POLSCI 1G06 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Responsible Government, Charlottetown Accord
19 Dec 2016
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Department
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Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Political Science Lecture 2
Parliament
-Technically speaking, Parliament refers to the Crown, the House of Commons, and
the Senate
-Any law must be approved by all three institutions (therefore, no bill becomes law
without all these three institutions)
House of Commons
-We made the case last class that under present conditions real political power over
legislation lies with the Cabinet and in particular with the Prime Minister
Two reasons
1. Cabinet initiates most major legislation and therefore controls the agenda of the
House
- The House of Commons therefore isn’t writing legislation it’s just imputing the answer
YES or NO
2. Party Discipline means that most of the policies that Cabinet decides upon will be
passed (at least in situations of majority government)
-Viewed as necessary due to the principle of Responsible government
-The failure to pass a piece of legislation initiated by the Cabinet can result in the
defeat of the government
-MPS vote based on how their Party tells them too (this is because they don’t want a
new election to reoccur and have another party take their place)
Nevertheless, the House of Commons does have an important place in the overall
political system and a degree of power in turn because:
1. In the first place, it determines whether the government will continue to lead or
whether it will fall
-The government must maintain the confidence of the House
-The potential ability to expel the executive at any time gives the House a crucial
check against Prime Ministerial power
!1
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Wednesday, January 13, 2016
2. The House of Commons has control over revenue
3. The House of Commons provides continual oversight/challenge to government
action in the interim between elections
-Opposition parties can question and challenge the government
-Governments aren't directly answering questions however it allows the opposition to
shape the discourse (can allow for growth of different parties in answering key
questions for the next election)
And yet some argue that the House of Commons is not as meaningful as it could
be
•That mechanisms like party discipline make the system too top down
•That the House should be re-structured to make it more genuinely democratic and
representative
Should the House of Commons be reformed?
-Can the system be restructured to allow for more free votes even while protecting the
principle of responsible government?
According to defenders, the current system does have its advantages:
1. It is argued by some that executive domination of the legislature has led to more
effective government
If a Prime Minister wants a policy agenda pushed through the legislature, he/she
(especially in situations of majority government) will in all likelihood be successful
2. Since Party members vote along Party lines it is (arguably) more difficult for single
interest lobbyists to capture the policy-making process
- Because the parties control MPS in such rigid way it is very difficult for lobbyists to
capture an MP
3. Collective discipline makes it easier to hold the government accountable for
legislative failure
-If the Prime Minister has a majority and does not deliver on her promises to pass a
piece of legislation
-She can’t blame obstruction in the House for the failure
!2
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Technically speaking, parliament refers to the crown, the house of commons, and the senate. Any law must be approved by all three institutions (therefore, no bill becomes law without all these three institutions) We made the case last class that under present conditions real political power over legislation lies with the cabinet and in particular with the prime minister. Two reasons: cabinet initiates most major legislation and therefore controls the agenda of the. The house of commons therefore isn"t writing legislation it"s just imputing the answer. Yes or no: party discipline means that most of the policies that cabinet decides upon will be passed (at least in situations of majority government) Viewed as necessary due to the principle of responsible government. The failure to pass a piece of legislation initiated by the cabinet can result in the defeat of the government.
