Posted September 11
Obviously, with the Constitution, which provides that this can only be done with the consent of the House of Commons, the Senate and each of the provinces, it will be complicated. But maybe not as much as one might think.
There was great respect for the person of Queen Elizabeth. And no one really wanted to hold such a debate in their lifetime. But the new king is much less popular with Canadians. In a poll conducted last April by the firm Angus Reid, 67% of Canadians were opposed, either moderately (26%) or strongly (41%), to the country recognizing Charles as its head of state at the death of his mother.
But anyway, it’s not a matter of personality. The question should rather relate to the maintenance in the 21ste century of a link that dates from the 19eat a time when Canada was still a colony governed by London.
Today, only one-third of Canadians claim British Isles origin. There are therefore fewer and fewer people who feel a particular attachment to the mother country to the point of wanting its head of state to also be that of Canada. In Quebec, there have never been many, but we can say that this is also the case for many newcomers for whom the colonial link with Canada has little meaning.
The Angus Reid Poll asked the question directly, “Should Canada continue to be a constitutional monarchy for generations to come?” Result: 51% said no, 26% yes, and 24% did not know.
A plurality of Canadians in every region of the country believe in abandoning the monarchy. This ranges from 71% in Quebec to 43% in Ontario and the Maritimes – but with less than a quarter of respondents keen to maintain ties with the British Crown.
Of course, that would be complicated. It would take, from the outset, a kind of tacit agreement that this is not the time for everyone to unpack all their other constitutional demands.
That said, there is a way to provoke a constitutional debate on a single issue, a way that was suggested by the Supreme Court a quarter of a century ago and has never been used in this way: a referendum. The decision in question related to Quebec’s eventual accession to sovereignty, but it could apply in other cases.
According to the judges, “the legitimate attempt, by a participant of the Confederation, to modify the Constitution has as a corollary the obligation made to all the parties to come to the negotiating table”.
It does not guarantee the outcome of the negotiations – including after a Yes to a referendum on sovereignty, by the way – but it does require negotiations to take place.
Therefore, a referendum initiated by one or more provinces, or even a national referendum on whether or not to maintain the monarchy, could be the starting point for a new constitutional round in which only this question would be discussed. .
A political party — in a province or at the federal level — could promise the holding of a referendum on the monarchy in its electoral platform and if it obtained this mandate, the question would become the order of the day.
Obviously, this does not change the constitutional rule of unanimity and the Premier of Prince Edward Island (predestined monarchist name!) could still exercise his right of veto. But the democratic weight of a referendum would be hard to ignore. Especially if it was a national referendum or held in several provinces.
Moreover, 92% of Canadians who want to abolish the monarchy are well aware that it will be difficult, but say that they must try all the same.
You also have to make sure you don’t make mistakes. In 1999 Australia voted to abolish the monarchy and the polls seemed to be quite favourable.
But Republicans were divided on how to elect a president (who would have had the same limited powers of a governor general). Some wanted him to be appointed by a two-thirds vote of Parliament, others wanted him to be elected by universal suffrage.
Result: the referendum was a failure (53% No, 46% Yes) and Australia kept the Queen as head of state, even if the idea of becoming a republic comes up regularly in the news.
We cannot improvise such a reform and we must ensure that the debate takes place with respect for everyone. But the Canadians seem ready to cut this last colonial link. Politicians should now be ready to do their part.