Editing Governor General of Canada (section)

==Role==
{{Further|Monarchy of Canada#International and domestic aspects}}
[[File:Vladimir Putin in Canada 18-19 December 2000-2.jpg|thumb|right|Governor General [[Adrienne Clarkson]] (right) meets with [[President of Russia|Russian President]] [[Vladimir Putin]] (left) in the governor general's study of [[Rideau Hall]], 18 December 2000]]

{{Quote box| width=250px| border=1px| align=right| bgcolor=#F5F5DC| quote=If, and because your Governor-General is in the service of the Crown, he is, therefore&nbsp;... in the service of Canada&nbsp;... [A]loof though he be from actual executive responsibility, his attitude must be that of ceaseless and watchful readiness to take part&nbsp;... in the fostering of every influence that will sweeten and elevate public life; to&nbsp;... join in making known the resources and developments of the country; to vindicate, if required, the rights of the people and the ordinariness and Constitution, and lastly, to promote by all means in his power, without reference to class or creed, every movement and every institution calculated to forward the social, moral, and religious welfare of the inhabitants of the Dominion.<ref>{{Cite news| last=Hamilton-Gordon| first=John| author-link=John Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair| year=1960| publication-date=17 September 1893| title=We Twa| editor-last=Hamilton-Gordon| editor-first=Ishbel| editor-link=Ishbel Hamilton-Gordon, Marchioness of Aberdeen and Temair| periodical=The Canadian Journal of Lady Aberdeen, 1893–1898| volume=2| pages=13–15| location=Montreal| publisher=Champlain Society}}</ref>| salign=right| source=Governor General [[John Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair|the Marquess of Aberdeen]], 1893}}

Canada [[Personal union|shares the person of the sovereign]] equally with [[Commonwealth realm|14 other countries]] in the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] and that individual, in the monarch's capacity as the Canadian sovereign, has [[Monarchy of Canada#Federal and provincial aspects|10 other legal personas]] within the [[Canadian federalism|Canadian federation]]. As the sovereign works and resides in the United Kingdom, the governor general's primary task is to perform federal constitutional duties on behalf of the monarch.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/eng/1396354959162#a1| author=Government of Canada| title=The Governor General| date=2 October 2014| publisher=Her Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=28 November 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151114211942/http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/eng/1396354959162#a1| archive-date=14 November 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/eng/1396015117980| author=Government of Canada| title=The Crown| date=24 September 2014| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=28 November 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101230729/http://canadiancrown.gc.ca/eng/1396015117980| archive-date=1 January 2016}}</ref> As such, the governor general carries on "the government of Canada on behalf and in the name of the sovereign".<ref>{{Cite canlaw|short title  =Interpretation Act|abbr =RSC|year =1985|chapter =I-21|section =35|subsection =1|link =https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/i-21/section-35.html#h-279462}}.</ref>

The governor general acts within the principles of [[parliamentary democracy]] and [[responsible government]] as a guarantor of continuous and stable governance and as a [[Nonpartisanism|nonpartisan]] safeguard against the abuse of power.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Roberts |first=Edward |author-link=Edward Roberts (Canadian politician) |title=Ensuring Constitutional Wisdom During Unconventional Times |journal=Canadian Parliamentary Review |volume=23 |issue=1 |page=15 |publisher=Commonwealth Parliamentary Association |location=Ottawa |year=2009 |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/Infoparl/32/1/32n1_09e_Roberts.pdf |access-date=21 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426045234/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/Infoparl/32/1/32n1_09e_Roberts.pdf |archive-date=26 April 2012}}</ref><ref name=GGDuties>{{cite web| url=http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=13288| last=Office of the Governor General of Canada| title=Governor General > Role and Responsibilities > A Modern Governor General – Active and Engaged| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=30 May 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb| MacLeod| 2015| pp=16, 20}}</ref> For the most part, however, the powers of the Crown are exercised on a day-to-day basis by elected and appointed individuals, leaving the governor general to perform the various ceremonial duties the sovereign otherwise carries out when in the country; at such a moment, the governor general removes him or herself from public,{{refn|Governor General the Lord Tweedsmuir said of King George VI being in the Senate in 1939 to grant Royal Assent to bills: "[When the King of Canada is present] I cease to exist as Viceroy, and retain only a shadowy legal existence as Governor General in Council."<ref>{{cite journal|last=Galbraith |first=William |title=Fiftieth Anniversary of the 1939 Royal Visit |journal=Canadian Parliamentary Review |volume=12 |issue=3 |page=9 |publisher=Commonwealth Parliamentary Association |location=Ottawa |year=1989 |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/Infoparl/12/3/12n3_89e.pdf |access-date=22 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110314112621/http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Sites/LOP/Infoparl/12/3/12n3_89e.pdf |archive-date=14 March 2011}}</ref>|group=n|name=GGMon}} though the presence of the monarch does not affect the governor general's ability to perform governmental roles.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Department of National Defence |author-link=Department of National Defence (Canada) |title=The Honours, Flags and Heritage Structure of the Canadian Forces |place=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada |date=1 April 1999 |page=1A-3 |url=http://www.saskd.ca/heritage.pdf |id=A-AD-200-000/AG-000 |access-date=23 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325162006/http://www.saskd.ca/heritage.pdf |archive-date=25 March 2009}}</ref><ref name=Heard>{{Citation| first=Andrew| last=Heard| title=Canadian Independence| year=1990| place=Vancouver| publisher=Simon Fraser University| url=https://www.sfu.ca/~aheard/324/Independence.html| access-date=25 August 2010}}</ref>

Past governor general [[John Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll|John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne]], said of the job, "it is no easy thing to be a governor general of Canada. You must have the patience of a saint, the smile of a [[cherub]], the generosity of an Indian prince, and the back of a camel",<ref>{{Cite book| last=Campbell| first=John| author-link=John Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll| date=c. 1880| publication-date=1955| editor-last=MacNutt| editor-first=W. Stewart| title=Days of Lorne: Impressions of a Governor-General| page=201| place=Ottawa| publication-place=Fredericton| publisher=Brunswick Press| ref={{harvid|MacNutt|1955}}}}</ref> and the [[Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava|Earl of Dufferin]] stated that the governor general is "a representative of all that is august, stable, and sedate in the government, the history and the traditions of the country; incapable of partizanship and lifted far above the atmosphere of faction; without adherents to reward or opponents to oust from office; docile to the suggestions of his Ministers and, yet, securing to the people the certainty of being able to get rid of an administration or parliament the moment either had forfeited their confidence."<ref>{{Cite book| last=Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood| first=Frederick| author-link=Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava| date=12 January 1877| publication-date=1877| contribution=Speech| editor-last=Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood| editor-first=Frederick| title=Visit of his Excellency the Governor-General to the National Club| page=10| location=Toronto| publisher=Hunter Rose & Co.| isbn=978-0-665-41480-0| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=25UtAAAAYAAJ&q=%22august%2C+stable%2C+and+sedate%22&pg=PA10}}</ref>

===Constitutional role===
{{Further|Monarchy of Canada#Federal constitutional role}}

All [[Executive (government)|executive]], [[legislative]], and [[judicial]] power in and over Canada is vested in the monarch.<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=Ss. 9, 17}}</ref><ref name=MacLeod17>{{Harvnb| MacLeod| 2015| p=17}}</ref> The governor general is permitted to exercise most of this power, including the [[royal prerogative]], in the sovereign's name; some as outlined in the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', and some through various [[letters patent]] issued over the decades, particularly [[Letters Patent, 1947|those from 1947]] that constitute the Office of Governor General of Canada.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/executive-decree/023004-2020-e.html| last=Library and Archives Canada| author-link=Library and Archives Canada| title=Politics and Government > By Executive Decree > The Governor General| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=4 June 2009| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090811074157/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/executive-decree/023004-2020-e.html| archive-date=11 August 2009}}</ref> The 1947 letters patent state, "and We do hereby authorize and empower Our Governor General, with the advice of [[King's Privy Council for Canada|Our Privy Council for Canada]] or of any members thereof or individually, as the case requires, to exercise all powers and authorities lawfully belonging to Us in respect of Canada."<ref>{{Harvnb| George VI| 1947| loc=II}}</ref> The office itself does not, however, independently possess any powers of the royal prerogative, only exercising the Crown's powers with its permission; a fact the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', left unchanged.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/14732/index.do |title=''Windsor & Annapolis Railway Co. v. The Queen and the Western Counties Railway Co.'' (1885), 10 SCR 389. |access-date=22 September 2021 |archive-date=22 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210922043514/https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/14732/index.do |url-status=dead }}</ref> Among other duties, the monarch retains the sole right to appoint the governor general.<ref name=MacLeod35/> It is also stipulated that the governor general [[Deputy of the Governor General of Canada|may appoint deputies]]—usually Supreme Court justices and the secretary to the governor general—who can perform some of the viceroy's constitutional duties in the governor general's absence,<ref>{{Harvnb| George VI| 1947| loc=VII}}</ref> and the chief justice of the Supreme Court (or a puisne justice in the chief justice's absence) will act as the administrator of the government upon the death or removal, as well as the incapacitation, or absence of the governor general for more than one month.<ref>{{Harvnb| George VI| 1947| loc=VIII}}</ref>
[[File:Swearing In - Assermentation (36647507344).jpg|thumb|[[Andrew Scheer]] (right), then [[Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada)|Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition]], being admitted to the [[Queen's Privy Council for Canada]] by Governor General [[David Johnston (governor general)|David Johnston]] (centre) at [[Rideau Hall]], 25 September 2017]]

The governor general is required by the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', to appoint for life persons to the [[King's Privy Council for Canada]],<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=S. 11}}</ref> who are all technically tasked with tendering to the monarch and viceroy guidance on the exercise of the royal prerogative. [[Convention (norm)#Government|Convention]] dictates, though, that the governor general must draw from the Privy Council an individual to appoint as prime minister. In almost all cases, this is the member of Parliament who commands the [[Confidence and supply|confidence]] of the [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]], whom the governor general must appoint to the Privy Council, if that person is not already a member, so the individual can be appointed prime minister. The prime minister then advises the governor general to appoint other members of parliament to a committee of the Privy Council known as the [[Cabinet of Canada|Cabinet]] and it is, in practice, only from this group of [[ministers of the Crown]] that the king and governor general will take [[Advice (constitutional law)|advice]] on the use of executive power;<ref>{{Harvnb| MacLeod| 2015| pp=24, 27}}</ref> an arrangement called the ''[[king-in-Council]]'' or,<ref name=MacLeod17/> more specifically, the ''governor-in-Council''. In this capacity, the governor general will issue royal [[proclamation]]s and sign [[orders in council]]. The governor-in-Council is also specifically tasked by the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', to appoint in the monarch's name, the [[Lieutenant Governor (Canada)|lieutenant governors of the provinces]],<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=S. 58}}</ref> [[Senate of Canada|senators]],<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=S. 24}}</ref> the [[Speaker of the Senate of Canada|speaker of the Senate]],<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=S. 34}}</ref> [[Superior court|superior]], district, and county court judges in each province, except those of the Courts of Probate in [[Nova Scotia]] and [[New Brunswick]],<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=S. 96}}</ref> and [[High commissioner (Commonwealth)|high commissioners]] and ambassadors.<ref name=GoC152>{{harvnb| Government of Canada| 1970| p=152}}</ref> The advice given by the Cabinet is, in order to ensure the stability of government, by political convention typically binding. The governor general has mainly only the right to advise, encourage, and warn; to offer valued counsel to the prime minister.<ref>{{citation| url=https://www.gg.ca/en/governor-general/role-and-responsibilities/constitutional-duties| author=Office of the Secretary to the Governor General| title=Constitutional Duties| date=22 December 2016| publisher=Governor General of Canada| accessdate=1 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{citation| url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/governor-general| last1=McIntosh| first1=Andrew| last2=Monet| first2=Jacques| last3=Bishop| first3=Paul| last4=McIntosh| first4=Andrew| title=Governor General of Canada| date=29 March 2023| encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia| publisher=Historica Canada| access-date=1 March 2024}}</ref>

Both the King and his viceroy, however, may in exceptional circumstances invoke the [[reserve powers]], which remain the Crown's final check against a ministry's abuse of power.{{refn|See [[King's Privy Council for Canada#cite note-RP-13|Note 2]] at [[King's Privy Council for Canada]].|group=n|name=RP}}<ref name=Commons>{{cite web|url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=1276961&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=37&Ses=3| last=House of Commons| title=The Governor General of Canada: Role, Duties and Funding for Activities| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=9 October 2009| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614024528/http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=1276961&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=37&Ses=3 | archive-date=14 June 2012 }}</ref> The reserve power of dismissal has never been used in Canada, although other reserve powers have been employed to force the prime minister to resign on two occasions: In 1896, Prime Minister [[Charles Tupper]] refused to step down after his party failed to win a majority in the House of Commons during [[1896 Canadian federal election|that year's election]], leading Governor General the [[John Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair|Earl of Aberdeen]] to no longer recognize Tupper as prime minister and disapprove of several appointments Tupper had recommended. In 1925, the [[King–Byng affair]] took place, in which Prime Minister Mackenzie King, facing a [[Motion of no confidence|non-confidence motion]] in the House of Commons, advised Governor General the Viscount Byng of Vimy to [[Dissolution of parliament|dissolve]] the new parliament, but Byng refused.

[[Peter Hogg]], a constitutional scholar, has opined that "a system of responsible government cannot work without a formal head of state who is possessed of certain reserve powers." Further, [[Eugene Forsey]] stated "the reserve power is indeed, under our Constitution, an absolutely essential safeguard of democracy. It takes the place of the legal and judicial safeguards provided in the United States by written Constitutions, enforceable in the courts."

Within the dominions, until the 1920s, most reserve powers were exercised by a governor-general on the advice of either the local or the British Cabinet, with the latter taking precedence. After the [[1926 Imperial Conference|Imperial Conference of 1926]] produced the [[Balfour Declaration of 1926|Balfour Declaration]], formally establishing the autonomy and equal status of Commonwealth governments, governors general ceased to be advised in any way by British ministers.

It was decided at the same Imperial Conference that the governor general "should be kept as fully informed as His Majesty the King in Great Britain of Cabinet business and public affairs."<ref>{{citation| title=Imperial Conference 1926: Summary of Proceedings| location=Ottawa| year=1926| page=14}}</ref> How frequently governors general and their prime ministers conversed has varied;<ref name=GoC152/> some prime ministers have valued their meetings with the viceroy at the time.{{refn|Robert Borden said, "it would be an absolute mistake to regard the governor general as a mere figurehead, a mere rubber stamp. During nine years of premiership, I had the opportunity of realizing how helpful may be the advice and counsel of a governor general in matters of delicacy and difficulty".<ref>{{citation| title=The Imperial Conference| journal=Journal of the Royal Institute of International Affairs| date=July 1927| page=204}}</ref>|group=n}} However, the practice is usually informal<ref name=GoC152/> and the prime minister will typically schedule a telephone call to request the governor general perform a significant task.{{refn|[[Pierre Trudeau]] called [[Roland Michener]] in 1970 to request an authorization to invoke the ''[[War Measures Act]]''.<ref name=Hopper/>}}<ref name=Hopper>{{citation| url=https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/what-does-the-governor-general-do-all-day| last=Hopper| first=Tristan| title=What does the Governor General do all day?| date=27 July 2021| newspaper=National Post| accessdate=15 March 2024}}</ref> The governor general regularly receives the [[minutes]] from cabinet meetings and any documents referred to in those minutes.<ref>{{harvnb| Government of Canada| 1970| p=153}}</ref> 
[[File:Tweedsmuir speech.jpg|thumb|left|[[John Buchan|Lord Tweedsmuir]] gives the [[Speech from the throne|Throne Speech]] at the opening of the third session of the [[18th Canadian Parliament]], 27 January 1938]]

The governor general also summons parliament, reads the [[speech from the throne]], and [[Prorogation in Canada|prorogues]] and [[Dissolution of parliament|dissolves]] parliament. The governor general grants [[royal assent]] in the king's name; legally, the governor general has three options: grant royal assent (making the bill a law), withhold royal assent (vetoing the bill), or reserve the bill for the signification of the king's pleasure (allowing the sovereign to personally grant or withhold assent).<ref>{{harvnb|Constitution Act|1867|loc=S. 55}}</ref> If the governor general withholds the king's assent, the sovereign may within two years [[Disallowance and reservation in Canada|disallow]] the bill, thereby annulling the law in question. No governor general has denied royal assent to a bill. Provincial viceroys, however, are able to reserve royal assent to provincial bills for the governor general, which was last invoked in 1961 by the [[Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan]].<ref>{{Harvnb| MacLeod| 2015| p=25}}</ref>

===Ceremonial role===
{{Further|Monarchy of Canada#Cultural role}}

With most constitutional functions lent to Cabinet, the governor general acts in a primarily ceremonial fashion. The governor general will host members of [[Canada's royal family]], as well as foreign royalty and heads of state, and will represent the {{Canadian monarch, current|title=~}} and country abroad on [[List of state and official visits by Canada|state visits to other nations]],<ref name=GGrole>{{cite web| url=http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=13288| last=Office of the Governor General of Canada| title=Governor General > Role and Responsibilities| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| access-date=2 June 2009}}</ref><ref name=Commons /> though the monarch's permission is necessary, via the prime minister, for the viceroy to leave Canada.<ref>{{Harvnb| George VI| 1947| loc=XIV}}</ref> Also as part of international relations, the governor general issues [[Letter of credence|letters of credence and of recall]] for Canadian [[ambassador]]s and [[High commissioner (Commonwealth)|high commissioners]] and receives the same from foreign ambassadors and other Commonwealth countries' high commissioners appointed to Canada.
[[File:The Governor General David Johnston greets more people on Canada Day (28014776516).jpg|thumb|Governor General David Johnston greeting a crowd during Canada Day celebrations in Ottawa, July 2016]]

The governor general is also tasked with fostering national unity and pride.<ref name=Boyce>{{Cite news|last=Boyce |first=Peter |year=2008 |publication-date=October 2009 |isbn=978-1-86287-700-9 |editor-last=Jackson |editor-first=Michael D. |title=The Senior Realms of the Queen > The Queen's Other Realms: The Crown and its Legacy in Australia, Canada and New Zealand |periodical=Canadian Monarchist News |volume=Autumn 2009 |issue=30 |page=10 |place=Sydney |publication-place=Toronto |publisher=Monarchist League of Canada |url=http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2009/Autumn_2009_CMN.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229100400/http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2009/Autumn_2009_CMN.pdf |archive-date=29 December 2009 |access-date=22 October 2009 }}</ref> Queen Elizabeth II stated in 1959, to then-Governor General Vincent Massey, "maintain[ing] the right relationship between the Crown and the people of Canada [is] the most important function among the many duties of the appointment which you have held with such distinction."<ref>{{citation| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0baizU0hFpIC| last=McCreery| first=Christopher| title=On Her Majesty's Service: Royal Honours and Recognition in Canada| page=54| publisher=Dundurn| year=2008| location=Toronto| isbn=978-1-4597-1224-9| access-date=11 November 2015}}</ref> One way in which this is carried out is travelling the country and meeting with Canadians from [[List of regions of Canada|all regions]] and [[ethnic groups in Canada]],<ref name=GGrole/> continuing the tradition begun in 1869 by Governor General [[John Young, 1st Baron Lisgar|the Lord Lisgar]].<ref>{{Harvnb| Hubbard| 1977| p=16}}</ref> The governor general will also induct individuals into the various [[Orders, decorations, and medals of Canada|national orders]] and present national medals and decorations. Similarly, the viceroy administers and distributes the [[Governor General's Awards]], and will also give out [[List of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada|awards associated with private organizations]], some of which are named for past governors general.<ref name=GGrole /> During a federal election, the governor general will curtail these public duties, so as not to appear as though they are involving themselves in political affairs.

Although the constitution of Canada states that the "Command-in-Chief of the Land and Naval Militia, and of all Naval and Military Forces, of and in Canada, is hereby declared to continue and be vested in the Queen,"<ref name=CA1867-15/> the governor general acts in {{Canadian monarch, current|genderp=~}} place as [[Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces|commander-in-chief of the Canadian Forces]] and is permitted through the 1947 letters patent to use the title ''Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada''.<ref name=GGCinC /><ref name=GVII /> The position technically involves issuing commands for Canadian troops, airmen, and sailors, but is predominantly a ceremonial role in which the viceroy will visit [[Canadian Forces base]]s across Canada and abroad to take part in military ceremonies, see troops off to and return from active duty, and encourage excellence and morale amongst the forces.<ref name=GGCinC /> The governor general also serves as honorary [[Colonel]] of three [[Household Division|household regiments]]: the [[Governor General's Horse Guards]], [[Governor General's Foot Guards]] and [[Canadian Grenadier Guards]]. This ceremonial position is directly under that of [[Colonel-in-Chief]], which is held by the {{Canadian monarch, current|title=~}}. Since 1910, the governor general was also always made the chief scout for Canada, which was renamed ''Chief Scout of Canada'' after 1946 and again in 2011 as ''[[Scouts Canada#Organizational structure|Patron Scout]]''.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.scouts.ca/ca/management-team/board-governors| title=About > Management Team > Board of Governors| publisher=Scouts Canada| access-date=2 March 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111029155917/http://www.scouts.ca/ca/management-team/board-governors| archive-date=29 October 2011}}</ref>