POL 151 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Parliamentary Sovereignty, Responsible Government, Fiduciary
24 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Legislatures
"Parliament is a deliberate assembly of one nation, with one interest, that of the whole; where,
not local purpose, not local prejudices ought to guide but the general good, resulting from the
general reason of the whole." –Edmund Burke (British MP 1765-1794 & conservative thinker)
Representation—the “proxy” means by which MPs and Senators articulate the political interests
of Canadians via the institution of Parliament
Popular Sovereignty—the expression of the public’s will (typically via general election)
Majority Rule—fundamental democratic metric which resolves electoral contests or
differences of opinion with regard to the decision-making process
Inclusion—democratic objective to fashion the representative make-up of Parliament as a
reflection of the society’s pluralist nature
Political agency/democratic self-rule
Responsible government: long held democratic expectation that the legislative credibility of the
executive branch—i.e. the prime minister and the Cabinet—to govern is ultimately contingent
upon maintaining the confidence of a majority all members of the House of Commons.
Responsiveness: the expectation that Parliament is reflective of the fluidity of the public
opinion, needs and aspirations
Fiduciary Trust: by virtue of their standing as Canadians’ representatives, MPs & senators
have a fiduciary responsibility to act on behalf of the public’s best interests
Accountability & Transparency: the demand that legislators are clearly open in their
efforts AND expressly answerable to the electorate that they represent
Legislatures: Parliamentary Government
Legislator-elector relations: Parliamentary government is premised on democratic
principle of popular sovereignty whereby the people entrust the representative assembly
with the power to govern…
…hence the Westminster tradition of parliamentary supremacy that stipulates the
legislative body has the “theoretical authority—subject to a constitution—to repeal or
modify any principle set out in common law”—Robert J. Jackson & Doreen J. Jackson)
Legislative-executive relations: both the PM & Cabinet are responsible to the HOC (as
per the principle of responsible government) AND are almost always derived from its
ranks
Unicameral or Bicameral—one chamber or two?
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Distinct powers—a “division of labour” distinguishes the legislative responsibilities from
the “Upper House” (i.e. the Senate) and the “Lower House” (i.e. the House of Commons)
Legislative Functions:
• Law making/rule making—fundamental raison d’être of the legislature is the initiation,
crafting, and passage of the nation’s federal laws
• Surveillance—essentially the various means by which the legislature holds the
government to account by scrutinizing the executive’s governing agenda & record via
committee work, officers of Parliament, etc.
• Representation—in light of the fact that the Parliament derives its legislative authority
from the people (i.e. popular sovereignty), the HOC serves as the public’s access point to
their system of government.
• Electoral Conversion—with election results the HOC’s 338 seats are distributed in
accordance to each MP winning a plurality of their constituency votes, the Commons in
turn reflects/represents the electorate’s choices/wishes in Parliament.
• Integration—a legislature represents a vital political opportunity structure in that by
participating in the political system, voters feel included/part of said system
• Recruitment—both Parliament and the parties that serve in it work to attract prospective
candidates from private life to stand for office to represent their fellow citizens.
• Legitimization—key political & social function in that a legislature’s exercise of its
authority affirms the legitimacy of its right to rule in the eyes of the citizenry.
• Conflict management—legislature serves as the vessel that facilitates debate and resolves
conflict between the electorate’s competing political interests/aspirations in a
manageable, civilized fashion.
• Communication—Parliament is the venue where government communicates with voters
and is also the space where the opposition parties hold it to account.
• Information gathering—in the process of crafting laws and public policy,
parliamentarians inform their work by way of research and investigation.
• Deliberation—open parliamentary discussion is not only integral to producing policy
decisions, it also informs voters who may act to try influence the legislative process.
The House of Commons:
✓ Elected—MPs represent single member districts, are elected by way of a “first-past-the-
post” process & HOC seats are distributed by province based on the principle of
representation by population
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
