and ministerial proposals. However, before a new initiative receives funding, approvals from Cabinet, the Treasury Board and Parliament are needed. This paper describes these approvals along with the role… Read More ›
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDisponible en français. The Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations (the committee) plays a vital role in the parliamentary oversight of federal regulations. Whenever Parliament delegates legislative authority to the executive branch or other regulation-making bodies, the committee ensures that… Read More ›
Reading Time: 5 minutesRevised on 23 February 2022, 8:40 a.m. Disponible en français. On 14 February 2022, in response to the ongoing blockades and protests taking place in Ottawa and at some border crossings, the Prime Minister announced that the Governor in Council… Read More ›