Canada is huge territory - the second largest in the world - and understandably operates a federal political system. This divides governmental responsibilities between the federal government and the ten provinces. The key to understanding Canadian politics is an appreciation of the complex interplay of power between the federal centre and the provinces.
The provinces are Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Québec and Saskatchewan. All the provincial legislatures are unicameral and operate in parliamentary fashion similar to the House of Commons at federal level. As with federal elections, the voting system is first-past-the-post.
Canada's three territories - the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon - also have legislatures, but these are not sovereign and have fewer constitutional responsibilities than the provinces and some structural differences.
The 10 provinces and three territories come together in the Council of the Federation, the creation of which was announced in December 2003 in Charlottetown. The Council was created by Premiers because "they believe it is important for provinces and territories to play a leadership role in revitalizing the Canadian federation and building a more constructive and cooperative federal system".
A constant tension between the federal centre and the provinces is the desire by the provinces for a greater share of the revenues from federal taxes.
A more particular tension is between the French-speaking province of Québec where there is a significant separatist sentiment and all the other English-speaking provinces. This situation was aggravated in September 2012 with the election of a minority Parti Québécois administration in Québec on just 32% of the vote.
CONCLUSION
I have visited the legislatures of Britain, Canada and the United States and, while Canada is geographically adjacent to the USA, the Canadian parliament has the look and feel of the British model and not the American one. On the other hand, the political systems of the Canadian provinces have many parallels with those of the American states.
Canadian politics will always be massively influenced by two key factors: one internal, once external.
The internal factor is the balance of power between the legislatures: that is, the relationship between the federal centre and the provinces generally and between English-speaking Canada and French-speaking Canada more specifically. Neo-conservatives want to restrict the role of the federal government and Québec separatists want the province to stand alone.
The external factor is the relationship between Canada and the United States, especially on economic and trading issues but sometimes (especially at times of international crisis) also on more geo-political issues. The USA has been described - by a Canadian - as "Canada's best friend whether we like it or not".
Politically Canada is one of the most respected nations in the world. It has a mature and stable system of democracy that recognises the rights of minorities in the nation and has a vibrant civil society (including a lively trade union movement), while externally it uses its diplomatic power - in contrast to the economic and military power of its neighbour - to influence constructively international relations and agreements.
The General Election of May 2011 was seismic in its outcomes:
Therefore, Canada is now in uncharted territory in its federal politics. The uncertainty was only increased when, only months after his spectacular election success, NDP leader Jack Layton died of cancer.
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