POLS 224 - Parliamentary Government

Elements of Parliament

1. Elected to the House of Commons

   1. MPs are attached to geographic constituencies

2. Appointed senate

3. The crown

Parliamentary fusion (relation between executive and legislative branches)

1. The political executive is chosen from the legislative branch

2. The fusion of powers is a core principle of parliamentary systems (such as the Westminster system), in which the executive and legislative branches are merged rather than strictly separated.

Responsible government

1. Not only must political executives be chosen from the legislature, but they are also accountable to the House of Commons.

2. Requires majority “confidence”

• Definition:

  • Executive (PM & Cabinet) must retain the confidence of the elected House of Commons.

• The Confidence Convention:

  • If government loses a confidence vote, it must resign or trigger an election.

• Democratic Principle:

  • Power flows from voters →MPs →Cabinet/PM.

• Key Function:

  • The House exists to scrutinize legislation, approve spending, and hold power to account.

Party discipline

An elected MP must vote according to the wishes of the party leadership

1. You can not run for a party unless you are chosen

2. You can be kicked out of a party by a leader at any time

Senses of representation: Party member

party leader wishes

1. Positive - highly predictable, highly stable

2. Negative - the majority government can be insensitive

Senses of representation: Delegate view

constituents' wishes

1. The voting decision is based on constitutional views

   1. Negative

      1. Should we tell MPs to vote if they didn't know the context of the bill

      2. How do we know their views

Senses of representation: Trustee

their best interest

1. Negative - How do we know if they did a good job or not

Senses of representation: Mirror

voting based on statistics

1. Negative - Not everyone can really be represented in the 300+ seats

Parliament

1. Ideally lasts 4 years

2. Sessions ideality is 1 year

Parliamentary session

1. Speech from the throne

2. Budget

   1. Allocation of funding

      1. Govs typically get defeated due to the budget

3. Estimates

   1. “Here's the money, and here's how we will spend it”

4. Opposition days

   1. Allows the government parties to propose legislation themselves

   2. Allows opposition to choose topics of debate

5. Question period

   1. Question Period is a daily parliamentary session where elected members ask questions to hold the prime minister and government ministers accountable for their actions.

      
      

Bill-to-law process

1. First reading (signal of legislative intent)

   1. Read

   2. Debate

   3. vote

2. Second reading (committee stage)

   1. Clause by clause (paragraph by paragraph), vote on the clauses in the bill

3. Chairs report

   1. Tell everyone what was spoken about

4. Third reading (committee of the whole, whole house of commons)

   1. Last chance for everyone to have their say and vote in favour of or against the bill

5. Repeat in the Senate

6. Royal assent

   1. Signature from the king and stuff

   2. The Governor General normally gives royal assent

7. Proclamation (“gives law” goes into assent

Rehabilitation movement

1. Want the king out since he's never there

2. Don't want to be a part of the crown

Parliamentary Roles of the Crown

1. Adjourning the house (break in the session)

   1. Ex. allows breaks

   2. No new legislation (laws)

2. Prorock the house (end of session)

3. Dissolve the house (end of parliament)

4. assent

Options - for governor general

1. Elected the governor general

   1. Negative - Potential Political deadlock

2. House selects Governor General

   1. Negative - Do what the party leader tells them

3. Appoint governor general

   1. Negative - Appointing is not electing

4. Give power to the PM

   1. Do you want to give the most powerful position to the most powerful person at the moment?

What is a vote of non-confidence?

a formal way for a group to show they no longer trust or support a leader or government.

• The Goal:

  • The group wants to show that the person or group in charge is no longer fit to do the job.

• The Result:

  • If the majority votes "yes" for no confidence, the leader usually has to resign, step down, or face major organizational changes.

The Reality: Executive Dominance

• Party Discipline:

  • Strict enforcement by party whips; MPs almost always vote along party lines.

• PMO Centralization:

  • Power concentrated in the Prime Minister's Office and Privy Council Office.

• Control of Agenda:

  • Executive controls legislative timelines, committee appointments, and nominations.

• The Inversion:

  • Instead of Parliament controlling the Executive, the Executive controls Parliament.

The Trilemma of the MP

1. Party Loyalty:

   1. whipped votes, caucus unity, career advancement

2. Constituency Representative:

   1. advocation for local needs and regional interest

3. Legislative Oversight:

   1. Independent Scrutiny of laws, budget, and policies

Mechanisms of Scrutiny

1. Question Period:

   1. High-visibility, adversarial theatre vs. substantive oversight.

2. Parliamentary Committees:

   1. Detailed legislative review; varying degrees of independence.