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* Opposition Whip in the Senate: [[Jim Munson]]
* Opposition Whip in the Senate: [[Jim Munson]]
* Deputy Opposition Whip in the Senate: [[Elizabeth Hubley]]
* Deputy Opposition Whip in the Senate: [[Elizabeth Hubley]]
* Whips hurt real bad.


'''House of Commons'''
'''House of Commons'''

Revision as of 21:14, 15 November 2010

40th Legislature
minority parliament
18 November 2008 – present
Parliament leaders
First MinisterRt. Hon. Stephen Harper
Feb 6, 2006 – present
Cabinet28th
Leader of the
Opposition
Hon. Stéphane Dion
Dec 2, 2006 – Dec 10, 2008
Hon. Michael Ignatieff
Dec 10, 2008 – present
Party caucuses
GovernmentConservative Party of Canada
OppositionLiberal Party of Canada
RecognizedBloc Québécois
New Democratic Party
Lower House

Seating arrangements of the Lower House
Speaker of the
Lower House
Hon. Peter Milliken
January 29, 2001 (2001-01-29)–present
Government
House Leader
Hon. Jay Hill
Oct 3, 2008 – Aug 6, 2010
Hon. John Baird
Aug 6, 2010 – present
Opposition
House Leader
Hon. Ralph Goodale
Feb 10, 2006 – Sep 10, 2010
David McGuinty
Sep 10, 2010 – present
Members303 of 308 seats
Senate

Seating arrangements of the Senate
Speaker of the
Senate
Hon. Noël A. Kinsella
Feb 8, 2006 – present
Government
Senate Leader
Hon. Marjory LeBreton
Feb 6, 2006 – present
Opposition
Senate Leader
Hon. Jim Cowan
Nov 3, 2008 – present
Counsellors105 of 105 counsellor seats
Sessions
1st session
November 18, 2008 – December 4, 2008
2nd session
January 26, 2009 – December 30, 2009
3rd session
March 3, 2010 – present
← 39th → 41st

The 40th Canadian Parliament is the current Parliament of Canada, with the membership of its House of Commons determined by the results of the 2008 federal election held on October 14, 2008, and it opened on November 18, 2008. It was then prorogued by the Governor General on December 4, 2008, on the request of Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the face of a likely non-confidence motion and a coalition agreement between the NDP and the Liberal Party of Canada with the support of the Bloc Québécois (see 2008–2009 Canadian parliamentary dispute). Of the 308 MPs elected at the October 14, 2008, general election, 64 are new to Parliament and three of those sat in previous Parliaments other than the 39th: John Duncan, Jack Harris and Roger Pomerleau. And as of July 5, 2010, the 40th Parliament represents the longest running series of minority governments in Canadian History.

There have been three sessions of the 40th Parliament so far.

Party standings

Template:40th Canadian Parliament standings

Resignations and by-elections

NDP MP Dawn Black resigned her seat of New Westminster—Coquitlam effective April 13, 2009, to run (successfully) in the provincial riding of New Westminster in the 2009 British Columbia general election.[1] The NDP's Fin Donnelly won the seat left vacant by Black in a by-election on November 9, 2009.[2]

Independent MP Bill Casey resigned his seat of Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley effective April 30, 2009, to accept a job as the Nova Scotia Department of Intergovernmental Affairs' senior representative in Ottawa. He was a former Conservative who voted against the 2007 budget, claiming that it broke the Atlantic Accord with his province and Newfoundland and Labrador, and was subsequently expelled from the Conservative caucus.[3] Scott Armstrong, the Conservative candidate, won the by-election for this seat on November 9, 2009.[2]

Bloc Québécois MP Paul Crête resigned his seat of Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup on May 21, 2009, to run in a provincial by-election in Rivière-du-Loup. Conservative Bernard Généreux won the November 9, 2009 by-election for this seat.[2]

Bloc Québécois MP Réal Ménard resigned his seat of Hochelaga on September 16, 2009, to run in Montreal's municipal elections.[4] On November 9, 2009, Daniel Paillé won this seat for the Bloc in a by-election.[2]

New Democratic Party MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis resigned from the House effective April 30, 2010.[5] The by-election to replace her has been scheduled for November 29, 2010.

Liberal MP Maurizio Bevilacqua resigned from the House effective August 25, 2010. A by-election has been scheduled for November 29, 2010.[6]

Conservative MP Inky Mark resigned from the House effective September 15, 2010. A by-election has been scheduled for November 29, 2010. [7]

Bloc Quebecois MP Jean-Yves Roy resigned from the House effective October 22, 2010. A by-election has not been scheduled. [8]

Conservative MP Jay Hill resigned from the House effective October 25, 2010. A by-election has not been scheduled. [9]

1st session and prorogation

The first session of the 40th parliament opened on November 18, 2008, after Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives won a slightly stronger minority government in the 2008 election. With a new government in session, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty tabled a fiscal update nine days later. Among other things, the update cut government spending, suspended the ability of civil servants to strike, sold off some Crown assets, and eliminated existing political party subsidies. This fiscal update was rejected by the opposition, and became a catalyst for talks of a coalition government. Stéphane Dion of the Liberal Party and Jack Layton of the New Democratic Party, signed an accord stating that in the event that the government lost the confidence of the house, they would form a coalition with the support of Gilles Duceppe and the Bloc Québécois, if asked to do so by the Governor General of Canada Michaëlle Jean. However, Stephen Harper delayed the vote of non-confidence scheduled for December 1, and the Governor General prorogued parliament on Harper's advice on December 4, 2008, until January 26, 2009.

Aftermath

After prorogation, calls came from within the Liberal Party for Dion to resign immediately. Dion initially scheduled his resignation for the party's leadership convention in May 2009, but on December 8, 2008, he announced that he would step down upon the selection of his successor. After the withdrawal of Bob Rae and Dominic LeBlanc from the leadership race, Michael Ignatieff became the only leadership candidate, and therefore was appointed interim leader of the Liberals and the opposition on December 10, 2008.

2nd Session

The Harper government recalled Parliament on January 26, 2009. Its first business in the new session (after the Throne Speech) was to present the federal budget, which included a large deficit. After negotiations with new Opposition leader Michael Ignatieff, the government promised to present regular updates on the stimulus budget, and the Liberals and Conservatives joined to pass the budget and keep the Conservative government in power.

The Conservative government made crime a major focus of the session. The Conservatives reintroduced their former mandatory minimums bill, known as Bill C-15.[10]

Second prorogation

Media related to Protests against the prorogation of the 40th Parliament at Wikimedia Commons

Protest on Parliament Hill in Ottawa against the prorogation
March in Vancouver against the prorogation

On December 30, 2009, Prime Minister Harper announced that he will be proroguing parliament during the 2010 Winter Olympics until March 3, 2010. He telephoned Governor General Michaëlle Jean to, once again, ask her permission to end the parliamentary session. Jean signed the proclamation later that day, granting his request, thus choosing to prorogue Parliament for the second time in her role as Governor General.[11][12] According to Prime Minister Harper's spokesman, he sought his second prorogation to consult with Canadians about the economy.[11] "The move triggered immediate condemnation from opposition MPs who labelled the Conservative government's move an 'almost despotic' attempt to muzzle parliamentarians amid controversy over the Afghan detainees affair."[11] In an interview with CBC News, Prince Edward Island Liberal member of parliament Wayne Easter accused the Prime Minister of "shutting democracy down".[13][14] The second prorogation in a year also received some international criticism as being not very democratic.[15]

Protests

Demonstrations took place on January 23, 2010, in over 60 Canadian cities, and at least four cities in other countries. The protests attracted thousands of participants, many who had joined a group on Facebook.[16][17]

Senate appointments

The Senate of Canada has seen new members appointed in blocs of 18, 9, and 5; all were appointed to the Conservative caucus. The balance of power shifted for the first time on August 27, 2009, when the Liberal caucus was reduced to holding a plurality of 52 seat. On January 29, 2010, the balance shifted again as five vacancies were filled by appointed Conservatives, giving them a plurality of 51, with the Liberals holding the next-highest number of seats at 49.

Honorary Senators

The Senate of Canada posthumously awarded the title of Honorary Senator during the 40th Parliament to five pioneering women known as The Famous Five.[18]

Emily Murphy
Henrietta Muir Edwards
Nellie McClung
Irene Parlby
Louise McKinney

Members

For full lists of members of the 40th Parliament of Canada, see List of House members of the 40th Parliament of Canada and List of senators in the 40th Parliament of Canada.

Officeholders

Speakers

Other Chair occupants

Senate

House of Commons

Floor leaders

Senate

House of Commons

Whips

Senate

House of Commons

Shadow cabinets

References

  1. ^ "NDP MP to seek provincial seat in B.C.". cbc.ca, March 7, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d "Conservatives win 2 byelections, 1 at Bloc's expense". cbc.ca, November 10, 2009.
  3. ^ Tory MP ejected from caucus after budget vote, CBC.ca, June 5, 2007.
  4. ^ "Bloc MP runs for municipal politics". CTV News, June 25, 2009.
  5. ^ "NDP’s Judy Wasylycia-Leis calls it quits". The Globe and Mail, April 27, 2010.
  6. ^ Maurizio Bevilacqua moves closer to Vaughan mayor’s seat. The National Post, August 25, 2010.
  7. ^ "Inky hopes to make a Mark as mayor again". "Winnipeg Free Press", August 17, 2010.
  8. ^ "Jean-Yves Roy quitte la politique". "Radio-Canada", October 22, 2010.
  9. ^ "Hill set to resign on Oct. 25: CP". "Prince George Citizen", October 4, 2010.
  10. ^ http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Docid=3703962&file=4
  11. ^ a b c CBC News (December 31, 2009). "PM shuts down Parliament until March". CBC. Retrieved December 31, 2009.
  12. ^ Richard J. Brennan (January 2, 2010). "Critics say anger is growing over PM's 'imperial' style". Toronto Star. Retrieved January 2, 2010.
  13. ^ POV, CBC News (December 30, 2009). "Parliament prorogued: Necessary move or undemocratic?". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved January 1, 2010. [dead link]
  14. ^ News, CBC (December 31, 2009). "PM 'shutting democracy down', says Easter". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved January 1, 2010. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  15. ^ The Economist, January 7, 2010
  16. ^ News, CBC (January 23, 2010). "Thousands protest Parliament's suspension". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved January 24, 2010. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  17. ^ Delacourt, Susan (January 5, 2010). "Grassroots fury greets shuttered Parliament". Toronto Star. Retrieved January 20, 2010. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ "'Famous 5' named honorary senators". CBC News. October 10, 2009.