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Inside Canada's Parliament
Version française

  Welcome
  Preface
  Introduction
  The Foundations
  The Institutions
  The Work
  Continuing Traditions
  For more info.
  Print copy (pdf)
Preface
A young Canadian casting a vote, a Senator conducting a clause-by-clause review of a bill, a Member of the House of Commons meeting with constituents, a Cabinet Minister defending her department’s policies to other party members in a caucus meeting, members of a special interest group presenting their case to a parliamentary committee — these are just some of the many people who make Canada’s Parliament work.

And it does work.  Through an intricate marriage of tradition and forward thinking, of time-honoured processes and changing social and economic circumstances, Canadians have built a parliamentary system of which to be proud.  After more than a hundred years of adaptation and improvement, of taking the best of the old and the best of the new, it is our heritage. 

The people who represent Canadians in Parliament — as Senators and Members of the House of Commons — are proud to be part of such a great institution.  Through debate, discussion and reflection, parliamentarians safeguard Canada’s democratic system — ensuring that the country’s laws and the management of its finances reflect the public will.  What they do matters. 

“Behind the scenes”, many men and women provide parliamentarians with essential services to help them do their work.  They are the people who conduct research on laws, policies and parliamentary rules and procedures, coordinate the work of parliamentary committees, prepare and distribute the information parliamentarians need for debate and decision-making, and ensure public access to the history and traditions of Parliament.  What they do matters too. 

Democracy works best when citizens are involved in, and informed about, the workings of government.  But much of what parliamentarians do, the details of their work, is not always understood.  It’s important that the Houses of Parliament be open and accessible so that Canadians and others can learn about how the laws of the country are made, and where the future of Canada is shaped.  Read on and discover how Canada’s Parliament works, who Canadian parliamentarians are and how they do their job.


© Library of Parliament - November 2002