Legislative Activity in the Canadian House of Commons: Does Majority or Minority Government Matter?

Abstract

This study assesses the impact of majority and minority governments on legislative activity in the Canadian House of Commons. The quantitative analysis spans the 22nd to the 40th Parliaments (1953–2009) and examines legislative productivity and success by government type. The analysis of descriptive data confirms that minority governments are somewhat less productive and successful than their majority counterparts. However, the analysis emphasizes significant variation for majority governments. Neither governing context guarantees success or failure as contextual factors largely condition legislative activity.

Keywords:

• Canada
• House of Commons
• minority government
• majority government
• legislation

Notes

1. The sponsorship scandal involved efforts under Liberal Prime Ministers Chrétien and Martin to enhance the awareness of Quebecers of the federal government's role in education, arts, etc. through advertising in Québec Province. The objective was to counter the momentum of the provincial sovereignist Parti Québécois government among francophones. Allegations of illegal activity and corruption were investigated by the auditor general and, ultimately led the establishment of the Gomery Commission. Although the Commission cleared Chrétien and Martin of wrongdoing the public inquiry faulted Chrétien's Prime Minister's Office (PMO), and Martin's lack of oversight while Minister of Finance under Chrétien, for financial and other irregularities in the programme.

2. Few private members’ public bills are successful in the House of Commons. Of the 7996 private member public bills introduced from 1953–2009, only 162 (2 percent) passed.

3. Crimmins and Nesbitt-Larking (1996) use such a standardized measure of questions by days in session in their analysis of prime ministerial activity in Question Period.

4. Censoring the data to exclude the low government success rates for Clark's and Harper's brief ministries does not change the outcome of the t-tests significantly, though the standard deviations drop considerably. Omitting these two sessions from the data set reveals an average success rate of 69 percent for minority governments (s.d. = 6). The difference between majority and minority governments remains statistically significant at p < .05.