Enacting Laws

• Creating laws in Canada requires many different steps:
• First Reading
• Second Reading
• Parliamentary Committee
• Report Stage
• Third reading
• Royal Assent

First Reading

• Any idea for a new law or a change to current law is written down. 
• The idea is now called a bill. 
• The bill is printed and read in the House it is starting from.
• If a bill originates in the Senate, the bill is identified with the letter S and given a number; for example, Bill S-4. 
• If a Bill originates in the House of Commons, it is identified with the letter C and given a number; for example, Bill C-78.

Second Reading

• The bill is given a Second Reading in the House it is starting from (Senate or HOC).
• Parliament officials (senators or MPs) debate the idea behind the bill. 
• They consider questions such as: 
• “Is the idea behind the bill good?” 
• “Does it meet people’s needs?” 
• “Who will be affected by this bill?”
• If the House votes for the bill and it passes this stage, it goes to a committee of the House, which usually meets in a smaller committee room outside the Chamber.

Parliamentary Committee

• The bill is studied carefully.
• Hearings or special meetings are held where different people inside and outside government can make comments about the bill.
• The committee can ask for government officials and experts, or witnesses, to come and answer questions.
• The committee can suggest changes or amendments to the bill when it gives its report to the House.

Report Stage

• The committee reports the bill back to the House along with recommended changes.
• All parliamentarians can then debate it.
• Those who were not part of the committee that studied the bill can suggest changes to the bill.

Third Reading

• The parliamentarians debate it again!
• Sometimes they can change their minds about a bill if they do not like the changes made by the Parliamentary Committee
  
• If it passes Third Reading, the bill then goes to the other House where it goes through the same stages (First / Second / PC / RS / Third Reading).

Royal Assent

• Once both the Senate and the House of Commons have passed the bill in exactly the same wording, it is given to the Governor General (or his or her appointed representative) for Royal Assent (final approval), and it can become law.
• During the ceremony to receive Royal Assent, bills that have to do with taxes and financial matters are tied with a green ribbon; all others are tied with a red one.

Understanding the Branches and Responsibilities of the Provincial Government

• Like the Federal government, the Provincial government has three branches:
• Legislative
• Judicial
• Executive

Legislative 

• Made of the Legislative Assembly (in Ontario)
  
• LA functions are to consider through debate new laws and changes to existing ones
• LA is made up of MPPs that are voted in by the public
• Each MPP represents a riding (voting area) and is a member of a political party
• What are the “Big 3” political parties in Ontario?
• Liberal
• Conservative
• NDP

Judicial 

• The court system, particularly the Superior Court (in Ontario)
  
• The Court has jurisdiction over criminal, civil, and family cases
• The Ontario Superior Court is the largest superior trial court in Canada.
• As a whole, the provincial superior courts are composed of over 300 federally appointed judges and serves millions of people throughout the provinces, each with a region (jurisdiction) overseen by one of eight Regional Senior Judges
• The Criminal division of the Superior Court generally only tries the most serious criminal offences. 
• These include murder, manslaughter, and drug trafficking
  

Executive 

• Composed of the Lieutenant Governor, Premier, Cabinet, Monarch (Head of State)
  
• The Premier and ministers who exercise power to administrate the laws, setting out their regulations and how they should be enforced by the judicial branch
• The Lieutenant Governor, as representative of the monarch, acts as head of state (like the Governor General in federal government)
• Members of the council are appointed by the Lieutenant Governor, on the advice of the Premier
• Usually members are also ministers of various items the provincial government is responsible for.
• i.e. education, agriculture, energy, environment, health, housing, labour

 

Understanding the Branches and Responsibilities of the Federal Government

There are three branches to the Federal Government:

Legislative

Executive

Judicial

Legislative

• Comprised of the House of Commons (HOC) and the Senate.
• HOC functions are to consider through debate new laws and changes to existing ones, authorize taxes, and provide scrutiny of the policy and expenditure of the Government. It has the power to give a Government a vote of no confidence.
• HOC is made up of MPs that are voted in by the public
• Each MP represents a riding (voting area) and is a member of a political party
• What are the “Big 5” political parties in the HOC?
• Liberal
• Conservative
• NDP
• Green
• Bloc Quebecois
• Senators are appointed by the governor general until the age of 75
• The Senate tends to be more impartial than the Commons and is more likely to agree on issues.
• It also often has more opportunity to study proposed bills in detail ("sober second thought") and this allows it to make many small improvements to legislation before its final reading.
• Minor changes proposed by the Senate to a bill are usually accepted.
• The House of Commons in practice holds far more power than the Senate. 
• Although the approval of both Houses is necessary for legislation, the Senate very rarely rejects bills passed by the Commons (though the Senate does occasionally amend bills)

Judicial (Supreme Court)

• The highest court of law in Canada
• Consists of nine justices, which include the Chief Justice of Canada (as of 2021, held by The Right Honourable Richard Wagner)
• The court's duties include hearing appeals of decisions and, on occasion, delivering the court's opinion on constitutional questions raised by the federal government.
• By law, three of the nine justices are appointed from Quebec because of Quebec's use of civil law.
• In 1949, Parliament passed an amendment to the Supreme Court Act which abolished all appeals, making the Court truly the Supreme Court

Executive

• Consists of the Prime Minister, Cabinet, Governor General, and Monarch (Head of State)
  
• The PM is usually the head of the political party in power and is the head of the government.
• They are not voted in by the public, but are appointed by the Governor General on behalf of the monarch
• Prime Ministers do not have a fixed term
• Prime Ministers who are not Members of Parliament upon their appointment (or who lose their seats while in office) have since been expected to seek election to the HOC as soon as possible.
• Should a sitting PM today lose his or her seat in the legislature, or should a new PM be appointed without holding a seat, the typical process that follows is that a junior member in the governing political party will resign to allow the PM to run in the resulting by-election
• A prime minister earns a salary of $185,800 (as of 2021), plus the normal salary of a Member of Parliament ($182,600) for a total of $368,400.
• Cabinet is chosen by the PM and appointed by the Governor General, making them members of the Queen’s Privy Council
• There are a number of conventions that are expected be followed. For instance, there is typically a minister from each province in Canada, ministers from visible minority groups, and female ministers
• Contains committees headed by a senior minister: Treasury Board, Priorities and Planning Committee, Operations, Social Affairs, Economic Growth and Long-Term Prosperity, Foreign Affairs and Security, Environment and Energy Security
• Governor General is the federal representative of the monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II.
• Appointed by the monarch on the advice of the PM to carry out most of her constitutional and ceremonial duties.
• Guarantor of continuous and stable governance and as a nonpartisan safeguard against the abuse of power
• Provides royal assent for bills in parliament

Opportunities After Highschool

 

 CONGRATS! You've graduated high school. Now what?

Here are a few options: 

Apprenticeships

• Allow you to learn a skilled trade on the job under the direction of experienced workers as well as in a classroom
• These trades are in the following sectors:
• construction (e.g. electrician)
• industrial (e.g. welder)
• motive power (e.g. automotive service technician)
• service (e.g. hairstylist)
• You are paid while you do it.
• For most trades you work for a year, then switch to studying in class for 8-12 weeks, either full or part time.
• It takes between two and five years to complete an apprenticeship.

 Colleges

• Tend to smaller institutions that offer very limited scopes of programs
• More “hands on” and direct-job oriented, less academically abstract
• Shorter program lengths (usually 2-3 years) and less expensive (about $1500 a semester)
  
• Smaller class sizes
• More opportunities for co-op placements or apprenticeships
• i.e. occupational therapist, paramedic, mechanics, computer technicians, pilots
• Also support staff for professionals (i.e. paramedics, law assistants, paralegals, some nursing)
• Usually encompasses trade schools and apprenticeship programs as well as professional certificates (i.e. Red Seal)
  

Universities

• Generally large institutions with multiple campuses offering a wide variety of professional-based, academic degrees. 
• Less hands-on, more abstract programs 
• i.e. History, Biotechnology, Philosophy, Religion, Chemistry 
• Tend to be longer programs (4-5 years) and more expensive (about $2-3000 a semester)
  
• Generally large class sizes 
• Programs often lead to further study / training before careers
  

Work

• Part time vs. full time employment
• Most positions require on the job training, seminars and workshops
• Advancement may be limited as the push for higher qualifications continues to rise.
  

Saving and Investing

• In addition to simply putting money into a savings account, there are three government plans used to help people save money:
• RESP – this is used for education savings, and includes a grant (a “gift” from the government) depending on how much you invest and how much income your family has
• a. This is usually purchased by parents or grandparents, however students can buy them as well
• RRSP – these are used for retirement. You can save money on taxes when you buy them as it reduces your income, however you will need to pay taxes when you withdraw from them.
• TFSA – this is used for general savings. You don’t pay tax on your investment earnings (interest or profit from stocks)
• However, you can only contribute $6000 a year once you have reached the government maximum (as of 2021)
  

• These are government plans. There are other ways you can make or save money.

GIC (Guaranteed Investment Certificates)

• Guaranteed interest rate if you don’t withdraw money for a set period of time (i.e. 3 years)
• Interest rates increase the longer the term is (for example, 1 year could have a 1.4% interest rate, a 5 year could have a 1.9% interest rate)
• This option earns more interest than a simple savings account, but you cannot withdraw your money until the term is up

Stocks

• Stocks are pieces of a company’s worth that the public can buy
• You can buy one or more stocks (AKA shares) through a broker or independently through certain agencies (e.g. WealthSimple)
  
• The value of the shares go up and down frequently based on supply and demand
• If more people are willing to buy a stock than sell it, the price will go up
• If more people are willing to sell a stock than buy it, the price will go down
• This is because there is only a limited number of shares available at one time
• People will likely sell more shares if they hear that a company is not doing well.
• i.e. sales are lower than expected, change in management, new tax rules, natural disasters
• Reasons you may want to buy more stocks in a company:
  
• New products with mass media coverage
• It is often said to “buy low, sell high”
• This means to buy shares when you think they are below what they are worth and have a chance of rising again and selling them when the price goes above what you think will last.

Mutual Funds

• Mutual funds are a pool of investments (i.e. stocks, bonds, cash [essentially a bank account], guaranteed investments)
• You can buy one or more “units” or shares of a mutual fund (unlike stocks, these are not for one particular company but for a “block” of the shared investments)
• The value of each unit is the total value of the pool of investments divided by the number of units that have been sold
• The value goes up and down depending on how the total investments are doing in terms of value
• They are created to meet certain consumer goals – i.e. technology, banking, ecological, etc.
• These are more stable than buying stocks in general.

Savings Bonds

• Have a guaranteed interest rate that is backed by a government
• Sold by governments to raise money
• Investments in the government
• Very safe but with a low interest rate (still greater than a bank account)

The Citizenship Process

 

•  Make an application for a “grant of citizenship’
• You must be at least 18 years of age or included with the application of a parent who is over 18 years old
• Meet residency requirements  
• Been physically present in Canada for at least 1,095 days during the five years immediately before the date of application 
• Proof: income tax return for each of the three taxation years in tax years that are fully or partially within the five years right before the date of submitting an application
• Be admitted to Canada as a permanent resident
• Demonstrate an adequate knowledge of Canada and of the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship (pass the citizenship test) 
• Only if 18 - 55 years of age at the date of application  
•  Pass mark is 75% (15 out of 20 questions correctly answered)
• Demonstrate an adequate knowledge one of the official languages of Canada  
• Language and/or knowledge requirements may be waived on compassionate grounds and on a case-by-case basis
• Take oath of citizenship
• Pay fees
• Provide photos
• Not be under a removal order or declared a threat to security or a member of an organized crime group
• File an income tax return for each of the three tax years within the five years right before the date of submitting an application
• Attend the citizenship ceremony 
• Contains the Oath of Citizenship:
• I swear (or affirm) that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfill my duties as a Canadian citizen.