Government of Ontario
Encyclopedia
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada. Its powers and structure are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867
Constitution Act, 1867
The Constitution Act, 1867 , is a major part of Canada's Constitution. The Act created a federal dominion and defines much of the operation of the Government of Canada, including its federal structure, the House of Commons, the Senate, the justice system, and the taxation system...
.
In modern Canadian use, the term "government" referred broadly to the cabinet of the day, elected from the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
and the non-political staff within each provincial department or agency – that is, the civil service. The civil service that manages and delivers government policies, programs, and services is called the Ontario Public Service.
The province
Provinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
of Ontario is governed by a unicameral legislature, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, which operates in the Westminster system
Westminster System
The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
of government. The political party that wins the largest number of seats in the legislature normally forms the government, and the party's leader becomes premier
Premier of Ontario
The Premier of Ontario is the first Minister of the Crown for the Canadian province of Ontario. The Premier is appointed as the province's head of government by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, and presides over the Executive council, or Cabinet. The Executive Council Act The Premier of Ontario...
of the province, i.e., the head of the government
Head of government
Head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled prime minister, chief minister, premier, etc...
.
Due to the location of the Ontario Legislature on the grounds of Queen's Park, the Ontario government is frequently referred to by the metonym
Metonymy
Metonymy is a figure of speech used in rhetoric in which a thing or concept is not called by its own name, but by the name of something intimately associated with that thing or concept...
"Queen's Park".
Awards and recognition
The Ontario Public Service was named one of "Canada's Top 100 EmployersCanada's Top 100 Employers
Canada's Top 100 Employers is an annual competition that recognizes the best places in Canada to work. First held in 1999, the project aims to single out the employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional working conditions and progressive human resources policies. Winners are...
" by Maclean's
Maclean's
Maclean's is a Canadian weekly news magazine, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events.-History:Founded in 1905 by Toronto journalist/entrepreneur Lt.-Col. John Bayne Maclean, a 43-year-old trade magazine publisher who purchased an advertising agency's in-house...
newsmagazine in 2009, and again in 2010. The Ontario Public Service was also named one of Greater Toronto's Top Employers
Greater Toronto's Top Employers
Greater Toronto's Top Employers is an annual competition that recognizes the best places to work in the Greater Toronto Area...
by the Toronto Star in 2009, and was named one of "Canada's Best Diversity Employers
Canada's Top 100 Employers
Canada's Top 100 Employers is an annual competition that recognizes the best places in Canada to work. First held in 1999, the project aims to single out the employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional working conditions and progressive human resources policies. Winners are...
" in 2009 by Bank of Montreal
Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario
The functions of the Sovereign, Elizabeth IIElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
, Queen of Canada
Monarchy in Canada
The monarchy of Canada is the core of both Canada's federalism and its Westminster-style parliamentary democracy, being the foundation of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the Canadian government and each provincial government...
, and known in Ontario as the Queen in Right of Ontario
Monarchy in Ontario
By the arrangements of the Canadian federation, Canada's monarchy operates in Ontario as the core of the province's Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. As such, the Crown within Ontario's jurisdiction is referred to as the Crown in Right of Ontario, Her Majesty in Right of Ontario, or the...
, are exercised by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
The Lieutenant Governor of Ontario is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada and resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United...
. The Lieutenant Governor is appointed by the Governor General of Canada
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of Canada
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
, in consultation with the Premier of Ontario
Premier of Ontario
The Premier of Ontario is the first Minister of the Crown for the Canadian province of Ontario. The Premier is appointed as the province's head of government by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, and presides over the Executive council, or Cabinet. The Executive Council Act The Premier of Ontario...
.
Executive powers
The executive powers in the province lies with the Premier of OntarioPremier of Ontario
The Premier of Ontario is the first Minister of the Crown for the Canadian province of Ontario. The Premier is appointed as the province's head of government by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, and presides over the Executive council, or Cabinet. The Executive Council Act The Premier of Ontario...
and the cabinet.
Legislative powers
The legislative powers in the provinces lies in the Legislative Assembly of OntarioLegislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
. The Premier and the cabinet are also members of the legislature.
Budget
For the 2010-2011 fiscal year, the Ontario government plans to spend , including a deficit of .See also
- Politics of OntarioPolitics of OntarioThe Province of Ontario is governed by a unicameral legislature, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, which operates in the Westminster system of government...
- Ontario general election, 2007Ontario general election, 2007The Ontario general election of 2007 was held on October 10, 2007 to elect members of the 39th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada. The Liberals under Dalton McGuinty won the election with a majority government, winning 71 out of a possible 107 seats with 42.2% of the popular...
- Cabinet of Ontario
- Association of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of OntarioAssociation of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of OntarioThe Association of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of Ontario is a trade union representing public sector employees in the Province of Ontario, Canada....
- Ontario Public Service Employees UnionOntario Public Service Employees UnionThe Ontario Public Service Employees Union is a trade union that represents about 120,000 employees in the broader public service of the Province of Ontario, Canada. The current president of OPSEU is Warren "Smokey" Thomas. Prior to Thomas OPSEU was headed by Leah Casselman. Casselman was the...