Rideau Hall’s choice
Posted by John Malloy on 12/03/2008
“Canada’s politicians are on the verge of putting Governor-General Michaëlle Jean in an extremely unenviable position, forcing our non-partisan vice-regal representative to set a precedent in the middle of a political mess,” historian and constitutional expert Bob Beal writes in this online-exclusive explanatory piece.
“If things unfold as they might, the Governor-General will have to make a decision. She has a number of options, any one of which could become controversial.”
He adds: “Some aspects of today’s situation are clear. The House of Commons is just at the beginning of a session after a recent election. It has not had much chance to do its work or find its footing. The present government is facing a confidence vote.
“If the House decides it does not have confidence in the present government, the Governor-General will have to wonder if the House might have confidence in a different government drawn from the same House. The opposition parties have attempted to address that point with their agreement and the letter they have written to Ms. Jean.
“Constitutional experts say in that situation the most minimal use of the Royal Prerogative would be to let the House get on with its work and let a new prime minister test the confidence of the House.
“Accepting the prime minister’s advice for dissolution and an election in the present situation is also a possible, and proper, use of the prerogative. But that would establish a precedent, so far unknown, of the Crown interfering in the work of a newly elected House when it seems possible a new prime minister might be able to command the confidence of the House.
“The current Prime Minister could ask the Governor-General to prorogue this session of Parliament, to delay the work of the House until the New Year, an exercise of the Crown’s reserve powers. That request would raise questions that have never been raised before. It seems a murkier situation than a request for dissolution would be.
“The Governor-General could refuse a prorogation request on the same grounds as refusing a dissolution request, that the refusal would represent the most minimal use of the Crown’s powers and the least Crown interference with the work of the House. This session has hardly begun, and a confidence vote is scheduled within days…
www.theglobeandmail.com
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John Malloy on 12/03/2008. Filed under
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