Editing Canada (section)

==Government and politics==
{{Main|Government of Canada|Politics of Canada}}
{{See also|Elections in Canada|List of political parties in Canada}}
[[File:Canadian parliament MAM.JPG|thumb|alt=A building with a central clocktower rising from a block|[[Parliament Hill]] in Canada's capital, Ottawa]]
Canada has strong democratic traditions upheld through a [[parliamentary system]] within the construct of [[constitutional monarchy]]; the [[monarchy of Canada]] is the foundation of the [[Executive (government)|executive]], [[Legislature|legislative]], and [[Judiciary|judicial]] branches.<ref>{{Cite document| author=[[Queen Victoria]]|date=March 29, 1867| title=Constitution Act, 1867: Preamble| publisher=Queen's Printer| url=http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/ca_1867.html |year=1867 |accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref>{{Cite news| last=Smith| first=David E| title=The Crown and the Constitution: Sustaining Democracy?| periodical=The Crown in Canada: Present Realities and Future Options| page=6| publisher=Queen's University| date=June 10, 2010| url=http://www.queensu.ca/iigr/conf/ConferenceOnTheCrown/CrownConferencePapers/The_Crown_and_the_Constitutio1.pdf| archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5qXvz463C| archivedate=2010-06-17|accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref name=MacLeod16>{{Cite book| last=MacLeod| first=Kevin S| authorlink=Kevin S. MacLeod| title=A Crown of Maples| publisher=Queen's Printer| year=2008| page=16| edition=1st| url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/fr-rf/crnCdn/crn_mpls-eng.pdf| isbn=978-0-662-46012-1| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref><ref>{{Cite document|author=Canadian Heritage| title=Canadian Heritage Portfolio| publisher=Queen's Printer| date=February 2009| edition=2nd| url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pc-ch/publctn/gp-pg/ppc-chp/ppc-chp-eng.pdf| pages=3–4| isbn=9781100115290|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> The sovereign is Queen Elizabeth II, who also serves as head of state of [[Commonwealth realm|15 other Commonwealth countries]] and each of Canada's ten provinces and resides predominantly in the United Kingdom. As such, the Queen's representative, the [[Governor General of Canada]] (presently [[David Johnston|David Lloyd Johnston]]), carries out most of the federal royal duties in Canada.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Governor General of Canada: Roles and Responsibilities|url=http://gg.ca/document.aspx?id=3|publisher=Queen's Printer|accessdate=2011-05-31}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| title=Commonwealth public administration reform 2004| publisher=Commonwealth Secretariat| year=2004| pages=54–55|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=ATi5R5XNb2MC&pg=PA54| isbn=0117032492}}</ref>

The direct participation of the royal and viceroyal figures in areas of governance is limited;<ref name=MacLeod16 /><ref name=Forseyp1>{{cite book| last=Forsey| first=Eugene| authorlink=Eugene Forsey| title=How Canadians Govern Themselves| pages=1, 16| edition=6th| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| year=2005| isbn=0662396898| url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/sites/lop/aboutparliament/forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf| archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5vkPPetrW| archivedate=2011-01-15|  accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref><ref name=Montpetit>{{cite web| url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/MarleauMontpetit/DocumentViewer.aspx?DocId=1001&Lang=E&Print=2&Sec=Ch01&Seq=5| last=Marleau| first=Robert| last2=Montpetit| first2=Camille| title=House of Commons Procedure and Practice: Parliamentary Institutions| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> in practice, their use of the executive powers is directed by [[Canadian Cabinet|the Cabinet]], a committee of [[Minister of the Crown|ministers of the Crown]] responsible to the elected [[Canadian House of Commons|House of Commons]] and chosen and headed by the [[Prime Minister of Canada]] (presently [[Stephen Harper]]<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/pm.asp?featureId=7| title=Prime Minister of Canada| publisher=Queen's Printer| year=2009| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>), the [[head of government]]. To ensure the stability of government, the governor general will usually appoint as prime minister the person who is the current leader of the political party that can obtain the confidence of a [[plurality (voting)|plurality]] in the House of Commons.<ref>{{cite book| last=Johnson| first=David| title=Thinking government: public sector management in Canada| publisher=University of Toronto Press| year=2006| edition=2nd| pages=134–135, 149| isbn=1551117797}}</ref> The [[Office of the Prime Minister (Canada)|Prime Minister's Office]] (PMO) is thus one of the most powerful institutions in government, initiating most legislation for parliamentary approval and selecting for appointment by the Crown, besides the aforementioned, the governor general, [[Lieutenant governor (Canada)|lieutenant governors]], senators, federal court judges, and heads of [[Crown corporations of Canada|Crown corporations]] and government agencies.<ref name=Forseyp1/> The leader of the party with the second-most seats usually becomes the [[Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada)|Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition]] (presently [[Nycole Turmel]]) and is part of an adversarial parliamentary system intended to keep the government in check.<ref>{{cite web|last=Library of Parliament|title=The Opposition in a Parliamentary System|url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/researchpublications/bp47-e.htm|publisher=Library of Parliament|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
[[File:Cansenate.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Canadian Senate|Senate chamber]] within the [[Centre Block]] on [[Parliament Hill]]]]

Each of the 308 [[Member of Parliament|Members of Parliament]] in the House of Commons is elected by simple plurality in an [[Canadian electoral district|electoral district]] or riding. General elections must be called by the governor general, on the advice of the prime minister, within four years of the previous election, or may be triggered by the government losing a [[confidence vote]] in the House.<ref>{{cite web|author=O'Neal, Brian; Bédard, Michel; Spano, Sebastian|date=April 11, 2011|title=Government and Canada’s 41st Parliament: Questions and Answers|url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/ResearchPublications/2011-37-e.htm|publisher=Library of Parliament|accessdate=2011-06-02}}</ref> The 105 members of the Senate, whose seats are apportioned on a regional basis, serve until age 75.<ref>{{cite journal| last=Hicks| first=Bruce M| coauthors=Blais, André| year=2008| title=Restructuring the Canadian Senate through Elections| journal=IIRP Choices| publisher=Institute for Research on Public Policy| volume=14| issue=14| page=11|url=http://www.irpp.org/choices/archive/vol14no15.pdf}}</ref> Five parties had representatives elected to the federal parliament in the 2011 elections: the [[Conservative Party of Canada]] (governing party), the [[New Democratic Party]] (the [[Official Opposition (Canada)|Official Opposition]]), the [[Liberal Party of Canada]], the [[Bloc Québécois]], and the [[Green Party of Canada]]. The list of [[List of federal political parties in Canada#Historical parties that have won seats in Parliament|historical parties]] with elected representation is substantial.

[[Canadian federalism|Canada's federal structure]] divides government responsibilities between the federal government and the ten provinces. [[Legislative Assemblies of Canadian provinces and territories|Provincial legislatures]] are [[Unicameralism|unicameral]] and operate in parliamentary fashion similar to the House of Commons.<ref name=Montpetit /> Canada's three territories also have legislatures, but these are not sovereign and have fewer constitutional responsibilities than the provinces and with some structural differences.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=provterr&sub=difference&doc=difference-eng.htm|title=Difference between Canadian Provinces and Territories| year=2009| publisher=Intergovernmental Affairs Canada| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca/_live/pages/wpPages/factscomparisonofprovincialandterritorial.aspx| title=A Comparison of Provincial & Territorial Governments| year=2008| publisher=Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>

===Law===
The [[Constitution of Canada]] is the supreme law of the country, and consists of written text and unwritten conventions. The Constitution Act, 1867 (known as the [[British North America Acts|British North America Act]] prior to 1982) affirmed governance based on parliamentary precedent and divided powers between the federal and provincial governments; the [[Statute of Westminster 1931]] granted full autonomy; and the [[Constitution Act, 1982]], ended all legislative ties to the UK, added a constitutional amending formula, and added the [[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]], which guarantees basic rights and freedoms that usually cannot be overridden by any government – though a [[Section Thirty-three of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms|notwithstanding clause]] allows the federal parliament and provincial legislatures to override certain sections of the Charter for a period of five years.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bakan|first=Joel|coauthors= Elliot, Robin M|title=Canadian Constitutional Law|publisher=Emond Montgomery Publications|year=2003|pages=3–8, 683–687, 699|isbn=1552390853}}</ref>
[[File:Medal-Viki.jpg|thumb|alt=Two sides of a silver medal: the profile of Queen Victoria and the inscription "Victoria Regina" on one side, a man in European garb shaking hands with an Aboriginal with the inscription "Indian Treaty 187" on the other|The Indian Chiefs Medal, presented to commemorate the [[Numbered Treaties]]]]

Although not without conflict, [[Euro-Canadian|European Canadians]]' early interactions with First Nations and Inuit populations were relatively peaceful. [[The Canadian Crown and Aboriginal peoples|The Crown and Aboriginal peoples]] began [[Timeline of colonization of North America|interactions]] during the European colonialization period. [[Numbered Treaties]], the [[Indian Act]], the Constitution Act of 1982, and case laws were established.<ref name=FN>{{Cite document| author=[[Assembly of First Nations]], [[Elizabeth II]]| contribution=A First Nations&nbsp;– Federal Crown Political Accord| url=http://www.turtleisland.org/news/prekelowna.pdf| series=1| year=2004| page=3| publisher=Assembly of First Nations| archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5mNOfuTmo| archivedate=2009-12-29| ref=harv| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> A series of eleven treaties were signed between Aboriginals in Canada and the reigning Monarch of Canada from 1871 to 1921.<ref>{{cite web|title = Treaty areas| publisher=Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat| date=October 7, 2002| url=http://dsp-psd.communication.gc.ca/Collection-R/LoPBdP/EB/prb9916-e.htm| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> These treaties are agreements with the Government of Canada administered by [[Canadian Aboriginal law]] and overseen by the [[Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (Canada)|Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]]. The role of the treaties was reaffirmed by [[Section Thirty-five of the Constitution Act, 1982]], which "recognizes and affirms existing Aboriginal and treaty rights".<ref name=FN/> These rights may include provision of services such as health care, and exemption from taxation.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/aboriginals/treaty8.html|title=What is Treaty 8?|publisher=CBC| accessdate =2011-05-23}}</ref> The legal and policy framework within which Canada and First Nations operate was further formalized in 2005, through the First Nations–Federal Crown Political Accord.<ref name=FN/>
[[File:Supreme Court of Canada, Ottawa.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Supreme Court of Canada]] in Ottawa, west of Parliament Hill]]

Canada's judiciary plays an important role in interpreting laws and has the power to strike down laws that violate the Constitution. The [[Supreme Court of Canada]] is the highest court and final arbiter and has been led by the Chief Justice [[Beverley McLachlin]], P.C. (the first female Chief Justice) since 2000.<ref>{{cite book|last=McCormick|first=Peter|title=Supreme at last: the evolution of the Supreme Court of Canada|publisher=James Lorimer & Company Ltd|year=2000|pages=2, 86, 154|isbn=1550286927}}</ref> Its nine members are appointed by the governor general on the advice of the Prime Minister and Minister of Justice. All judges at the superior and appellate levels are appointed after consultation with nongovernmental legal bodies. The federal cabinet also appoints justices to superior courts at the provincial and territorial levels.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scc-csc.gc.ca/court-cour/sys/index-eng.asp|title=About the Court|year=2009|publisher=Supreme Court of Canada|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>

[[Common law]] prevails everywhere except in Quebec, where [[civil law (legal system)|civil law]] predominates. [[Criminal law of Canada|Criminal law]] is solely a federal responsibility and is uniform throughout Canada.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sworden|first=Philip James|title=An introduction to Canadian law|publisher=Emond Montgomery Publications|year=2006|pages=22, 150|isbn=1552391450}}</ref> Law enforcement, including criminal courts, is a provincial responsibility, but in rural areas of all provinces except Ontario and Quebec, policing is contracted to the federal [[Royal Canadian Mounted Police]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nbpei-ecn.ca/documents/ECN-Forensics.pdf#neighbourhood|last=Royal Canadian Mounted Police|title=Keeping Canada and Our Communities Safe and Secure|publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>

===Foreign relations and military===
[[File:Barack Obama meets Stephen Harper.jpg|thumb|Prime Minister Stephen Harper meeting [[President of the United States]] [[Barack Obama]]]]

Canada and the United States share the world's longest undefended border, co-operate on military campaigns and exercises, and are each other's largest trading partner.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Haglung|first=David G|date=Autumn 2003|title=North American Cooperation in an Era of Homeland Security |journal=Orbis|publisher=Foreign Policy Research Institute|volume=47|issue=4|pages=675–691|doi=10.1016/S0030-4387(03)00072-3}}</ref> Canada nevertheless has an independent foreign policy, most notably maintaining full relations with [[Cuba]] and declining to officially participate in the [[Iraq War]]. Canada also maintains historic ties to the United Kingdom and France and to other former British and French colonies through Canada's membership in the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] and the [[Francophonie]].<ref>{{cite book|last=James|first=Patrick|title=Handbook of Canadian Foreign Policy|editor= Michaud, Nelson; O'Reilly, Marc J|publisher=Lexington Books|year=2006|pages=213–214, 349–362|isbn=073911493X}}</ref> Canada is noted for having a positive [[Canada–Netherlands relations|relationship with the Netherlands]], owing, in part, to its contribution to the Dutch liberation.<ref name="netherlands"/>

Canada currently employs a professional, volunteer military force of over 67,000 regular and approximately 43,000 reserve personnel including supplementary reserves.<ref>{{cite web |publisher= Department of National Defence |url=http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/acf-apfc/index-eng.asp |title=About the Canadian Forces|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> The unified [[Canadian Forces]] (CF) comprise the [[Canadian Army]], [[Royal Canadian Navy]], and [[Royal Canadian Air Force]].

Strong attachment to the British Empire and Commonwealth led to major participation in British military efforts in the [[Second Boer War]], World War I and World War II. Since then, Canada has been an advocate for [[multilateralism]], making efforts to resolve global issues in collaboration with other nations.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Teigrob|first=Robert|title='Which Kind of Imperialism?' Early Cold War Decolonization and Canada–US Relations|journal=Canadian Review of American Studies|date=September 2010|volume=37|issue=3|pages=403–430|doi=10.3138/cras.37.3.403}}</ref><ref>
{{cite book |title = Canada's international policy statement: a role of pride and influence in the world|publisher = Government of Canada |url=http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/ips-development |year=2005 |isbn = 066268608X |accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> Canada was a founding member of the United Nations in 1945 and of [[NATO]] in 1949. During the [[Canada in the Cold War|Cold War]], Canada was a major contributor to UN forces in the [[Korean War]] and founded the [[North American Aerospace Defense Command]] (NORAD) in cooperation with the United States to defend against potential aerial attacks from the Soviet Union.<ref>{{cite book|last=Finkel|first=Alvin|title=Our lives: Canada after 1945|publisher=Lorimer|year=1997|pages=105–107, 111–116|isbn=1550285513}}</ref>
[[File:US Navy 090425-M-9917S-314 Canadian Army soldiers assigned to Alpha Company, 3d Battalion, 22d Regiment of Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force-24 depart a U.S. Navy landing craft air cushion (LCAC) and deploy onto Mayp.jpg||thumb|left|[[Canadian Army]] soldiers from the [[Royal 22e Régiment|Royal 22<sup>e</sup> Régiment]] during UNITAS Gold (April 25, 2009)]]

During the [[Suez Crisis]] of 1956, future Prime Minister [[Lester B. Pearson]] eased tensions by proposing the inception of the [[peacekeeping|United Nations Peacekeeping Force]], for which he was awarded the 1957 [[Nobel Peace Prize]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Holloway|first=Steven Kendall|title=Canadian foreign policy: defining the national interest|publisher=University of Toronto Press|year=2006|pages=102–103|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=MSHy65g7M7wC&pg=PA102|isbn=1551118165}}</ref> As this was the first UN peacekeeping mission, Pearson is often credited as the inventor of the concept. Canada has since served in 50 peacekeeping missions, including every UN peacekeeping effort until 1989,<ref name="morton-milhist"/> and has since maintained forces in international missions in [[Rwanda]], the former [[Yugoslavia]], and elsewhere; Canada has sometimes faced controversy over its involvement in foreign countries, notably in the 1993 [[Somalia Affair]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/1994/11/27/world/torture-by-army-peacekeepers-in-somalia-shocks-canada.html|title=Torture by Army Peacekeepers in Somalia Shocks Canada|last=Farnsworth|first=Clyde H|date=November 27, 1994|newspaper=The New York Times|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>

Canada joined the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS) in 1990 and hosted the OAS General Assembly in [[Windsor, Ontario]], in June 2000 and the third Summit of the Americas in Quebec City in April 2001.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ai-ia/rir-iro/am-as/oea-oas-eng.cfm|title=Canada and the Organization of American States (OAS)|year=2008|publisher=Canadian Heritage|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> Canada seeks to expand its ties to [[Pacific Rim]] economies through membership in the [[Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation]] forum (APEC).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/cimar-rcami/2009/06_apec.aspx|title=Opening Doors to Asia|year=2009|publisher=Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
[[File:HMCS Regina (FFH 334) 1.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Halifax class frigate|Halifax-class]] [[frigate]] [[HMCS Regina (FFH 334)|HMCS ''Regina'']], a warship of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]]]]

In 2001, Canada had troops deployed to [[Afghanistan]] as part of the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|US stabilization force]] and the UN-authorized, NATO-commanded [[International Security Assistance Force]]. Starting in July 2011, Canada began withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan.  The mission had cost 157 soldiers, one diplomat, two aid workers, and one journalist their lives,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Canada-ends-combat-mission-in-Afghanistan-1456030.php|title=Canada ends combat mission in Afghanistan|last=Reichmann|first=Deb|date=July 7, 2011|accessdate=2011-07-11}}</ref> with an approximate cost of [[Canadian dollar|C$]]11.3&nbsp;billion<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.afghanistan.gc.ca/canada-afghanistan/news-nouvelles/2010/2010_07_09.aspx?lang=eng|title=Cost of the Afghanistan mission 2001–2011|accessdate=2011-07-11}}</ref>
Canada and the US continue to integrate state and provincial agencies to strengthen security along the [[Canada-United States border]] through the [[Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Konrad|first=Victor|coauthors= Nicol, Heather N|title=Beyond walls: re-inventing the Canada-United States borderlands|publisher=Ashgate Publishing|year=2008|pages=189, 196|isbn=0754672026}}</ref>

In February 2007, Canada, Italy, Britain, [[Norway]], and Russia announced their funding commitments to launch a $1.5&nbsp;billion project to help develop vaccines they said could save millions of lives in poor nations, and called on others to join them.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/02/06/idUSL06661675._CH_.2400|title=Rich nations to sign $1.5 bln vaccine pact in Italy|last=Vagnoni|first=Giselda|date=February 5, 2007|publisher=Reuters|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> In August 2007, Canada's [[territorial claims in the Arctic]] were challenged after a [[Arktika 2007|Russian underwater expedition]] to the [[North Pole]]; Canada has considered that area to be sovereign territory since 1925.<ref>{{cite news | last = Blomfield | first = Adrian| url = http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1559165/Russia-claims-North-Pole-with-Arctic-flag-stunt.html | newspaper = [[The Daily Telegraph]] | title = Russia claims North Pole with Arctic flag stunt | date = August 3, 2007 | accessdate=2011-05-23 }}</ref> In July 2010 the largest purchase in [[Military history of Canada|Canadian military history]], totaling C$9&nbsp;billion for the acquisition of 65 [[Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II|F-35 fighters]] was announced by the federal government.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-10667633
|title=Row over Canada F-35 fighter jet order
|publisher=BBC News
|date=July 16, 2010
|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>

===Provinces and territories===
Canada is a federation composed of ten [[province]]s and three [[territory (administrative division)|territories]]. In turn, these may be [[List of regions of Canada|grouped into regions]]: [[Western Canada]], [[Central Canada]], [[Atlantic Canada]], and [[Northern Canada]] ([[Eastern Canada]] refers to Central Canada and Atlantic Canada together). Provinces have more autonomy than territories. The provinces are responsible for most of Canada's social programs (such as [[Health care in Canada|health care]], [[Education in Canada|education]], and [[welfare]]) and together collect more revenue than the federal government, an almost unique structure among federations in the world. Using its spending powers, the federal government can initiate national policies in provincial areas, such as the [[Canada Health Act]]; the provinces can opt out of these, but rarely do so in practice. [[Equalization payments]] are made by the federal government to ensure that reasonably uniform standards of services and taxation are kept between the richer and poorer provinces.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-516-x/sectionh/4057752-eng.htm|title=Government Finance|last=Bird|first=Richard M|date=October 22, 2008|work=Historical Statistics of Canada|publisher=Statistics Canada|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
{{Canada image map}}
{{clearleft}}