5.3.2 Historical Perspectives of Canada's National Identity-1

"A British subject I was born, a British subject I will die." Would this seem like a surprising statement coming from a Canadian today? Do you remember from Unit 1 who made this statement? It was made in 1891 by Canada's most important founding father and its first Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. When he said this over 100 years ago, most Canadians would not have been surprised in the least. In 1891 it was commonly recognized, in all of Canada (except Quebec,) that Canada's identity was intertwined with Britain's.   © Public Domain. Source: National Archives of Canada, PA-027013

Canada's Move Towards Sovereignty

By now, you are likely aware that Canada used to be a colony controlled by Great Britain. Canada's move towards being its own sovereign nation occurred as a result of a gradual progression and growth of a new national identity. Canadian sovereignty (defined as a nation with legal power to make decisions and power to control and govern its own territory on behalf of its citizens) resulted from changing needs as the identity of Canada changed.
Rather than a sudden revolution like that of the United States, Canada evolved over time into a sovereign nation with a government based upon the concept of a constitutional monarchy, using a parliamentary model for decision-making (a constitutional monarchy means that a king or queen reigns in the country, but he or she does not rule or make laws).

Responsible Government

However, Canada has a House of Commons that represents all the people of Canada and a Senate that represents specific regions of the country. Members of the House of Commons are elected during general elections, while members of the Senate are appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister.

Moreover, Canada uses a system of government called “responsible government” (see right image) to hold the decision-makers accountable for their decisions. Therefore, members of the Executive branch of government, known as the Cabinet, must be chosen from the elected members of the group or party with the most members in the Legislative branch, also known as the House of Commons.

The Cabinet is the most powerful voice of Parliament because its members are chosen from an elected body that represents the will of the people. However, the Cabinet members are held responsible for their actions to the elected representatives of the people in the House of Commons. If the Cabinet loses the confidence of the majority of the House of Commons, it must resign as the government. As a result, the government can function only if it has the support of the House of Commons. Therefore, it must be "responsible" to the House of Commons.