UNIT 2 –

GOVERNMENT
AND POLITICS

Grade 9 Social Studies

WHAT IS A GOVERNMENT?

A government is a ruling
body that runs the affairs of
a country, province, city,
town, or district.
WHY DO WE HAVE A GOVERNMENT?

The government’s role in our

lives is to make decisions. To
do this they make laws and
ensure that they are carried
out.
Since there are so many decisions we
have to make on a daily basis, it
would be simply impossible to decide
what do with larger issues such as
education and health care. That is
why we elect a government – they
represent us and make difficult
decisions on our behalf.
WHAT CAN THE
GOVERNMENT DO?

The government has

many powers and these
are stated in the
Canadian Constitution.
The Constitution is a set of rules for
the various levels of government to
follow in their decision-making.
The Constitution was originally
called the British North America
(BNA) Act and contains both a
written and unwritten part.
THE CANADIAN CONSTITUTION
Written Unwritten
The Constitutional Act, 1867 Traditions based on the
British system.
The Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms
An amending formula which
sets out the ways in which the
Constitution can be changed.
THERE ARE THREE BRANCHES OF
GOVERNMENTAL POWER:
 Executive Power – This is the power to
administer and enforce the laws of the country.
 
 Legislative Power – This is the power to make
laws.

 Judicial Power – This is the power to decide

who has broken the law and what penalties they
will be given.
WHAT TYPE OF GOVERNMENT DO WE
HAVE IN CANADA?
 The system of government in Canada is based
largely on the British form of government. Our
government can be described in four ways:
a constitutional monarchy
a federal system
a party system
a representative democracy
A CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY

Canada recognizes the monarch (king or queen)

as our head of state. The current monarch is
Queen Elizabeth II; the Queen does not rule
Canada or any other Commonwealth nation
directly. In fact, she has little power. The
monarch is represented by the Governor General
who has a largely symbolic role. The GG is
appointed by the monarch on the advice of the
Prime Minister.
The GG performs many ceremonial
acts:
opens Parliament and reads the Speech
from the Throne (the plan for that
session of Parliament)
gives royal assent to bills (approves
legislation)
appoints officials
greets foreign leaders
gives awards and medals to Canadians
 There was recently a new Governor
General sworn in; David Johnston took his
seat at GG on October 1, 2010.

 http
://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/video/
johnston-installed-as-g-g/article1739125/
FEDERAL SYSTEM

 The federal system of government was created by the

Fathers of Confederation in 1867. They determined that
there should be two levels of government: federal, that
would look after the needs of all citizens of Canada, and
provincial, to look after the specific needs of a region or
province.

 Since then, another level of government has been added:

municipal government. This government looks after the
needs of a city, town, or municipality.
 So, the three levels of government are:

 _______________________________________________
 _______________________________________________
 _______________________________________________

 Each of these three levels has three branches:

 _______________________________________________
 _______________________________________________
 _______________________________________________
PARTY SYSTEM
 Most of the people who represent you at the
federal, provincial, and some at the
municipal level, belong to a political
party. A political party is a group of people
who have common beliefs, ideas, and plans
about the best way to govern. The party
asks us to vote for its candidates in a
particular riding, and if enough party
candidates are elected, that party forms the
government.
 The major political parties in Canada are
the Conservative Party, the Liberal Party,
and the New Democratic Party (NDP). In
Quebec, separatists are active at the
federal level as the Bloc Quebecois, and at
the provincial level as the Parti Quebecois.
REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY
 Canada is a democracy, which means that
the people govern the nation. Since it is
impossible for every citizen to be involved
directly in the workings of the government
– there’s just too much to do – we give our
power to elected representatives who act
on our behalf. This is called a
representative democracy.
 Onyour own or in a small group, read
over the handouts on Federal,
Provincial/Territorial, and Municipal
Governments. Fill in any blanks that are
empty.

 Tonight, you will want to visit the class

blog
http://rooma215.blogspot.com
to download a list of important vocabulary
for this unit.