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The Constitution Patriated

The Constitution Patriated. What is a Constitution?. t he rules of how a gvt should operate system of laws which formally states people's rights and duties b eing able to change the constitution is a crucial part but nations make it very difficult to do so. The Canadian Constitution.

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The Constitution Patriated

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  1. TheConstitutionPatriated

  2. What is a Constitution? • the rules of how a gvt should operate • system of laws which formally states people's rights and duties • being able to change the constitution is a crucial part but nations make it very difficult to do so

  3. The Canadian Constitution • was passed in 1867 by the British Parliament and called the British North America Act (BNA Act) • much of Canada’s Constitution deals with the specific powers held by the federal and provincial levels of gvt (e.g. defence to federal and education to provincial)

  4. The Amendment Problem • the BNA did not have an amending formula (what to do if you want to change something) so the federal gvt and ALL provinces had to agree on a way to change it • Canada was the ONLY independent nation in the world whose Constitution was an act of another nation’s Parliament • Trudeau wanted to patriate (bring home) the Constitution for Canadians

  5. the Constitution package would have two main features: • a defined amending formula • a Charter of Rights and Freedoms • having every province agree to an amendment would never happen; every province had veto power • having only 6 or 7 provinces agree plus the federal gvt made sense but not fair to Ontario and Quebec if they voted no (over 2/3 of the population)

  6. After failing yet again, Trudeau decided to take the package straight to Britain without the consent of the provinces • Only NB and ON supported Trudeau and he and the Liberals decided to take the case to the highest court in Canada: The Supreme Court

  7. The Supreme Court Decision • the judges declared that there was no law stopping the federal gvt but that they needed a “substantial number” of provinces to agree before a change was made • after late night meetings, all provinces agreed on a compromise bill except Quebec • the bill to patriate the Canadian Constitution finally passed in December, 1981

  8. Finally! • on April 17, 1982, Queen Elizabeth officially handed Canada back its Constitution • amendments can be made by agreement between the federal gvt and 2/3 of the provinces representing at least 50% of Canada’s population

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