FEDERALISM

1
FEDERALISM

• Fundamental to understanding Canadian politics
• One of three pillars of institutional structure
  with Parliamentary government, and the Charter
• Closely related to our regional divisions, and to
  Quebec Canada relations
• Intergovernmental competition/conflict central to
  the policy process to Canadian democracy to
  accommodating difference
• Subject of major debates more power to Ottawa,
  or the provinces national standards vs.
  provincial variation distinct status for
  Quebec, etc.

2
Federalism around the world

• A common way to organize political life.
• 24 federal countries in the world, covering about
  2 billion people, 40 per cent of worlds
  population
• Older federations United States (first modern
  federation), Canada, Australia, Germany, Brazil.
• Post-colonial federations Nigeria, Malaysia
• Countries that have recently moved to federalism
  Spain, Belgium, South Africa, European Union,
  Ethiopia, former Soviet Union (CIS)
• Increasingly popular.

3
Defining federalism

• Two (or three) levels of government, in
  constitution each with assigned powers and each
  with its own independent base of legitimacy in
  electorate.
• National (central) govts state or provincial
  govts sometimes local govts.
• A combination of shared rule central
  government, for the whole country and
  self-rule autonomy and powers for
  state/provincial governments with their own
  citizens
• Coming together and coming apart.

4
Essential elements in a federal constitution

• The political units few or many variation in
  size., wealth
• The division of powers who does what
• Fiscal arrangements who pays for what
• Intergovernmental relations how govts work (or
  not) together
• Provincial representation in the national
  government
• A judicial umpire
• A method for change and amendment -- Canada
  constitutional change judicial interpretation
  spending power, etc.

5
Federal societies

• Some federations (US, Germany, Australia) are
  relatively homogeneous have few
  regional/territorial differences
• Tend to be relatively centralized, low conflict,
  with few policy variations.
• A federal society is one where political
  differences (economic, cultural, etc.) are
  territorially concentrated and where regional
  identities are strong (Belgium, Spain, Canada)
• Tend to be more decentralized, more conflictual,
  with larger policy variation

6
Federations vary

• In the powers assigned to central and provincial
  govts. (Centralization decentralization)
• In the financial resources available to
  governments (fiscal federalism
• In levels of conflict/cooperation among
  governments
• Integrated federalism (Germany) vs. divided
  federalism (Canada)
• Symmetry (all govts with same powers) vs.
  asymmetry (powers vary)

7
Explanations for variation

• The constitutional text, and later judicial
  interpretation
• The broader political structure, including the
• Capacity of central governments to reflect and
  accommodate difference
• The electoral and party systems unifying or
  dividing?
• Federal society the importance of regional
  differences in interests and identities

8
Federalism in Canada/1

• Relative to other federations
• Canada is highly decentralized strong
  provinces,
• in terms of provincial powers, financial
  resources, and political clout
• Canadian federalism also relatively adversarial,
  competitive
• A blend of autonomy and interdependence
• Canadian federalism has also been highly
  contested Canada centered (nation building)
  province centered (province building) vs.
  Quebec centered (Quebec nation building).
• Two powerful orders of government equal partners

9
Federalism in Canada/2 Origins

• Coming apart federalism breaking the
  French-English impasse in Canada.
• Coming together uniting the British colonies in
  N. America
• Reasons nation-building to create a Canada
  from sea to sea economic to strengthen the
  weak colonies security to be stronger vis a
  vis the US.
• But competing visions John A. Macdonald, Cartier

10
Federalism in Canada/2 The Confederation
settlement

• BNAA, 1867 was highly centralist
  quasi-federal)
• Sweeping federal powers peace, order and good
  government, trade and commerce, etc.
• Ottawa had main revenues
• Disallowance, reservation, and declaratory powers
• BUT

11
Federalism in Canada/3

• Provinces have important powers too in S. 91.
  Property and civil rights, ownership of public
  lands, etc.
• Provinces resist federal dominance
• Supported by courts interpret federal powers
  narrowly provincial powers widely
• Provinces assert compact theory Ottawa a
  creation of provinces.
• By 1920s a more balanced, classical federalism
• THEN

12
Federalism in Canada/4

• The Great Depression provinces unable to cope,
  need federal help
• Virtually complete centralization in WW II.
• Post-war project building Keynesian welfare
  state. Is federalism obsolete? (Modernization
  centralization)
• Ottawa takes lead. Pensions, Unemployment
  Insurance to Ottawa
• Use of federal spending power to finance
  provincial welfare states
• Quebec resistance

13
Federalism in Canada/5

• Then growing provincial strength, fuelled by
• Quebec Quiet revolution, growth of Quebec
  nationalism, maitres chez nous
• Growing size, resources, confidence of prov.
  governments
• Emergence of more regionally divisive issue
  energy
• Leads to

14
Federalism in Canada/6

• Challenge to federal dominance, increased
  conflict
• In Quebec egalite ou independence PQ elected
  1976.
• In West western alienation, resistance to
  national energy program, emergence of Reform
  Party.
• Competing visions of the nature of the
  federation. Ottawa, province, and Quebec-centered
• Constitutional battles over federalism from
  Victoria Charter, to Meech Lake, to
  Charlottetown. Canadians unable to fo0prge a
  common sense of nationhood
• Failure, followed by constitutional fatigue,
  commitment to non-constitutional renewal.

15
Federalism in Canada/7

• Federalism today
• Overall trend decentralizing
• Commitment to collaborative federalism
  governments working together to solve problems
• Examples Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT)
  Social Union Framework Agreement (SUFA)
  environmental accords. But
• Adversarial intergovernmental relations
  financial competition (fiscal imbalance)
  declining trust competition to gain credit,
  avoid blame, protect turf.

16
Federalism in Canada/8

• Division of powers
• Ss. 91, 92 water tight compartments, separate
  lists of powers
• Today many shared powers concurrency
  Environment, social policy
• Federal trade, criminal law, defence, foreign
  affairs etc. Emergency power POGG
• Provinces education, health, welfare, economic
  development and regulation, etc. Property and
  civil rights
• Who should do what? Subsidiarity.

17
Intergovernmental Relations Executive
federalism

• Governments must work together because
• Responsibility for most important problems is
  shared environment, health care etc.
• Strong citizen demand for better cooperation
• Canadian IGR is executive federalism.
• First Ministers Conferences Ministerial
  conferences and councils exchanges among civil
  servants.
• Cooperation among provinces through the APC and
  new Council of the Federation.

18
Intergovernmental Relations Fiscal federalism

• Both levels of government have wide taxing powers
• Provincial share of revenues and spending has
  been growing
• Federal transfers to the provinces spending
  power very important, but transfers declining
  as proportion of provincial revenues conditions
  have been relaxed.
• Equalization and the Confederation bargain.

19
Fiscal federalism/2

• Matching responsibilities and resources the
  question of fiscal imbalance.
• Some comparisons
• Federal share of all govt. spending Canada 37
  per cent Germany 41 US 61
• Of revenues Canada 45 US 66 Germany 65.
• Share of provincial govt. revenues coming from
  central govt Canada 13 per cent Germany 18
  US 30 Spain 78.
• Transfers with strong conditions attached Canada
  17 per cent (down from 75 per cent in 1960).
  Germany 65 per cent US 100 per cent.

20
Explaining the Canadian pattern/1

• Federal society
• Quebec. Canada as a bi-national federation
  Quebec as a national government. Federalist
  vision distinct society. From French
  Canadians, to a Quebecois nation
• Regionalism strong provincial identities strong
  differences in history, economy and society
• Sense of regional grievance Canadians in most
  provinces believe they are not treated fairly
• But strong dual identities essential to
  maintenance of the federation.

21
Explaining the Canadian pattern/2

• Institutional explanations
• An electoral system that exaggerates and
  amplifies regional differences
• A party system that is regionally divided
• A parliament that gives all power to the
  governing party, and limits ability of MPs to
  speak for their provinces.
• A Senate that is is ineffective in representing
  regional interests at the centre
• Hence divided federalism, citizens turn to
  provincial governments

22
Compare to Germany

• Canada is divided federalism Germany shared
  or integrated federalism.
• Explanations
• Homogeneous vs. regionalized society
• Integrated national vs. divided party system
• Proportional electoral system vs. single member
  system
• Wide areas of shared powers federal framework
  laws
• Strong provincial rep. in national legislature
  (Bundesrat), vs. weak Canadian Senate

23
Current issues in Canadian federalism/1

• Finding the right balance between national
  standards and provincial variation
• Medicare as an example should provinces have
  more freedom to experiment with privatization,
  etc.?

24
Current issues /2

• Quebec still an issue
• Today gt 40 per cent would vote yes
• But calls for independence more muted.
• From the failures of Meech and Charlottetown, to
  the 1995 referendum
• The Supreme Court reference and the Clarify Act.
• Symmetry or asymmetry? Distinct society vs.
  equal provinces.

25
Current issues/3

• Western alienation
• Sense of being unrepresented, frozen out in
  Ottawa
• Sense of dominance of Ontario, Quebec
• Hostility to bilingualism
• Options we want in Senate reform, etc.
• We want out more power to the provinces

26
Current issues/4

• Fixing the democratic deficit in IGR
• Closed door decision-making men in suits.
  Focus on turf, status blame avoidance
• Lack of openness, transparency
• Difficulty of ensuring accountability
• Options regular First Ministers Conferences,
  open to public greater role for legislatures,
  clarifying who does what

27
Current issues/5

• Responding to globalization and North American
  integration
• Shift to a North-South economy possible
  implications for federalism
• Centralizing or decentralizing glocalization?
• Problems in coordinating the Canadian response
  Softwood lumber and Kyoto

28
Current issues/6

• Multilevel governance
• Most major problems require coordinated action at
  local, provincial, national and international
  levels huge challenge
• Cities should they have constitutional status,
  more powers, more tax revenues?
• Should they participate in intergovernmental
  forums?
• Aboriginal peoples, First Nations a Third order
  of government? Relations with Ottawa,
  provinces, cities.