Cabinet of Canada
The Cabinet of Canada is one of the most important parts of the Canadian government.The cabinet has immense amounts of power in the Canadian system, with a fairly weak legislature almost all bills proposed by the Cabinet are enacted. It is within Cabinet that many of the most important debates on Canadian policy take place. All cabinet meetings are held behind closed doors and the minutes are kept confidential for thirty years. Cabinet members are forbidden from discussing what occurs in cabinet meetings, and once a decision is made all Cabinet members must publicly support the decision. If any of these rules are violated the Minster will be removed by the Prime Minister. If the disagreement within the cabinet is strong a minister may resign, as John Napier Turner did.
Nominally appointed by the Governor General the Cabinet is in practice selected by the Prime Minister. The selection of a cabinet is a n extremely complex affair. There are a large number of conventions that must be met. There must be a minister from each province in Canada, with a member taken from the Senate if there are no available Members of Parliament. Visible minorities must be represented and as many women as possible should be included. Interest groups that support the government also need to be appeased. Each member of the governing party desires a cabinet position and there all always some members that feel embittered at being passed over. The most recent example of this is John Nunziata.
The number of ministers and their titles is selected by the Prime Minister. Throughout the 20th century Cabinets had been expanding in size until Brian Mulroney's government had over forty ministers. Jean Chrétien dramatically cut this number merging several ministries.
Different ministries have widely varying levels of prestige. Unquestionably the most important minister is the Minister of Finance. Other high profile ministries include Defence, Foreign Affairs, Justice, Health, and the Environment.
| Portfolio | Minister | |||
| Prime Minister of Canada | (1867-) | (List) | Rt. Hon. Jean Chrétien | (1993-) |
| Deputy Prime Minister of Canada | (1977-) | (List) | Hon. John Manley | (2002-) |
| Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food | (1867-) | (List) | Hon. Lyle Vanclief | (1997-) |
| Minister of Canadian Heritage | (1996-) | (List) | Hon. Sheila Copps | (1996-) |
| Minister of Citizenship and Immigration | (1994-) | (List) | Hon. Denis Coderre | (2002-) |
| Minister of the Environment | (1971-) | (List) | Hon. David Anderson | (1999-) |
| Minister of Finance | (1867-) | (List) | Hon. John Manley | (2002-) |
| Minister of Fisheries and Oceans | (1979-) | (List) | Hon. Robert Thibault | (2002-) |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | (1995-) | (List) | Hon. Bill Graham | (2002-) |
| Minister of Health | (1944-) | (List) | Hon. Anne McLellan | (2002-) |
| Minister of Human Resources Development | (1996-) | (List) | Hon. Jane Stewart | (1999-) |
| Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development | (1966-) | (List) | Hon. Bob Nault | (1999-) |
| Minister of Industry | (1995-) | (List) | Hon. Allan Rock | (2002-) |
| Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and President of the Privy Council |
(1993-) | (List) | Hon. Stéphane Dion | (1996-) |
| Minister for International Cooperation | (1996-) | (List) | Hon. Susan Whelan | (2002-) |
| Minister for International Trade | (1983-) | (List) | Hon. Pierre Pettigrew | (1999-) |
| Minister of Justice and Attorney General |
(1867-) | (List) | Hon. Martin Cauchon | (2002-) |
| Minister of Labour | (1900-) | (List) | Hon. Claudette Bradshaw | (1998-) |
| Leader of the Government in the House of Commons | (1867-) | (List) | Hon. Don Boudria | (1997-) |
| Leader of the Government in the Senate | (1867-) | (List) | Hon. Sharon Carstairs | (2001-) |
| Minister of National Defence | (1923-) | (List) | Hon. John McCallum | (2002-) |
| Minister of National Revenue | (1927-) | (List) | Hon. Elinor Caplan | (2002-) |
| Minister of Natural Resources | (1995-) | (List) | Hon. Herb Dhaliwal | (2002-) |
| Minister of Public Works and Government Services | (1996-) | (List) | Hon. Ralph Goodale | (2002-) |
| Solicitor General | (1892-) | (List) | Hon. Wayne Easter | (2002-) |
| Minister of Transport | (1936-) | (List) | Hon. David Collenette | (1997-) |
| President of the Treasury Board | (1966-) | (List) | Hon. Lucienne Robillard | (1999-) |
| Minister of Veterans Affairs | (1944-) | (List) | Hon. Rey Pagtakhan | (1993-) |
Former portfolios
External link
