Welcome to Longform North -- a longform interview podcast featuring Canadian voices and stories about Canada.

The word parliament comes from a French word that means to talk or have a conversation. Though I think the impression a lot of people have about Canadian parliament is that there isn't much conversation going on there beyond prepared talking points.

But you might be surprised to hear that the parliamentary system, as far as systems of government go, is actually a pretty good one, and it organizes things in a way that kind of makes sense. Though that's not to say there aren't any ways it couldn't be improved.

So on this episode we're talking about the important things you should know about how Canadian parliament works, and some ideas about how it could be made better.

Joining me again to help out with this is Dr. Tom Bateman. He is a professor of political science at St Thomas University, and he is one of the co-authors of a book called _The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Canada's Parliamentary Democracy,_ which is the main source and inspiration for this series of podcasts on Canadian democracy.

Some of the topics we discuss include:

• What 'responsible government' means in a parliamentary democracy and how it's different from the idea of the separation of powers
• How party discipline and whipped voting helps contribute to stability and predictability in government
• What happens when the government falls, or loses the confidence of the house
• Prorogation — looking at both Justin Trudeau's prorogation of the government in 2025, and the time Stephen Harper prorogued in 2008 when the opposition parties tried forming a coalition to defeat him
• The role of the opposition and how parliament is designed to be adversarial
• Why the decision to put video cameras in the House of Commons to record Question Period was a really stupid one
• How the office of the Prime Minister has accumulated too much power, and one simple way that could be reformed without having to pass any legislation

Links:

• Parliament: a definition
• The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Canada's Parliamentary Democracy
• Dr. Tom MJ Bateman

*Note: This episode was recorded on January 6th, 2025, which happened to be the same day that Justin Trudeau announced his resignation and prorogued parliament.

For more about the podcast, check out the website: longformnorth.com

Sign up for the Longform North Newsletter: longformnorth.com/newsletter/

Music by Aaron Barth

Hosted and produced by Ian Van Harten

Welcome to Longform North -- a longform interview podcast featuring Canadian voices and stories about Canada.

There's a set of freedoms we have in this country. There's the freedom of expression, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, and lots of other freedoms. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives us protection for all these freedoms -- except when it doesn't.

How far does the Charter go in protecting these rights and freedoms? What are the exceptions? Why are there exceptions? And how does that all get figured out?

Joining me again to talk about all this is Dr. Tom MJ Bateman. He is a professor of political science at St Thomas University, and he is one of the co-authors of a book called The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Canada's Parliamentary Democracy, which is the main source and inspiration for this series of podcasts on Canadian democracy.

Some of the topics we discuss include:

• How we got our Charter of Rights and Freedoms
• Pierre Trudeau's vision for the country via the Charter
• Who wrote the Charter? How was it written?
• What rights are included in the Charter?
• What has the impact been on our legal system?
• Section 1 - ie, the wiggle clause - how our rights are subject to reasonable limits
• The notwithstanding clause
• The new powers and influence the Charter gives to judges and the courts
• How a Charter case forced the government to create legislation for Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID)
• How Charter cases are decided
• Balancing individual rights with the interests of the majority

Links:

• The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms Webpage
• The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Canada's Parliamentary Democracy
• Dr. Tom MJ Bateman

For more about the podcast, check out the website: longformnorth.com

Sign up for the Longform North Newsletter: longformnorth.com/newsletter/

Music by Aaron Barth

Hosted and produced by Ian Van Harten

Welcome to Longform North -- a longform interview podcast featuring Canadian voices and stories about Canada.

On this inaugural episode, we're talking about the origins and foundation of Canada's political system.

Canada is a parliamentary democracy, and this system inherits from traditions and ideas that are much older than Canada itself.

But what are those ideas, where did they come from, and how are they influencing the way our political system works?

Joining me to talk about all this is Dr. Tom MJ Bateman. He is a professor of political science at St Thomas University, and he is one of the co-authors of a book called The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Canada's Parliamentary Democracy.

Some of the topics we discuss include:

• Why it's important to have a politically educated public in a democracy
• The historical cycle of democracies leading to demagoguery and tyranny
• The influence of the United States civil war on Confederation and the Canadian founders' caution around having "too much democracy"
• The importance of economic well-being and education in order to sustain democracy
• Tensions between (enforced) economic equality and personal liberty
• John Stuart Mill's On Liberty and its influence in shaping Canada's principle of liberty
• The Canadian Constitution, both the written and unwritten rules that make it up
• The fact that the Prime Minister is not mentioned in the Canadian Constitution
• How constitutional conventions (unwritten rules and traditions) work
• A brief history of the patriation of Canada's constitution

Links:

• The Canadian Regime: An Introduction to Canada's Parliamentary Democracy
• Dr. Tom MJ Bateman

*Note: This episode was recorded on December 30th, 2024 (a few weeks before Justin Trudeau prorogued parliament).

For more about the podcast, check out the website: longformnorth.com

Sign up for the Longform North Newsletter: longformnorth.com/newsletter/

Music by Aaron Barth

Hosted and produced by Ian Van Harten