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{{Short description|Head of government of Canada}}
{{Unreferenced|date=October 2008}}
{{Redirect|Premier of Canada|a list of prime ministers of Canada|List of prime ministers of Canada|provincial and territorial heads of government|Premier (Canada)}}
{{Infobox minister office
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
|border = federal_canada
{{pp-pc}}
|minister = Prime
{{Use Canadian English|date=September 2023}}
|title = Prime Minister
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
|jurisdiction = Canada
{{Infobox official post
|logo = PMO-logo.png
| post = Prime Minister
|logo_description = ] with the ]
| body = Canada
|image = Stephen Harper head crop.jpg
| native_name = {{lang|fr|Premier ministre du Canada}}
|incumbent = ]
| insignia =
|appointed_by = ]
| insigniacaption =
|governor = ]
| flag =
|first_minister = Sir ]
| flagcaption =
|date = July 1, 1867
| image = Prime Minister Trudeau's message on Christmas 2023 (0m29s) (cropped).jpg
| incumbent = ]
| incumbentsince = {{nobold|November 4, 2015}}
| seat = ]
| department = ]<!-- Big-g "Government of Canada" IS the executive branch (King-in-Council); no need to specify. --><br />]<!-- PMO is a ministerial office which supports the PM, PCO is the department which the PM heads. -->
| style = {{plainlist|
* ]{{NoteTag|note=This title is granted to holders of the office for life upon taking office.}}<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |last=Heritage |first=Canadian |date=October 16, 2017 |title=Styles of address |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/protocol-guidelines-special-event/styles-address.html |access-date=March 6, 2021 |website=aem}}</ref><br />(formal)
* Prime Minister<ref name="auto" /><br />(informal)
}}
| member_of = {{hlist|]|]|{{nowrap|]}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Canadian Parliamentary system – Our Procedure – House of Commons |url=https://www.ourcommons.ca/About/OurProcedure/ParliamentaryFramework/c_g_parliamentaryframework-e.htm |access-date=April 20, 2020 |website=www.ourcommons.ca}}</ref>}}
| abbreviation = PM
| reports_to = ]
| residence = ]{{NoteTag|note=Under renovation since 2015. ] is the current residence of Justin Trudeau.}}
| appointer = ] (represented by the ])<ref>{{Cite web |title=Constitutional Duties |url=https://www.gg.ca/en/role/responsibilities/constitutional-duties |access-date=April 20, 2020 |website=The Governor General of Canada |archive-date=April 23, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200423211544/https://www.gg.ca/en/role/responsibilities/constitutional-duties |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| termlength = ]
| formation = July 1, 1867
| deputy = ]
| constituting_instrument = None (])
| inaugural = ]
| salary = $406,200 (2024)<ref name=salary>{{Cite web| url=https://lop.parl.ca/sites/ParlInfo/default/en_CA/People/Salaries|title=Indemnities, Salaries and Allowances| accessdate=September 10, 2024| publisher=Parliament of Canada}}</ref>
| website = {{URL|https://pm.gc.ca/}}
| appointer_qualified = with the ] of the House of Commons<ref>{{Cite web |title=House of Commons Procedure and Practice – 1. Parliamentary Institutions – Canadian Parliamentary Institutions |url=https://www.ourcommons.ca/procedure-book-livre/Document.aspx?sbdid=73CC891E-0676-4773-850B-CCDCB472AD8C&sbpid=BE842475-5632-4969-835B-FC015CE50169&Language=E&Mode=1 |access-date=April 20, 2020 |website=www.ourcommons.ca}}</ref>
}} }}
{{Politics of Canada}}


The '''prime minister of Canada'''<!-- "prime minister" is uncapitalized here because it is preceded by modifier "The", per ] bullet 3 and table column 2 example 1. Any proposal for modification to the guideline should be posted at its talk page, ]. --> ({{langx|fr|premier ministre du Canada|link=no}}){{NoteTag|note=When the position is held by a woman, the French title is {{lang|fr|première ministre du Canada}}.}} is the ] of ]. Under the ], the prime minister governs with the ] of a majority of the elected ]; as such, the prime minister typically sits as a ] (MP) and leads the largest party or a ] of parties. As ], the prime minister selects ministers to form the ].
The '''Prime Minister of Canada''' ({{lang-fr|Premier ministre du Canada}}) is the primary ], chairman of the ], and thus ] of ]. The office is not outlined in any of the documents that constitute the written portion of the ]; ] is formally vested in the ] and exercised on his or her behalf by the ].<ref>Stephen Brooks, ''Canadian Democracy: An Introduction'', 5th ed. (Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press, 2007), 233-234.</ref> The office was initially modelled after the job as it existed in Britain at time of Confederation in 1867. The ] prime ministership, although fully developed by 1867, was not formally integrated into the ] until 1905—hence, its absence from ].


Not outlined in any constitutional document, the prime minister is appointed by ]'s representative, the ], and the office exists per long-established ]. Constitutionally, ] is vested in the monarch (who is the ]), but the powers of the monarch and governor general are nearly always exercised on the ] of the Cabinet,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brooks |first=Stephen |url=https://archive.org/details/canadiandemocrac0006broo/page/233 |title=Canadian Democracy: An Introduction |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-19-543103-2 |edition=5 |location=Don Mills |pages=}}</ref> which is collectively ] to the House of Commons. Canadian prime ministers are appointed to the ] and ] as ] ({{langx|fr|le très honorable|link=no}}),{{NoteTag|note=When the style is held by a woman, the French title is {{lang|fr|la très honorable}}.}} a privilege maintained for life.
The ] is not elected directly, but is by ] the leader of the ] that holds the largest number of seats in the ].<ref>Brooks, 235.</ref> According to protocol, all prime ministers are ] '']'' (in French: ''Très Honorable'') for life.


The prime minister is supported by the ] and heads the ].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Privy Council Office {{!}} The Canadian Encyclopedia |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/privy-council-office |access-date=October 30, 2020 |website=www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca}}</ref> The prime minister also selects individuals for appointment as governor general (in the federal jurisdiction) and ] (in the ]), as well as to the ], ], other ], and the chairs and boards of various ].
The current Prime Minister is ], appointed by ] ] as the 22nd Prime Minister of Canada on February 6, 2006. He is the leader of the ].


Since ] in 1867, ] (twenty-two men and one woman) have formed ].<ref name="Library of the Canadian Parliament">{{cite web | title=Prime Ministers of Canada | website=Library of the Canadian Parliament | url=https://lop.parl.ca/sites/ParlInfo/default/en_CA/People/primeMinisters | access-date=2023-02-26}}</ref> ], the current prime minister, took office on November 4, 2015, following the ], wherein his ] won a majority of seats. Trudeau's Liberals subsequently won a plurality of seats in the ] and ], leaving Trudeau with ]. On January 6, 2025, Trudeau announced his intention to resign from leadership of his Liberal Party and as prime minister. He will remain as prime minister and Liberal Party leader until a ] is chosen on March 9, 2025.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.axios.com/2025/01/06/justin-trudeau-resigns-canada | title=Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resigns as party leader }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-news-conference-1.7423680|title=Trudeau says he's not the right choice to lead party in next election, promises to resign as PM |publisher=CBC|last=Tunney|first=Catharine|date=January 6, 2025|access-date=January 7, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-01-10 |title=Canada's Liberal Party to decide on March 9 who will succeed Trudeau as prime minister |url=https://apnews.com/article/canada-prime-minister-liberal-party-7e15de810d64b78341f04fc07063190a |access-date=2025-01-10 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref>
==Qualifications and selection==
{{see|Canadian politics}}
The Prime Minister, along with the other ministers of the Cabinet, are formally appointed by the Governor General on behalf of the Queen. However, by convention designed to maintain stability in government, the Governor General will almost always call on the leader of the party that holds the most seats in the House of Commons to form a government.<ref></ref>


==Origin of the office==
Legally, any ] of ] (18 years) can undoubtedly be appointed to the office of ], these being the requirements to gain election to the House of Commons. Since it is not legally necessary for the Prime Minister to be a sitting MP, there is some question as to whether there are technically even age or citizenship restrictions to the position. In any event, it is customary for the Prime Minister to also be a sitting member of the House of Commons, although two Prime Ministers have governed from the ]: Sir ] and Sir ]. (Both men, in their roles as Government Leader in the Senate, succeeded Prime Ministers who died in office in the 1890s; Canadian convention has since evolved toward the appointment of an ] in such a scenario.) One Prime Minister, ], having lost his own seat in a general election while his party retained a plurality in the House of Commons, briefly governed "from the hallway", until he won a by-election a few weeks later. ], who was previously an MP but had quit politics, was Canada's only non-MP Prime Minister. He ran for ] leadership to replace ]. Turner won a seat at the next election but his party didn't hold the most seats.
The position of prime minister is not outlined in any Canadian constitutional document and is mentioned only in a few sections of the '']'',<ref>{{citation| url=http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=canada&sub=constitution&doc=constitution-eng.htm| url-status=dead| author=Privy Council Office| author-link=Privy Council Office (Canada)| title=Intergovernmental Affairs > About Canada > The Canadian Constitution| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| accessdate=June 7, 2010| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227162006/http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=canada&sub=constitution&doc=constitution-eng.htm| archive-date=February 27, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-13.html#h-53|title=Consolidated federal laws of canada, THE CONSTITUTION ACTS, 1867 to 1982|first=Legislative Services|last=Branch|date=August 7, 2020|website=laws-lois.justice.gc.ca}}</ref> and the '']'', issued by King ].<ref>{{citation| url=http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/LettersPatent.html| author=George VI| author-link=George VI| title=Letters Patent Constituting the Office of Governor General of Canada| chapter=I| date=October 1, 1947| publisher=King's Printer for Canada| location=Ottawa| accessdate=May 29, 2009}}</ref> The office and its functions are instead governed by constitutional conventions and modelled on the ].


==Qualifications and selection==
If the prime minister should fail to win his or her seat, a junior ] in a safe seat would typically resign to permit a by-election to elect that leader to a seat. However, if the leader of the governing party is changed shortly before an election is due and the new leader is not a Member of Parliament, he or she will normally await the general election before running for a seat. For example, ] was briefly prime minister in 1984 without being a member of the House of Commons; he would ironically win his seat in the general election that swept his party from power. The official residence of the prime minister is ] in ], ]. All prime ministers (with the exception of ]) have lived there since ] in 1951. The prime minister also has a secondary residence at ] in ] near ].
In 2008, a public opinion survey showed that 51% of Canadians believed they voted to directly elect the prime minister.{{refn|<ref>{{citation| url=https://www.constitutionalstudies.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/22.1-Full-Issue.pdf| editor-last1=Lagassé| editor-first1=Philippe| editor-last2=MacDonald| editor-first2=Nicholas A.| title=The Crown in the 21st Century| last1=Cyr| first1=Hugo| series=On the Formation of Government| page=105| volume=22| issue=1| year=2017| publisher=Centre for Constitutional Studies| location=Edmonton| accessdate=June 6, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{citation| url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/survey-suggests-canadians-ignorant-of-government-system-1.751002| title=Survey suggests Canadians ignorant of government system| date=December 14, 2008| publisher=CBC News| accessdate=June 6, 2023}}</ref>}} In fact, the prime minister, along with the other ministers in Cabinet, is appointed by the governor general on behalf of the monarch.<ref name="GG">{{citation| url=http://www.gg.ca/media/fs-fd/P1_e.asp| url-status=dead| author=Office of the Governor General of Canada| title=Media > Fact Sheets > The Swearing-In of a New Ministry| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| accessdate=May 18, 2009| archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20080616012920/http://www.gg.ca/media/fs-fd/P1_e.asp| archive-date=June 16, 2008}}</ref> By the conventions of ], the foundation of parliamentary democracy, the governor general will call to form a government the individual most likely to receive the support, or confidence, of a majority of the directly elected members of the ];<ref>{{citation| last=Pothen| first=Phil| title=Disinformation as a Back Door to 'Constitutional Revolution' in Canada| url=http://www.oba.org/En/ccl_en/newsletter_en/v13n1.aspx#Article_3| year=2009| place=Toronto| publisher=Ontario Bar Association| accessdate=September 13, 2010}}</ref> as a practical matter, this is often the leader of the party, or a coalition of parties,<ref name=Brooks235>{{Harvnb| Brooks| 2007| p=235}}</ref><ref>{{citation| url=https://globalnews.ca/news/6054421/experts-scheer-claims-forming-government/| url-status=live| last=Bryden| first=Joan| title='Complete nonsense': Experts dispute Scheer's claims about forming government| date=October 19, 2019| publisher=Global News| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021114342/https://globalnews.ca/news/6054421/experts-scheer-claims-forming-government/| archive-date=October 21, 2019}}</ref> whose members form a ], or a very large ], of seats in the House of Commons.<ref>{{citation| url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/AboutParliament/Forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf| url-status=dead| last=Forsey| first=Eugene| author-link=Eugene Forsey| title=How Canadians Govern Themselves| pages=3–4| edition=6| year=2005| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| place=Ottawa| isbn=0-662-39689-8| accessdate=December 9, 2009| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229155255/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/AboutParliament/Forsey/PDFs/How_Canadians_Govern_Themselves-6ed.pdf| archive-date=December 29, 2009}}</ref> No document is needed to begin the appointment; a party leader becomes prime minister-designate as soon as he accepts the governor general's invitation to ].<ref name=GoC145>{{citation| url=https://jameswjbowden.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/6-governor-general.pdf| author=Government of Canada| title=Governor General| page=145| year=1970| publisher=WordPress| accessdate=14 March 2024}}</ref>


A prime minister who has given intention to resign may advise the governor general on whom to appoint as the next prime minister. However, if the prime minister is resigning because he has lost the confidence of the House of Commons, the viceroy is not obligated to follow that advice.<ref name=GoC145/> If the leader of the opposition is unable or unwilling to form a government,{{NoteTag|When Prime Minister ] died in office in 1891, Governor General ] approached ] to form a government. But Thompson declined and instead advised Stanley to call on Senator ]. Ahead of Prime Minister ]'s resignation in 1896, ] turned down the offer to be the next head of government, leading Governor General ] to appoint ] as prime minister. ] announced his intention to resign as prime minister in 1920. ] was summoned by Governor General ] and rejected the appointment as prime minister. Byng then installed ] as his chief advisor.<ref>{{harvnb| Government of Canada| 1970| p=146}}</ref>}} the governor general can consult whomever she wishes.<ref name=GoC145/>
In earlier years, it was tradition that the Sovereign bestow a ] on each new Canadian prime minister. As such, several carry the prefix "Sir" before their name (of the first eight prime ministers, only ] refused knighthood). After the ] debate of 1919, it was against policy for the Sovereign to grant titles to Canadians; the last prime minister knighted was Sir ], who was in power when the Nickle Resolution was debated. (Being only a Commons resolution, it has never been binding.) In addition one prime minister, ], was created a ] after his retirement and the ] of Sir John A. Macdonald was created a ]ess.


While there is no legal requirement for the prime minister to be an MP,<ref name=GoC145/> for practical and political reasons the prime minister is expected to win a seat very promptly.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Forsey |first=Eugene |date=March 2012 |title=How Canadians Govern Themselves > The Prime Minister |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/about/parliament/senatoreugeneforsey/book/chapter_6-e.html#6_5 |access-date=November 26, 2015 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref> However, in rare circumstances individuals who are not sitting members of the House of Commons have been appointed to the position of prime minister. Two former prime ministers—] and ]—served in the 1890s while members of the ].<ref name="Forsey38">{{Harvnb|Forsey|2005|p=38}}</ref> Both, in their roles as ], succeeded prime ministers who had died in office—] in 1891 and ] in 1894.
==Mandate==
], first Prime Minister of Canada (1867–1873, 1878–1891)]]


], the first prime minister of Canada (1867–1873, 1878–1891)]]
A prime minister does have a fixed term of office - once appointed and sworn in (s)he retains the office until (s)he resigns, is dismissed or dies. The ] limits the lifespan of each Parliament to five years after which a ] for every seat in the House of Commons must be called; the time limit may be exceeded only in case of war or ]. The Prime Minister has typically asked the Governor General to issue a ] during the government's fourth year in office. If the sitting Prime Minister's party wins a general election there is need to re-appoint the Prime Minister or swear him or her in again (although after almost any such election the Prime Minister will be advising the Governor General regarding any changes to the Cabinet that may be necessary, for example to replace ministers who have lost their seats).


Prime ministers who are not MPs upon their appointment (or who lose their seats while in office) have since been expected to seek election to the House of Commons as soon as possible. For example, ], after losing his seat in the ] and again in the ] (despite his party being elected government both times), briefly governed without a seat in the House of Commons on both occasions before winning a by-election a few weeks later. Similarly, ] replaced ] as leader of the Liberal Party in 1984 and subsequently was appointed prime minister while not holding a seat in the House of Commons; Turner won a riding in the next election but the Liberal Party was swept from power.
Amendments to the ] passed in 2007 during the first session of the ] have brought about legal changes that are designed to constrain when the Prime Minister can request a ]. Under the revised act, a general election must occur on the third Monday in October every four years starting in 2009. Other than cases of war or insurrection, the only exceptions provided for under the Act are when the government is defeated by a ] (discussed below) or otherwise "prevented from governing." The Canada Elections Act is not a part of the constitution and can be further amended or repealed by Parliament.


When a prime minister loses their seat in the legislature, or should a new prime minister be appointed without holding a seat, the typical process that follows is that a member in the governing political party will resign to allow the prime minister to run in the resulting by-election.<ref name=Forsey38/> A ] is usually chosen; while the Liberal and ] parties generally observed a practice of not running a candidate against another party's new leader in the by-election, the ] and smaller political parties typically do not follow the same practice.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Grenier |first=Éric |date=July 12, 2018 |title=NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh won't have a free pass if he runs in a byelection |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/grenier-singh-byelection-1.4742487 |website=CBC News}}</ref> However, if the governing party selects a new leader shortly before an election is due, and that new leader is not a member of the legislature, they will normally await the upcoming election before running for a seat in Parliament.
Otherwise, by constitutional convention, the Governor General cannot refuse a request to issue the writs of election, issue writs in the absence of a request, or dismiss the Prime Minister and his government without having been offered their resignations unless acting contrary to the Prime Minister's wishes is necessary to avoid contravention of either the Constitution or (possibly) an ] (including as the aforementioned Canada Elections Act). The only time since Confederation time it was deemed necessary to refuse the prime minister's request to call an election was 1926 (see the ]). A Canadian vice-regal's presumed right and obligation to refuse to grant a dissolution where the dissolution would only violate an Act of Parliament has not yet been tested either at the federal level or in those provinces that have enacted similar "fixed election date" legislation. The only other situation where an extraordinary use of the Governor General's powers might be acceptable would be if the Prime Minister was no longer able to offer competent advice to the Governor General - for example, if (s)he became ]. There are no formal provisions regarding what is to be done if a Canadian prime minister becomes incapacitated and unable to serve for an extended period of time (this has never happened). Presumably, if such incapacitation appeared to be long term or permanent and the Prime Minister could not sign a letter of resignation then the Governor General would use his/her reserve powers to remove him/her and appoint the governing party's choice for a replacement.


== Term of office ==
In general, a ] is in power three to five years before a new general election is called. A ] typically calls a new general election at the first opportunity when it appears able to win a majority of seats. Otherwise, it is unusual for minority governments to last more than two years owing to their vulnerability to votes of non-confidence. For example, in 1979–1980, ] was prime minister in a minority Progressive Conservative government only six months before his government lost a motion of non-confidence and had to call another election. The new Liberal majority government took office in 1980 just nine months after the Clark government had taken office in 1979.
{{Further|List of prime ministers of Canada by time in office#Calculation of terms of office}}
The prime minister serves '']'', meaning the post does not have a fixed term, and once appointed and sworn in by the governor general, the prime minister remains in office until they resign, are dismissed, or die.<ref name="Forsey5">{{Harvnb| Forsey|2005|p=5}}</ref>


While the lifespan of a parliament is ] to five years, a 2007 amendment to the ''Canada Elections Act'', Section 56.1(2) limited the term of a Parliament to four years, with ] being set as the third Monday in October of the fourth calendar year after the previous polling date.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Branch |first=Legislative Services |title=Consolidated federal laws of Canada, Canada Elections Act |url=http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/E-2.01/index.html |access-date=November 17, 2017 |website=laws-lois.justice.gc.ca}}</ref> The governor general may still, on the advice of the prime minister, dissolve parliament and issue the ] prior to the date mandated by the constitution or ''Canada Elections Act''; the ] was the only time since ] that the governor general refused the prime minister's request for a general vote.
A prime minister is required to resign only when an opposition party wins a ] of seats in the House. If the prime minister's party wins a plurality, he or she normally stays in office. (A prime minister may resign in this circumstance, but there is no requirement to do so.) If the prime minister's party wins a minority while an opposition party wins a plurality (i.e., more seats than any other party but less than a majority), the prime minister can attempt to remain in office by forming a coalition with other minority parties. This, however, is almost never attempted in Canada.


Following parliamentary dissolution, should the prime minister's party subsequently win a majority of seats in the House of Commons, it is unnecessary to re-appoint the prime minister or for the prime minister to retake the oath of office.<ref name=Forsey5 /> If, however, an ] wins a majority of seats, the prime minister may resign or choose to meet Parliament to see if the incumbent government can win a confidence vote. Should the prime minister's party achieve a minority while an opposition party wins a plurality (i.e., more seats than any other party but less than a majority), the prime minister can attempt to maintain the confidence of the House by forming a ] with other minority parties, which was last entertained in 1925 or by entering into a ], or by winning support of other parties on a vote-by-vote basis.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}
If a governing party loses a ], the prime minister—and, thus, the government—may resign, thereby allowing another party to form the government. But as this is practical only if no party in the House has a majority, the convention in Canada is to immediately ask the governor general to call a general election.

If a general election gives an opposition party a ] of seats, the incumbent prime minister can continue to try to form the government, but this has not been done at the federal level since 1925, although it remains an option under the constitution. The normal practice in this situation is for the prime minister to resign and for the governor general to appoint as prime minister the leader of the new largest party in the House of Commons.


==Role and authority== ==Role and authority==
{{Further|King's Privy Council for Canada}}
]
Since the prime minister is, in practice, the most powerful member of the Canadian government, he or she is sometimes erroneously referred to as Canada's ]. The Canadian head of state is ], ], who is represented by the ]. The prime minister is the ].<ref>Brooks, 235.</ref> The office of Prime Minister of Canada is not mentioned in the ]. In modern-day Canada, however, his or her prerogatives are largely the duties to which the constitution refers to as the job of the Governor General (who acts mostly as a ]).<ref>Brooks, 233-235.</ref> The function, duties, responsibilities, and powers of the Prime Minister of Canada were established at Confederation, modeled upon the existing office of the ]. Over time, the role of the Prime Minister of Canada has evolved, mainly gaining power over the years.


]
The prime minister plays a prominent role in most legislation passed by the Canadian Parliament. The majority of Canadian legislation originates in the Cabinet of Canada, which is a body selected by the prime minister, and appointed by the Governor General, largely from the ranks of his party's MPs. The Cabinet must have "unanimous" consent on all decisions they make, but in practice whether or not unanimity has been achieved is decided by the prime minister.


Because the prime minister is in practice the most politically powerful member of the ], they are sometimes erroneously thought to be Canada's ],{{NoteTag|A 2008 ] poll found 42% of respondents thought the prime minister was head of state.<ref name="IR2008">{{Citation |title=In the Wake of Constitutional Crisis: New Survey Demonstrates that Canadians Lack Basic Understanding of Our Country's Parliamentary System |date=December 15, 2008 |url=http://www.dominion.ca/DominionInstituteDecember15Factum.pdf |page=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216053714/http://www.dominion.ca/DominionInstituteDecember15Factum.pdf |place=Toronto |publisher=Ipsos Reid |access-date=May 18, 2010 |archive-date=2008-12-16 |url-status=dead}}</ref>|name=IRpoll}} when, in fact, that role belongs to the Canadian monarch, represented by the governor general.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Library and Archives Canada |author-link=Library and Archives Canada |title=First Among Equals: The Prime Minister in Canadian Life and Politics > Alone at the Top > Head of State |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/primeministers/h4-2013-e.html |access-date=January 18, 2010 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref> The prime minister is, instead, the ] and is responsible for ] the Crown on how to exercise much of the ] and its executive powers,<ref name=Brooks235/> which are governed by the written constitution and constitutional conventions. However, the function of the prime minister has evolved with increasing power. Today, per the doctrines of ], the ] given by the prime minister is ordinarily binding, meaning the prime minister effectively carries out those duties ascribed to the sovereign or governor general, leaving the latter to act in predominantly ceremonial fashions.<ref>{{Harvnb| Brooks|2007|pp=233–235}}</ref> As such, the prime minister, supported by the ] (PMO), controls the appointments of many key figures in Canada's system of governance, including the governor general, the Cabinet, justices of the ], senators, heads of ], ], the ], and approximately 3,100 other positions. Further, the prime minister plays a prominent role in the legislative process—with the majority of bills put before Parliament originating in the Cabinet.
As the monarch or Governor General almost always follows the advice of his or her ministers, the Prime Minister (and the PMO) essentially controls the appointments of the following positions:
], the 10th prime minister of Canada (1921–1926; 1926–1930; 1935–1948)]]
* all members of the ];
* vacant seats on the ];
* vacant seats in the ];
* all heads of ]s, whom the prime minister may replace at any time;
* all executive positions, such as the head of the ], the president of the ];
* all ];
* the ];{{Fact|date=October 2008}}
* the 10 ]s of the Canadian provinces, and the three Commissioners of the Canadian territories ;{{Fact|date=October 2008}}
* plus approximately 3,100 other government positions, the bulk of which the Prime Minister usually designates a member of his staff to appoint with his concurrence.
], 10th Prime Minister (1921–1926; 1926–1930; 1935–1948)]]
], 18th Prime Minister (1984–1993)]]


Pierre Trudeau is often credited with, throughout his tenure as prime minister (1968–79, 1980–84), consolidating power in the PMO,<ref name="Macleans">{{Cite news |last=Geddes |first=John |date=January 25, 2009 |title=Will the prorogation of Parliament set off a populist revolt? |work=Maclean's |publisher=Kenneth Whyte |location=Toronto |url=http://www.macleans.ca/2010/01/25/the-people-speak/ |access-date=January 27, 2010 |issn=0024-9262}}</ref> which is itself filled by political and administrative staff selected at the prime minister's discretion and unaccountable to Parliament. At the end of the 20th century and into the 21st, analysts—such as ],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Simpson |first=Jeffrey |url=https://archive.org/details/friendlydictator0000simp/page/248 |title=The Friendly Dictatorship |publisher=McClelland & Stewart |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7710-8079-1 |location=Toronto |page= |author-link=Jeffrey Simpson |url-access=registration}}</ref> ], ],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Coyne |first=Andrew |date=June 30, 2015 |title=Liberals' idea for gender quota in Cabinet leaves out the principle of merit |work=National Post |url=http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/andrew-coyne-liberals-idea-for-gender-quota-in-cabinet-leaves-out-the-principle-of-merit |access-date=June 30, 2015}}</ref> and ]—argued that both Parliament and the Cabinet had become eclipsed by prime ministerial power;{{NoteTag|See ] at ].|name=BNA}}<ref>{{Harvnb| Brooks|2007|p=258}}</ref> Savoie wrote: "The Canadian prime minister has little in the way of institutional check, at least inside government, to inhibit his ability to have his way."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Savoie |first=Donald |title=Governing from the Centre: The Concentration of Power in Canadian Politics |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-8020-8252-7 |location=Toronto |page=362}}</ref> Indeed, the position has been described as undergoing a "presidentialization",<ref name=Macleans/><ref>{{Citation |title=Time to address democratic deficit |date=January 27, 2010 |url=https://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/756262--time-to-address-democratic-deficit |work=Toronto Star |access-date=January 27, 2010}}</ref> to the point that its incumbents publicly outshine the actual head of state (and ] are sometimes referred to as ''First Lady of Canada''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zamon |first=Rebecca |date=November 4, 2015 |title=The Prime Minister's Wife: What Is Her Title, Exactly? |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/11/04/prime-minister-wife-sophie-gregoire_n_8464096.html |access-date=June 3, 2017 |newspaper=The Huffington Post}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Alberici |first=Emma |title='I need help': Why did Canada's first lady spark such a backlash? |date=May 18, 2016 |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-19/alberici-why-did-canadas-first-lady-spark-such-a-backlash/7428228 |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=June 3, 2017}}</ref>).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jackson |first=Michael D. |year=2009 |title=The Senior Realms of the Queen |volume=Autumn 2009 |page=10 |work=Canadian Monarchist News |publisher=Monarchist League of Canada |issue=30 |location=Toronto |url=http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2009/Autumn_2009_CMN.pdf |url-status=dead |access-date=January 17, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229100400/http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2009/Autumn_2009_CMN.pdf |archive-date=December 29, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Blair |first=Louisa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xyNlYxdpdfcC |title=Vive Quebec!: new thinking and new approaches to the Quebec nation |publisher=James Lorimer & Company |year=2001 |isbn=978-1-55028-734-9 |editor-last=Venne |editor-first=Michel |location=Toronto |page=91}}</ref> Former governor general ] alluded to what she saw as "an unspoken rivalry" that had developed between the prime minister and the Crown.<ref>{{Citation |last=Franks |first=C.E.S. |title=Keep the Queen and choose another head of state |date=April 9, 2010 |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/keep-the-queen-and-choose-another-head-of-state/article1529705/singlepage/ |work=The Globe and Mail |access-date=January 23, 2011}}</ref> It has been theorized that such is the case in Canada as its Parliament is less influential on the executive than in other countries with ]; particularly, Canada has fewer MPs, a higher turnover rate of MPs after each election, and a US-style system for selecting political party leaders, leaving them accountable to the party membership rather than ] (as is the case in the UK).<ref>{{Citation |last=Foot |first=Richard |title=Only in Canada: Harper's prorogation is a Canadian thing |date=January 15, 2010 |url=https://nationalpost.com/story.html?id=2446705 |work=National Post |archive-url=https://archive.today/20100118165801/http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=2446705 |access-date=January 16, 2010 |archive-date=January 18, 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
As to the Prime Minister's broad ''de facto'' authority over the Canadian military, see ].


There do exist checks on the prime minister's power: the House of Commons may revoke its confidence in an incumbent prime minister and Cabinet or ]s can quickly bring down a serving premier and even mere threats of such action can persuade or compel a prime minister to resign their post, as happened with ]. The ''Reform Act, 2014'',<ref>{{Citation |last=Parliament of Canada |title=Bill C-586 |date=June 23, 2015 |url=http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&DocId=8058690 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |access-date=June 2, 2015}}</ref> codifies the process by which a caucus may trigger a party leadership review and, if necessary, chose an interim leader, thereby making a prime minister more accountable to the MPs in one's party. Caucuses may choose to follow these rules, though the decision would be made by recorded vote, thereby subjecting the party's choice to public scrutiny.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Selley |first=Chris |date=May 28, 2015 |title=Thanks to the Senate, I've finally come around to liking the Reform Act |work=National Post |url=http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/chris-selley-thanks-to-the-senate-ive-finally-come-around-to-liking-the-reform-act |access-date=June 2, 2015}}</ref>
Former Prime Minister ] is credited with consolidating power in the ] (PMO), although the evolution can be seen throughout Canadian history. The PMO consists of the Prime Minister's political and administrative staff hired solely at the PM's discretion. By coordinating communication with the other agents in policy arenas, as well as with the central party apparatus, the PMO can wield considerable influence. This may have the positive effect of a productive parliament, which in turn provides a valid criticism of centralized power in majority governments and the PMO.


The Senate may delay or impede legislation put forward by the Cabinet, such as when ]'s bill creating the ] (GST) came before the Senate, and given ], the jurisdiction of the federal government is limited to areas prescribed by the constitution. Further, as executive power is constitutionally vested in the monarch, meaning the royal prerogative belongs to the Crown and not to any of its ministers,<ref>{{Citation |last=MacLeod |first=Kevin S. |title=A Crown of Maples |url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/fr-rf/crnCdn/crn_mpls-eng.pdf |page=16 |year=2008 |edition=1 |place=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |isbn=978-0-662-46012-1 |access-date=June 21, 2009 |author-link=Kevin S. MacLeod}}</ref><ref name="Murdoch">{{Cite journal |last=Cox |first=Noel |date=September 2002 |title=Black v Chrétien: Suing a Minister of the Crown for Abuse of Power, Misfeasance in Public Office and Negligence |url=http://www.murdoch.edu.au/elaw/issues/v9n3/cox93.html |journal=Murdoch University Electronic Journal of Law |location=Perth |publisher=Murdoch University |volume=9 |issue=3 |page=12 |access-date=May 17, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Neitsch |first=Alfred Thomas |year=2008 |title=A Tradition of Vigilance: The Role of Lieutenant Governor in Alberta |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/Infoparl/30/4/30n4_07e_Neitsch.pdf |url-status=dead |magazine=Canadian Parliamentary Review |location=Ottawa |publisher=Commonwealth Parliamentary Association |volume=30 |issue=4 |pages=23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025113652/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/Infoparl/30/4/30n4_07e_Neitsch.pdf |archive-date=October 25, 2012 |access-date=May 22, 2009}}</ref> the sovereign's supremacy over the prime minister in the constitutional order is thus seen as a "rebuff to the pretensions of the elected: As it has been said, when the prime minister bows before the queen, he bows before us ."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Coyne |first=Andrew |author-link=Andrew Coyne |date=November 13, 2009 |title=Defending the royals |work=Maclean's |publisher=Rogers Communications |location=Toronto |url=https://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/defending-the-royals/ |access-date=April 9, 2020 |issn=0024-9262}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Coyne |first=Andrew |title=A lightning rod for patriotic love |date=April 10, 2002 |url=http://andrewcoyne.com/columns/NationalPost/2002/20020410.html |work=National Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060523040653/http://andrewcoyne.com/columns/NationalPost/2002/20020410.html |access-date=May 22, 2006 |archive-date=May 23, 2006 |author-link=Andrew Coyne |url-status=dead}}</ref> Either the sovereign or the governor general may therefore oppose the prime minister's will in extreme, crisis situations.{{NoteTag|See "]" and ] at ].|name=RP}} Near the end of her time as governor general, Adrienne Clarkson stated: "My constitutional role has lain in what are called 'reserve powers': making sure that there is a prime minister and a government in place, and exercising the right 'to encourage, to advise, and to warn' Without really revealing any secrets, I can tell you that I have done all three."<ref>{{Cite news |date=September 14, 2005 |title=GG reflects on mandate during farewell address |publisher=CTV |url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1126719024327_33?hub=TopStories |url-status=dead |access-date=August 8, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013001953/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1126719024327_33?hub=TopStories |archive-date=October 13, 2007}}</ref>
There are checks on the prime minister's power. ] or caucus revolts will bring down a sitting prime minister quickly, and even the threat of caucus revolts can persuade and/or compel a prime minister to resign the office as happened to Jean Chrétien in 2003. The prime minister is also restricted by the Senate. The Senate can delay and impede legislation, which occurred when ] introduced the ] (GST). In many cases, the conflicts arose primarily because the Senate was dominated by members appointed by previous governments. The aforementioned Prime Ministers proceeded to shift the Senate in their favour with a flurry of senate appointments to ensure the smooth passage of legislation. Furthermore, as Canada is a federal system, the action of the federal government (and thus the Prime Minister) is limited to areas of federal jurisdiction. In practice, however, provincial and federal actions are intertwined in most areas, and so the Prime Minister's power can also be thwarted by concerted opposition from provincial governments.


==Privileges==
As well, as executive power is formally vested in the ] and "exercised" by the ] as the ], either body has the power to oppose a Prime Minister's will. Senator and constitutional expert ] stated that a "Governor General must take all steps necessary to thwart the will of a ruthless prime minister."{{Fact|date=January 2009}} This power of the Governor General was last used by ] against Prime Minister ] in what is known as the ] of 1926. Some, such as the ]'s ], also speculated whether the then Governor General ] would refuse a recommendation from Prime Minister ] to dissolve Parliament in 2002.<ref></ref> Near the end of her time as Governor General, Clarkson stated: "My constitutional role has lain in what are called 'reserve powers:' making sure that there is a prime minister and a government in place, and exercising the right 'to encourage, to advise, and to warn' Without really revealing any secrets, I can tell you that I have done all three."<ref></ref>
], the official residence of the prime minister of Canada]]


Two ]s are provided to the prime minister—] in Ottawa and ], a country retreat in ]—as well an office in the ] (formerly known as Langevin Block), across from ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Privy Council Office |author-link=Privy Council Office (Canada) |title=Did You Know > The Langevin Block from Yesterday to Today |url=http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/index.asp?lang=eng&page=dyk-svq&doc=archive%2Flangevin%2Fdyk-svq-eng.htm |access-date=January 17, 2010 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |archive-date=May 22, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522200854/http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/index.asp?lang=eng&page=dyk-svq&doc=archive%2Flangevin%2Fdyk-svq-eng.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Salary==


For transportation, the prime minister is afforded an armoured car (a car allowance of $2,000 per year) and shared use of two ]—a ] for international flights and a ] for domestic trips. The ] also furnish constant ] for the prime minister and their family. All of the aforementioned is provided through budgets approved by Parliament.
According to the ''Ottawa Citizen'', in 2008 the Prime Minister of Canada had an aggregate annual salary of $301,600 (CAD).<ref></ref> Although this sum is several times the national average, it is only a fraction of the pay of some of Canada's top corporate executives. Only about half of the Prime Minister's salary is specific to the role of the Prime Minister, while the other half is the normal salary of a Member of Parliament.


As of April 2024, the prime minister's annual salary is $406,200<ref>{{Cite web |date= June 15, 2022|title=Political Salaries – What the world pays its politicians – Leaders |url=https://politicalsalaries.com/leaders/ |access-date=2024-11-19 |language=en-US}}</ref> (consisting of an MP's salary of $203,100 and the prime minister's additional salary of $203,100).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Indemnities, Salaries and Allowances |url=https://lop.parl.ca/sites/ParlInfo/default/en_CA/People/Salaries |access-date=2024-11-19 |website=lop.parl.ca}}</ref>
==Criticisms of Prime Ministerial Power==
In recent times some analysts — most notably ] and ], as well as the ] — have argued that parliament as well as cabinet have become eclipsed by prime ministerial power. Savoie quotes an anonymous recent Liberal cabinet minister who says that cabinet has become "a kind of focus group for the prime minister".<ref>Donald Savoie, ''Governing from the Centre: The Concentration of Power in Canadian Politics'' (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1999), 260.</ref> Jeffrey Simpson calls cabinet a "mini-sounding board".<ref>Jeffrey Simpson, '']'' (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2001), 248.</ref> Stephen Brooks, a professor at the ] suggests that "there is little evidence that the Prime Minister and those around him who are involved in making policy pay much attention to the preferences of those in the legislature, on either the government or opposition side of the aisle."<ref>Brooks, 258.</ref> Ultimately, Savoie arguably has the most comprehensive and devastating critique on the subject, outlined in his influential book '']'': <blockquote>Cabinet has now joined Parliament as an institution being bypassed. Real political debate and decision-making are increasingly elsewhere—in federal-provincial meetings of first ministers, on ] flights, where first ministers can hold informal meetings, in the ], in the ], in the ], and in international organizations and international summits. There is no indication that the one person who holds all the cards, the prime minister, and the ] which enable him to bring effective political authority to the centre, are about to change things. The Canadian prime minister has little in the way of institutional check, at least inside government, to inhibit his ability to have his way.<ref>Savoie, 362.</ref></blockquote>


Serving or former prime ministers are accorded a ], wherein their casket lies in state in the ] of Parliament Hill.<ref>{{Cite web |last=State Funerals in Canada |title=Frequently Asked Questions on State Funerals in Canada |url=http://www.commemoration.gc.ca/cntct/index-eng.cfm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091227080756/http://www.commemoration.gc.ca/cntct/index-eng.cfm |archive-date=December 27, 2009 |access-date=December 10, 2009 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref> Only Bowell and the ] were given private funerals, Bennett also being the only former prime minister of Canada to die and be buried outside the country and Bowell the only whose funeral was not attended by politicians. John Thompson also died outside Canada, at ], where ] permitted his lying-in-state before his body was returned to Canada for a state funeral in ].<ref>{{cite DCB |last=Waite |first=P.B. |title=Thompson, Sir John Sparrow David |volume=XII |url = http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/thompson_john_sparrow_david_12E.html }}</ref>
The main case given in favour of Prime Ministerial power has to do with the federal structure of the nation. Canada is one of the most decentralized of the world's federations, and provincial premiers have a great deal of power. Constitutional changes must be approved by the provincial premiers, and they must be consulted for any new initiatives in their areas of responsibility, which include many important sectors such as health care and education. In light of regional forces such as the ], some have argued there is a need for a national counterbalance to these pressures.{{fact|date=January 2009}}


], applied to the arms of prime ministers]]
== List of Canadian Prime Ministers ==
{{main|List of Prime Ministers of Canada}}


Prior to 1919, it was traditional for the monarch to bestow a ] on newly appointed Canadian prime ministers. Accordingly, several carried the prefix ''Sir'' before their name; of the first eight prime ministers of Canada, only ] refused the honour of a knighthood from Queen Victoria. Following the 1919 ], however, the House of Commons declared that it should be against the policy of the Canadian Sovereign (and the Canadian government advising the Monarch when such honours are not within the Monarch's personal gift) to bestow ] or ] titles to Canadians. The Crown in right of Canada (but not the Crown in right of the United Kingdom, which has periodically bestowed such Imperial honours on such citizens) has since adopted this policy generally, such that the last prime minister to be knighted near appointment was ], who was the prime minister at the time the Nickle Resolution was debated in the House of Commons (and was knighted before the resolution). Still, Bennett was, in 1941, six years after he stepped down as prime minister, elevated to the ] by King George VI as Viscount Bennett, of ] in the County of Surrey and of ] and ] in Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Library of Parliament |author-link=Library of Parliament |title=Federal Government > Prime Ministers of Canada > Biographical Informarion > BENNETT, The Right Hon. Richard Bedford, P.C., K.C., K.G.St.J., LL.B. |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/Files/Parliamentarian.aspx?Item=b9296f13-96f7-4c62-a577-63a5fc91ac2f&Language=E&Section=ALL |access-date=December 10, 2009 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref><ref> ''The London Gazette'', July 22, 1941.</ref> No prime minister has since been titled.
], ], ], and ].]]


The ] (CHA) grants former prime ministers an ] on the ] of those who apply for them. The heraldic badge, referred to by the CHA as the ''mark of the Prime Ministership of Canada'',<ref name="JClarkArms">{{Cite web |title=Clark, Rt. Hon. Charles Joseph |url=http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/c/clark.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613183301/http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/c/clark.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2011 |access-date=May 27, 2011 |publisher=Royal Heraldry Society of Canada}}</ref> consists of four red maple leaves joined at the stem on a white field (''Argent four maple leaves conjoined in cross at the stem Gules''); the augmentation is usually a ] or centred in the ].<ref name=JClarkArms /><ref name="PTrudeauArms">{{Cite web |title=Trudeau, Rt. Hon. Pierre Elliot |url=http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/t/trudeau.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110515194632/http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/t/trudeau.htm |archive-date=May 15, 2011 |access-date=May 27, 2011 |publisher=Royal Heraldry Society of Canada}}</ref><ref name="JTurnerArms">{{Cite web |title=Turner, Rt. Hon. John Napier |url=http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/t/turner_j.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613184219/http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/t/turner_j.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2011 |access-date=May 27, 2011 |publisher=Royal Heraldry Society of Canada}}</ref><ref name="BMulroneyArms">{{Cite web |title=Mulroney, Rt. Hon. Martin Brian |url=http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/m/mulroney.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706182717/http://heraldry.ca/arms/m/mulroney.htm |archive-date=July 6, 2011 |access-date=May 27, 2011 |publisher=Royal Heraldry Society of Canada}}</ref><ref name="KCampbellArms">{{Cite web |title=Campbell, Rt. Hon. Kim, PC |url=http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/c/campbell_k.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613154100/http://www.heraldry.ca/arms/c/campbell_k.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2011 |access-date=May 27, 2011 |publisher=Royal Heraldry Society of Canada}}</ref> ],<ref name=JClarkArms /> Pierre Trudeau,<ref name=PTrudeauArms /> John Turner,<ref name=JTurnerArms /> Brian Mulroney,<ref name=BMulroneyArms /> ],<ref name=KCampbellArms /> Jean Chrétien<ref>{{Cite web |last=General |first=The Office of the Secretary to the Governor |date=November 12, 2020 |title=Chrétien, Joseph Jacques Jean |url=https://reg.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=2930&ProjectElementID=10301 |website=reg.gg.ca}}</ref> and Paul Martin<ref>{{cite web |title=Paul Edgar Phillippe Martin |url=https://www.gg.ca/en/heraldry/public-register/project/2449 |website=The Governor General of Canada |publisher=] |accessdate=29 November 2022 |date=August 15, 2013}}</ref> were granted arms with the augmentation.
==Living former Prime Ministers==


==Style of address==
There are six living former Prime Ministers of Canada. In order from most recent they are:
], the 19th prime minister of Canada (1993) and only female and British Columbia–born person to hold the office]]
* ]
Canada continues the Westminster tradition of using the title ''Prime Minister'' when one is speaking to the federal head of government directly; the ] advises that the term ''Mr. Prime Minister'' should not be used in official contexts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Department of Canadian Heritage |date=October 16, 2017 |title=Styles of address |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/protocol-guidelines-special-event/styles-address.html |access-date=April 10, 2020 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref> The written form of address for the prime minister should use their full parliamentary title: ''The Right Honourable , <nowiki>]<nowiki>]</nowiki>, Prime Minister of Canada''. However, while in the House of Commons during ], other members of parliament may address the prime minister as ''the Right Honourable Member for ]<nowiki>]</nowiki>'' or simply ''the Right Honourable Prime Minister''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Department of Canadian Heritage |author-link=Department of Canadian Heritage |title=Ceremonial and Canadian Symbols Promotion > Styles of address&nbsp;— Federal dignitaries |url=http://www.pch.gc.ca/pgm/ceem-cced/prtcl/address2-eng.cfm |access-date=January 24, 2010 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref> Former prime ministers retain the prefix ''the Right Honourable'' for the remainder of their lives; should they remain sitting MPs, they may be referred as ''the Right Honourable Member for '', by their ] title (if appointed to one), as in ''the Right Honourable Minister of National Defence'', or should they become opposition leader, as ''the Right Honourable Leader of the Opposition''.
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]


In the decades following Confederation, it was common practice to refer to the prime minister as ''Premier of Canada'',<ref>{{Citation |title=Canada's Premier Talks; Attitude of the Dominion on the Seal Question |date=March 12, 1893 |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D05E1DB1731E033A25751C1A9659C94629ED7CF |work=The New York Times |page=9 |access-date=January 25, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Grand Lodge of Canada |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FqwqAAAAMAAJ&q=%22premier+of+canada%22&pg=RA2-PA15 |title=Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Ancient, Free, & Accepted Masons of Canada |publisher=Spectator Printing Co. |year=1884 |location=Hamilton |page=15 |access-date=January 25, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Hopkins |first=J. Castell |year=1901 |title=The Proposed Union of Canada with Newfoundland |url=http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/nfldhistory/1901proposedunion.htm |magazine=The Canadian Annual Review of Public Affairs |location=Toronto |publisher=The Annual Review Publishing Company |volume=1902 |pages=449–453 |access-date=January 25, 2010}}</ref> a custom that continued during the ], around the time of Robert Borden's premiership.<ref>{{Citation |title=Premier Pledges Canada to Fight Until War is Won |date=November 21, 1916 |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9902EEDB1F3FE233A25752C2A9679D946796D6CF |work=The New York Times |page=1 |access-date=January 25, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |year=1914 |title=The Santa Fe magazine, Volume 9 |volume=9 |page=44 |work=The Santa Fe |publisher=Santa Fe Magazine |location=Santa Fe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HfHNAAAAMAAJ&q=%22premier+of+canada%22 |access-date=January 25, 2010 |issn=0036-4541}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Freshfield |first=A. C. Haddon |date=May 1913 |title=The Distribution of Human and Animal Life in Western Arctic America |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1449288 |journal=The Geographical Journal |location=Oxford |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |volume=41 |issue=5 |pages=459–460 |doi=10.2307/1778163 |issn=0016-7398 |jstor=1778163}}</ref> While contemporary sources will still speak of early prime ministers of Canada as ''premier'',<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |year=2010 |title=Sir John Sparrow David Thompson |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/592993/SIr-John-Thompson |access-date=January 25, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Library and Archives Canada |author-link=Library and Archives Canada |date=June 25, 2008 |title=Politics and Government > Sir John A. Macdonald > The Opponents |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/sir-john-a-macdonald/023013-4000-e.html |access-date=January 25, 2010 |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland |title=John Alexander MacDonald |url=http://www.scran.ac.uk/database/record.php?usi=000-000-202-908-C |access-date=January 25, 2010 |publisher=Queen's Printer}}</ref> the modern practice is such that the federal head of government is known almost exclusively as the ''prime minister'', while the ] are termed ''premiers'' (in French, premiers are addressed as {{lang|fr|premier ministre du }}, literally translated as ''prime minister of '').
==Death of the Prime Minister==


==Prime minister–designate of Canada==
Two Prime Ministers have died in office:
{{further|Prime minister–designate}}
* ] died of a ] in ] (1891)
The prime minister–designate of Canada is the person who has been designated as the future prime minister by the ], after either the individual's political party won a general election or proposed to form either a confidence-and-supply government or coalition government. The term does not apply to incumbent prime ministers.
* ] died of a ] at ] (1894).


==Activities post-premiership==
Thompson, Tupper and Bennett are the only Prime Ministers to have died outside of Canada (all in ]).
] ]]
After exiting office, former prime ministers of Canada have engaged in various pursuits. Some remained in politics: Bowell continued as a senator, and Bennett moved to the United Kingdom after being elevated to the ].<ref>{{cite DCB |last=Waite |first=P.B. |title=Bennett, Richard Bedford, 1st Viscount Bennett |volume=17 |url = http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bennett_richard_bedford_17E.html }}</ref> A number were leaders of the ]: John A. Macdonald, ], Mackenzie King,<ref>{{cite DCB|authorlink1=H. Blair Neatby |last=Neatby |first=H. Blair |title=King, William Lyon Mackenzie |volume=17 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/king_william_lyon_mackenzie_17E.html}}</ref> and Pierre Trudeau, all before being re-appointed as prime minister (Mackenzie King twice); Alexander Mackenzie and ], both prior to sitting as regular Members of Parliament until their deaths;<ref name="Dief">{{cite DCB |last=Smith |first=Dennis |title=Diefenbaker, John George |volume=20 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/diefenbaker_john_george_20E.html}}</ref> ] dying while still in the post;<ref>{{cite DCB |last=Bélanger |first=Réal |title=Laurier, Sir Wilfrid |volume=14 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/laurier_wilfrid_14E.html}}</ref> and ],<ref name="Tupper">{{cite DCB |last=Buckner |first=Phillip |title=Tupper, Sir Charles |volume=14|url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/tupper_charles_14E.html}}</ref> ],<ref name="StLaurent">{{cite DCB |last=Bothwell |first=Robert |title=St. Laurent, Louis |volume=20 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/st_laurent_louis_stephen_20E.html}}</ref> and John Turner, each before they returned to private business. Meighen was also appointed to the Senate following his second period as prime minister, but resigned his seat to seek re-election and moved to private enterprise after failing to win a riding.<ref name="Meighen">{{cite DCB |last=Glassford |first=Larry A. |title=Meighen, Arthur |volume=18 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/meighen_arthur_18E.html }}</ref> Also returning to civilian life were: Robert Borden, who was Chancellor of ] and ], as well as working in the financial sector; ], who was Chancellor of ];<ref>{{cite DCB |last=English |first=John |title=Pearson, Lester Bowles |volume=20 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/pearson_lester_bowles_20E.html }}</ref> Joe Clark and Kim Campbell, who were university lecturers, Clark also consultant and Campbell working in international diplomacy and as the director of private companies and chairperson of interest groups; while Pierre Trudeau and Jean Chrétien returned to legal practice.<ref>{{cite DCB |last=English |first=John |title=Trudeau, Pierre Elliott |volume=22 |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/trudeau_pierre_elliott_22E.html}}</ref> Former prime ministers also commonly penned autobiographies—Tupper,<ref name=Tupper /> for example—or published their memoirs—such as Diefenbaker and ].<ref name=Dief />


==See also==
Unlike most state leaders, who are buried in the nation's capital, Canadian Prime Ministers are buried in locations of their or their family's choice. Bennett is the only Canadian Prime Minister to have been buried outside of Canada. Diefenbaker is the only one not to be buried in a cemetery. Most burials are private functions at the request of the the families.
{{portal|border=no|Canada|Politics}}
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]


== Notes ==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
{{NoteFoot}}
! Name
{{notelist}}
! Date of death
! Cause of death
! Age
! Place of death
! Funeral
! Place of Burial
|-
| ]
| 1891-06-06
| stroke
| 76
| ]
| ] and body transported by train back to Kingston
| ], Kingston, Ontario
|-
| ]
| 1892-04-17
| stroke
| 70
| ]
| funeral at ]
| ], ]
|-
| ]
| 1893-10-30
| brain cancer
| 72
| ]
| state funeral in Montreal
| ], ]
|-
| ]
| 1894-12-12
| heart attack
| 49
| ]
| state funeral at Windsor Castle and body shipped back to Canada
| ], ]
|-
| ]
| 1917-12-10
| pneumonia
| 93
| ]
| private funeral in Belleville
| ], Belleville, Ontario
|-
| ]
| 1915-10-30
| heart failure
| 94
| ]
| body shipped back for state funeral in Halifax
| ], Halifax, Nova Scotia
|-
| ]
| 1919-02-17
| stroke
| 77
| ]
| state funeral in Ottawa
| ], Ottawa, Ontario
|-
| ]
| 1937-06-10
| heart failure
| 82
| Ottawa, Ontario
| state funeral at ]
| ], Ottawa, Ontario
|-
| ]
| 1960-08-05
| heart failure
| 86
| Toronto, Ontario
| state funeral at St. Andrew's Church, Toronto
| ], ]
|-
| ]
| 1950-07-22
| pneumonia
| 75
| ]
| state funeral in Ottawa, Ontario, casket transported by train to Ottawa and Toronto
| ], Toronto, Ontario
|-
| ]
| 1947-06-26
| heart attack
| 76
| ]
| private funeral
| ], England
|-
| ]
| 1973-07-25
| natural causes (heart failure)
| 91
| ]
| state funeral in Quebec City
| ], ]
|-
| ]
| 1979-08-16
| heart failure
| 83
| Ottawa, Ontario
| state funeral in Ottawa and body transported by train to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
| hillside near ] at the ], ]
|-
| ]
| 1972-12-27
| cancer
| 75
| Ottawa, Ontario
| state funeral at ]
| ], ]
|-
| ]
| 2000-09-28
| Parkinson's disease and prostate cancer
| 80
| Montreal, Quebec
| state funeral in Ottawa and ]; body transported by train/hearse to Saint-Rémi, Quebec
| family crypt at ], ]
|}


== References ==
Canadian Prime Ministers are buried in Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan. Only one is buried in the United Kingdom.
{{Reflist}}


== Further reading ==
A state funeral for a deceased Prime Minister, with the casket lying in state in Centre Block on Parliament Hill, is offered to their family. Only Bowell and Bennett had private services. Bennett was the only Prime Minister to die and be buried outside of Canada. Bowell is the only Prime Minister not to have politicians attend his funeral.
{{further|List of books about prime ministers of Canada}}
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book | last=Brodie | first=I. | title=At the Centre of Government: The Prime Minister and the Limits on Political Power | publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press | year=2018 | isbn=978-0-7735-5378-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_NNZDwAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book | last=Coucill | first=I. | title=Canada's Prime Ministers, Governors General and Fathers of Confederation | publisher=Pembroke Publishers | year=2005 | isbn=978-1-55138-185-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wlFJPQHUY5UC}}
* {{cite book | last=Dutil | first=P. | title=Prime Ministerial Power in Canada: Its Origins under Macdonald, Laurier, and Borden | publisher=UBC Press | series=The C.D. Howe Series in Canadian Political History | year=2017 | isbn=978-0-7748-3476-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z3AlDwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 }}
* {{cite book | last=Donaldson | first=G. | title=The Prime Ministers of Canada | publisher=Doubleday Canada | year=1994 | isbn=978-0-385-25454-0}}
* {{cite book | last1=English | first1=J.R. | last2=Dutil | first2=P. | title=Statesmen, Strategists and Diplomats: Canada's Prime Ministers and the Making of Foreign Policy | publisher=University of British Columbia Press | series=The C. D. Howe Series in Canadian Political History Series | year=2023 | isbn=978-0-7748-6855-6 }}
* {{cite book | last=Schlee | first=Gary | title=Unknown and unforgettable : a guide to Canada's Prime Ministers | publication-place=Toronto, Ontario, Canada | date=2018 | isbn=978-1-7753780-0-6 | oclc=1108336247 |publisher=Shorelawn Publishing }}
* {{cite book | last=Stewart | first=J.D.M. | title=Being Prime Minister | publisher=Dundurn | year=2018 | isbn=978-1-4597-3849-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r5MwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PP1}}
{{refend}}


== External links ==
==Prime Ministers in popular culture==
{{Commons}}
====Real====
*
* John A. Macdonald: in 1979 TV movie '']'', played by ] (Note: Plummer is a great-grandson of ])
* on YouTube
* Pierre Trudeau: in the 1980 film '']'', played by ]
*
* In the 2002 ] mini series ''Trudeau'', four Prime Ministers were portrayed
* : 2011 '']'' article
** Pierre Trudeau, played by ]
** Jean Chrétien, played by ] ''(during the film's time frame, Chrétien was a cabinet minister under Trudeau)''
** Lester Pearson, played by ]
** John Turner, played by ]
* Pierre Trudeau: in 2005 ] mini series ''Trudeau II: Maverick in the Making'', played by ]
* In the 2006 ] mini series ''Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story'', two Prime Ministers were portrayed
** John Diefenbaker, played by ]
** Mackenzie King, played by ]
* John Diefenbaker, in the 1997 CBC miniseries '']'' played by ]


{{s-start}}
====Fictional====
{{s-prec}}
Fictional Prime Ministers of Canada have been portrayed in television series, including '']'', '']'' and '']'', televisions films such as '']'', and the motion pictures '']'' and '']''.
{{s-bef
| before = ]
| as = ]
}}
{{s-ttl
| title = Prime Minister of Canada<br />] (ceremonial)
| years =
}}
{{s-aft
| after = ]
| as = ]
}}
{{S-end}}


{{Prime ministers of Canada}}
===Literature===
{{Lists of prime ministers of Canada}}
====Fictional====
{{Canadian First Ministers}}
* Jean-Jacques Charles: ''A Very Political Lady'' (1979) by ], said to be based on ].<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Ross Hamilton: ''Party Favours'' (1997) by ], said to be based on ]<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Bobby Laurier: ''Party Favours'' (1997) by ], said to be based on ]<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Sir Henry Marwood: ''Pour la patrie'' (1895) by Jean-Paul Tardival, said to be based on ].<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Barton McGarvie: ''Scribes and Scoundrels'' (1997) by George Galt, said to be based on Brian Mulroney.<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Huntley McQueen: '']'' (1945) by ], said to be based on ].<ref name = "Busby"/>
* April McTavish: ''Party Favours'' (1997) by ], said to be based on ].<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Perry Pleaser: ''Jacob Two Two and the Dinosaur'' (1987) by ]
* The Prime Minister: ''S: Portrait of a Spy'' (1977) by ], said to be based on Pierre Elliott Trudeau.<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Jean Rioux: ''Party Favours'' (1997) by Jean Doe, said to be based on ].<ref name = "Busby"/>
* Carter Warden: ''A Very Political Lady'' (1979) by Judy LaMarsh, said to be based on ].<ref name="Busby">Brian Busby. ''Character Parts: Who's Really Who in CanLit.'' Toronto: Knopf Canada, 2003.</ref>

===As themselves===
] and ] have appeared as themselves as the sitting prime ministers on the ] sitcom '']'':
* Paul Martin in the third-season episode "Fun Run"
* Stephen Harper in the fourth season episode "Gopher It"

Several sitting prime ministers have also appeared as themselves on the CBC sketch comedy series '']'', while Harper appeared in an installment of the satirical CBC series '']''.

==Prime Minister impersonators==
===Radio and TV parodies===
* '']'' has portrayed several Prime Ministers
** Pierre Trudeau, played by ]
** Joe Clark, played by Don Ferguson
** Brian Mulroney, played by Don Ferguson
** Kim Campbell, played by ]
** Jean Chrétien, played by ]
** Paul Martin, played by Don Ferguson
** Stephen Harper, played by ]
* '']'' has portrayed several Prime Ministers
** Joe Clark, played by ]
** Jean Chrétien, played by Bob Robertson
** Pierre Trudeau, played by Bob Robertson
** Brian Mulroney, played by Bob Robertson
** Kim Campbell, played by ]
* ] has portrayed several Prime Ministers on his radio shows
** Pierre Trudeau: on ''CBC Radio's Max Ferguson Show''
** Lester Pearson: on ''CBC Radio's Rawhide and the Max Ferguson Show''
** John Diefenbaker: on ''CBC Radio's Rawhide and the Max Ferguson Show''

== See also ==
* ]
* ]
* ]

== Footnotes ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commonscat|Prime Ministers of Canada}}
*
* on ]
*
*: 1997 '']'' article
*
*{{cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/cdngovernment/mpssalary.htmll |title=CBC News in Depth: Canadian Government |publisher=CBC |date=2004-09-28 |accessdate=2007-03-17}}

{{Template group
|list =
{{Cabinet of Canada}} {{Cabinet of Canada}}
{{CanPM}}
{{Lists of Prime Ministers of Canada}}
{{Canada topics}} {{Canada topics}}
{{Heads of state and government of North America}}
}}
{{Prime ministers}}
{{Authority control}}


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Latest revision as of 22:28, 10 January 2025

Head of government of Canada "Premier of Canada" redirects here. For a list of prime ministers of Canada, see List of prime ministers of Canada. For provincial and territorial heads of government, see Premier (Canada).

Prime Minister of Canada
Premier ministre du Canada
Incumbent
Justin Trudeau
since November 4, 2015
Government of Canada
Privy Council Office
Style
AbbreviationPM
Member of
Reports toHouse of Commons
Residence24 Sussex Drive
SeatOffice of the Prime Minister and Privy Council building
AppointerMonarch (represented by the governor general)
with the confidence of the House of Commons
Term lengthAt His Majesty's pleasure
Constituting instrumentNone (constitutional convention)
Inaugural holderJohn A. Macdonald
FormationJuly 1, 1867
DeputyDeputy Prime Minister
Salary$406,200 (2024)
Websitepm.gc.ca

The prime minister of Canada (French: premier ministre du Canada) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons; as such, the prime minister typically sits as a member of Parliament (MP) and leads the largest party or a coalition of parties. As first minister, the prime minister selects ministers to form the Cabinet.

Not outlined in any constitutional document, the prime minister is appointed by the monarch's representative, the governor general, and the office exists per long-established convention. Constitutionally, executive authority is vested in the monarch (who is the head of state), but the powers of the monarch and governor general are nearly always exercised on the advice of the Cabinet, which is collectively responsible to the House of Commons. Canadian prime ministers are appointed to the Privy Council and styled as the Right Honourable (French: le très honorable), a privilege maintained for life.

The prime minister is supported by the Prime Minister's Office and heads the Privy Council Office. The prime minister also selects individuals for appointment as governor general (in the federal jurisdiction) and lieutenant governor (in the provinces), as well as to the Senate of Canada, Supreme Court of Canada, other federal courts, and the chairs and boards of various Crown corporations.

Since Confederation in 1867, 23 prime ministers (twenty-two men and one woman) have formed 29 ministries. Justin Trudeau, the current prime minister, took office on November 4, 2015, following the 2015 federal election, wherein his Liberal Party won a majority of seats. Trudeau's Liberals subsequently won a plurality of seats in the 2019 and 2021 elections, leaving Trudeau with minority governments. On January 6, 2025, Trudeau announced his intention to resign from leadership of his Liberal Party and as prime minister. He will remain as prime minister and Liberal Party leader until a replacement is chosen on March 9, 2025.

Origin of the office

The position of prime minister is not outlined in any Canadian constitutional document and is mentioned only in a few sections of the Constitution Act, 1982, and the Letters Patent, 1947, issued by King George VI. The office and its functions are instead governed by constitutional conventions and modelled on the same office in the United Kingdom.

Qualifications and selection

In 2008, a public opinion survey showed that 51% of Canadians believed they voted to directly elect the prime minister. In fact, the prime minister, along with the other ministers in Cabinet, is appointed by the governor general on behalf of the monarch. By the conventions of responsible government, the foundation of parliamentary democracy, the governor general will call to form a government the individual most likely to receive the support, or confidence, of a majority of the directly elected members of the House of Commons; as a practical matter, this is often the leader of the party, or a coalition of parties, whose members form a majority, or a very large plurality, of seats in the House of Commons. No document is needed to begin the appointment; a party leader becomes prime minister-designate as soon as he accepts the governor general's invitation to form a government.

A prime minister who has given intention to resign may advise the governor general on whom to appoint as the next prime minister. However, if the prime minister is resigning because he has lost the confidence of the House of Commons, the viceroy is not obligated to follow that advice. If the leader of the opposition is unable or unwilling to form a government, the governor general can consult whomever she wishes.

While there is no legal requirement for the prime minister to be an MP, for practical and political reasons the prime minister is expected to win a seat very promptly. However, in rare circumstances individuals who are not sitting members of the House of Commons have been appointed to the position of prime minister. Two former prime ministers—John Joseph Caldwell Abbott and Mackenzie Bowell—served in the 1890s while members of the Senate. Both, in their roles as government leader in the Senate, succeeded prime ministers who had died in office—John A. Macdonald in 1891 and John Sparrow David Thompson in 1894.

John A. Macdonald, the first prime minister of Canada (1867–1873, 1878–1891)

Prime ministers who are not MPs upon their appointment (or who lose their seats while in office) have since been expected to seek election to the House of Commons as soon as possible. For example, William Lyon Mackenzie King, after losing his seat in the 1925 federal election and again in the 1945 Canadian federal election (despite his party being elected government both times), briefly governed without a seat in the House of Commons on both occasions before winning a by-election a few weeks later. Similarly, John Turner replaced Pierre Trudeau as leader of the Liberal Party in 1984 and subsequently was appointed prime minister while not holding a seat in the House of Commons; Turner won a riding in the next election but the Liberal Party was swept from power.

When a prime minister loses their seat in the legislature, or should a new prime minister be appointed without holding a seat, the typical process that follows is that a member in the governing political party will resign to allow the prime minister to run in the resulting by-election. A safe seat is usually chosen; while the Liberal and Conservative parties generally observed a practice of not running a candidate against another party's new leader in the by-election, the New Democratic Party and smaller political parties typically do not follow the same practice. However, if the governing party selects a new leader shortly before an election is due, and that new leader is not a member of the legislature, they will normally await the upcoming election before running for a seat in Parliament.

Term of office

Further information: List of prime ministers of Canada by time in office § Calculation of terms of office

The prime minister serves at His Majesty's pleasure, meaning the post does not have a fixed term, and once appointed and sworn in by the governor general, the prime minister remains in office until they resign, are dismissed, or die.

While the lifespan of a parliament is constitutionally limited to five years, a 2007 amendment to the Canada Elections Act, Section 56.1(2) limited the term of a Parliament to four years, with election day being set as the third Monday in October of the fourth calendar year after the previous polling date. The governor general may still, on the advice of the prime minister, dissolve parliament and issue the writs of election prior to the date mandated by the constitution or Canada Elections Act; the King–Byng Affair was the only time since Confederation that the governor general refused the prime minister's request for a general vote.

Following parliamentary dissolution, should the prime minister's party subsequently win a majority of seats in the House of Commons, it is unnecessary to re-appoint the prime minister or for the prime minister to retake the oath of office. If, however, an opposition party wins a majority of seats, the prime minister may resign or choose to meet Parliament to see if the incumbent government can win a confidence vote. Should the prime minister's party achieve a minority while an opposition party wins a plurality (i.e., more seats than any other party but less than a majority), the prime minister can attempt to maintain the confidence of the House by forming a coalition with other minority parties, which was last entertained in 1925 or by entering into a confidence-and-supply agreement, or by winning support of other parties on a vote-by-vote basis.

Role and authority

Further information: King's Privy Council for Canada
Canada's prime ministers during its first century

Because the prime minister is in practice the most politically powerful member of the Canadian government, they are sometimes erroneously thought to be Canada's head of state, when, in fact, that role belongs to the Canadian monarch, represented by the governor general. The prime minister is, instead, the head of government and is responsible for advising the Crown on how to exercise much of the royal prerogative and its executive powers, which are governed by the written constitution and constitutional conventions. However, the function of the prime minister has evolved with increasing power. Today, per the doctrines of constitutional monarchy, the advice given by the prime minister is ordinarily binding, meaning the prime minister effectively carries out those duties ascribed to the sovereign or governor general, leaving the latter to act in predominantly ceremonial fashions. As such, the prime minister, supported by the Office of the Prime Minister (PMO), controls the appointments of many key figures in Canada's system of governance, including the governor general, the Cabinet, justices of the Supreme Court, senators, heads of Crown corporations, ambassadors and high commissioners, the provincial lieutenant governors, and approximately 3,100 other positions. Further, the prime minister plays a prominent role in the legislative process—with the majority of bills put before Parliament originating in the Cabinet.

William Lyon Mackenzie King, the 10th prime minister of Canada (1921–1926; 1926–1930; 1935–1948)

Pierre Trudeau is often credited with, throughout his tenure as prime minister (1968–79, 1980–84), consolidating power in the PMO, which is itself filled by political and administrative staff selected at the prime minister's discretion and unaccountable to Parliament. At the end of the 20th century and into the 21st, analysts—such as Jeffrey Simpson, Donald Savoie, Andrew Coyne, and John Gomery—argued that both Parliament and the Cabinet had become eclipsed by prime ministerial power; Savoie wrote: "The Canadian prime minister has little in the way of institutional check, at least inside government, to inhibit his ability to have his way." Indeed, the position has been described as undergoing a "presidentialization", to the point that its incumbents publicly outshine the actual head of state (and prime minister's spouses are sometimes referred to as First Lady of Canada). Former governor general Adrienne Clarkson alluded to what she saw as "an unspoken rivalry" that had developed between the prime minister and the Crown. It has been theorized that such is the case in Canada as its Parliament is less influential on the executive than in other countries with Westminster parliamentary systems; particularly, Canada has fewer MPs, a higher turnover rate of MPs after each election, and a US-style system for selecting political party leaders, leaving them accountable to the party membership rather than caucus (as is the case in the UK).

There do exist checks on the prime minister's power: the House of Commons may revoke its confidence in an incumbent prime minister and Cabinet or caucus revolts can quickly bring down a serving premier and even mere threats of such action can persuade or compel a prime minister to resign their post, as happened with Jean Chrétien. The Reform Act, 2014, codifies the process by which a caucus may trigger a party leadership review and, if necessary, chose an interim leader, thereby making a prime minister more accountable to the MPs in one's party. Caucuses may choose to follow these rules, though the decision would be made by recorded vote, thereby subjecting the party's choice to public scrutiny.

The Senate may delay or impede legislation put forward by the Cabinet, such as when Brian Mulroney's bill creating the Goods and Services Tax (GST) came before the Senate, and given Canada's federal nature, the jurisdiction of the federal government is limited to areas prescribed by the constitution. Further, as executive power is constitutionally vested in the monarch, meaning the royal prerogative belongs to the Crown and not to any of its ministers, the sovereign's supremacy over the prime minister in the constitutional order is thus seen as a "rebuff to the pretensions of the elected: As it has been said, when the prime minister bows before the queen, he bows before us ." Either the sovereign or the governor general may therefore oppose the prime minister's will in extreme, crisis situations. Near the end of her time as governor general, Adrienne Clarkson stated: "My constitutional role has lain in what are called 'reserve powers': making sure that there is a prime minister and a government in place, and exercising the right 'to encourage, to advise, and to warn' Without really revealing any secrets, I can tell you that I have done all three."

Privileges

24 Sussex Drive, the official residence of the prime minister of Canada

Two official residences are provided to the prime minister—24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa and Harrington Lake, a country retreat in Gatineau Park—as well an office in the Office of the Prime Minister and Privy Council building (formerly known as Langevin Block), across from Parliament Hill.

For transportation, the prime minister is afforded an armoured car (a car allowance of $2,000 per year) and shared use of two official aircraft—a CC-150 Polaris for international flights and a Challenger 601 for domestic trips. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police also furnish constant personal security for the prime minister and their family. All of the aforementioned is provided through budgets approved by Parliament.

As of April 2024, the prime minister's annual salary is $406,200 (consisting of an MP's salary of $203,100 and the prime minister's additional salary of $203,100).

Serving or former prime ministers are accorded a state funeral, wherein their casket lies in state in the Centre Block of Parliament Hill. Only Bowell and the Viscount Bennett were given private funerals, Bennett also being the only former prime minister of Canada to die and be buried outside the country and Bowell the only whose funeral was not attended by politicians. John Thompson also died outside Canada, at Windsor Castle, where Queen Victoria permitted his lying-in-state before his body was returned to Canada for a state funeral in Halifax.

The mark of the prime ministership of Canada, applied to the arms of prime ministers

Prior to 1919, it was traditional for the monarch to bestow a knighthood on newly appointed Canadian prime ministers. Accordingly, several carried the prefix Sir before their name; of the first eight prime ministers of Canada, only Alexander Mackenzie refused the honour of a knighthood from Queen Victoria. Following the 1919 Nickle Resolution, however, the House of Commons declared that it should be against the policy of the Canadian Sovereign (and the Canadian government advising the Monarch when such honours are not within the Monarch's personal gift) to bestow aristocratic or chivalric titles to Canadians. The Crown in right of Canada (but not the Crown in right of the United Kingdom, which has periodically bestowed such Imperial honours on such citizens) has since adopted this policy generally, such that the last prime minister to be knighted near appointment was Robert Borden, who was the prime minister at the time the Nickle Resolution was debated in the House of Commons (and was knighted before the resolution). Still, Bennett was, in 1941, six years after he stepped down as prime minister, elevated to the peerage of the United Kingdom by King George VI as Viscount Bennett, of Mickleham in the County of Surrey and of Calgary and Hopewell in Canada. No prime minister has since been titled.

The Canadian Heraldic Authority (CHA) grants former prime ministers an augmentation of honour on the coat of arms of those who apply for them. The heraldic badge, referred to by the CHA as the mark of the Prime Ministership of Canada, consists of four red maple leaves joined at the stem on a white field (Argent four maple leaves conjoined in cross at the stem Gules); the augmentation is usually a canton or centred in the chief. Joe Clark, Pierre Trudeau, John Turner, Brian Mulroney, Kim Campbell, Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin were granted arms with the augmentation.

Style of address

Kim Campbell, the 19th prime minister of Canada (1993) and only female and British Columbia–born person to hold the office

Canada continues the Westminster tradition of using the title Prime Minister when one is speaking to the federal head of government directly; the Department of Canadian Heritage advises that the term Mr. Prime Minister should not be used in official contexts. The written form of address for the prime minister should use their full parliamentary title: The Right Honourable , , Prime Minister of Canada. However, while in the House of Commons during Question Period, other members of parliament may address the prime minister as the Right Honourable Member for or simply the Right Honourable Prime Minister. Former prime ministers retain the prefix the Right Honourable for the remainder of their lives; should they remain sitting MPs, they may be referred as the Right Honourable Member for , by their portfolio title (if appointed to one), as in the Right Honourable Minister of National Defence, or should they become opposition leader, as the Right Honourable Leader of the Opposition.

In the decades following Confederation, it was common practice to refer to the prime minister as Premier of Canada, a custom that continued during the First World War, around the time of Robert Borden's premiership. While contemporary sources will still speak of early prime ministers of Canada as premier, the modern practice is such that the federal head of government is known almost exclusively as the prime minister, while the provincial and territorial heads of government are termed premiers (in French, premiers are addressed as premier ministre du , literally translated as prime minister of ).

Prime minister–designate of Canada

Further information: Prime minister–designate

The prime minister–designate of Canada is the person who has been designated as the future prime minister by the governor general, after either the individual's political party won a general election or proposed to form either a confidence-and-supply government or coalition government. The term does not apply to incumbent prime ministers.

Activities post-premiership

Lester Pearson

After exiting office, former prime ministers of Canada have engaged in various pursuits. Some remained in politics: Bowell continued as a senator, and Bennett moved to the United Kingdom after being elevated to the House of Lords. A number were leaders of the Official Opposition: John A. Macdonald, Arthur Meighen, Mackenzie King, and Pierre Trudeau, all before being re-appointed as prime minister (Mackenzie King twice); Alexander Mackenzie and John Diefenbaker, both prior to sitting as regular Members of Parliament until their deaths; Wilfrid Laurier dying while still in the post; and Charles Tupper, Louis St. Laurent, and John Turner, each before they returned to private business. Meighen was also appointed to the Senate following his second period as prime minister, but resigned his seat to seek re-election and moved to private enterprise after failing to win a riding. Also returning to civilian life were: Robert Borden, who was Chancellor of Queen's and McGill Universities, as well as working in the financial sector; Lester B. Pearson, who was Chancellor of Carleton University; Joe Clark and Kim Campbell, who were university lecturers, Clark also consultant and Campbell working in international diplomacy and as the director of private companies and chairperson of interest groups; while Pierre Trudeau and Jean Chrétien returned to legal practice. Former prime ministers also commonly penned autobiographies—Tupper, for example—or published their memoirs—such as Diefenbaker and Paul Martin.

See also

Notes

  1. This title is granted to holders of the office for life upon taking office.
  2. Under renovation since 2015. Rideau Cottage is the current residence of Justin Trudeau.
  3. When the position is held by a woman, the French title is première ministre du Canada.
  4. When the style is held by a woman, the French title is la très honorable.
  5. When Prime Minister John A. Macdonald died in office in 1891, Governor General the Lord Stanley of Preston approached John Thompson to form a government. But Thompson declined and instead advised Stanley to call on Senator John Abbott. Ahead of Prime Minister Mackenzie Bowell's resignation in 1896, Donald Smith turned down the offer to be the next head of government, leading Governor General the Earl of Aberdeen to appoint Charles Tupper as prime minister. Robert Borden announced his intention to resign as prime minister in 1920. Thomas White was summoned by Governor General the Viscount Byng of Vimy and rejected the appointment as prime minister. Byng then installed Arthur Meighen as his chief advisor.
  6. A 2008 Ipsos-Reid poll found 42% of respondents thought the prime minister was head of state.
  7. See note 2 at Cabinet of Canada.
  8. See "Responsibilities" and note 1 at Cabinet of Canada.

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Further reading

Further information: List of books about prime ministers of Canada

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