Facts about Canada
Canada consists of a rather large landmass compared to other countries, but most of it is uninhabited. Following are facts about Canada you need to know.
Facts about Canada
Canada is a constitutional monarchy with a federal system, a parliamentary government, and strong democratic traditions. The 1982 Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees basic rights in many areas. Queen Elizabeth II, as Queen of Canada, serves as a symbol of the nation's unity. She appoints a governor general, who serves as her representative in Canada, on the advice of the prime minister of Canada, usually for a 5-year term. The prime minister is the leader of the political party in power and is the head of the cabinet. The cabinet remains in office as long as it retains majority support in the House of Commons on major issues.
Canada's parliament consists of an elected House of Commons and an appointed Senate. Legislative power rests with the 308-member Commons, which is elected for a period not to exceed 5 years. The prime minister may ask the governor general to dissolve parliament and call new elections at any time during that period. Vacancies in the 105-member Senate, whose members serve until the age of 75, are filled by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister. Recent constitutional initiatives have sought unsuccessfully to strengthen the Senate by making it elective and assigning it a greater regional representational role.
Criminal law, based largely on British law, is uniform throughout the nation and is under federal jurisdiction. Civil law is also based on the common law of England, except in Quebec, which has retained its own civil code patterned after that of France. Justice is administered by federal, provincial, and municipal courts.
Each province is governed by a premier and a single, elected legislative chamber. A lieutenant-governor appointed by the governor general represents the Crown in each province.
The election in April 2003 of Premier Jean Charest and the Liberal Party of Quebec to govern Canada’s second most populous province was a significant victory for the federal government, which over the years has struggled, under the threat of secession, to accommodate the aspirations of the French-speaking province. Though for now most Quebec voters seem to appreciate the economic benefits of remaining in the confederation and prefer seeking to advance their separate francophone identity with that confederation, 47% of Quebec voters still identify themselves as desiring "sovereignty," although the precise meaning of the term in a Quebec context remains ambiguous. Anger over the "sponsorship" program has reignited talk of sovereignty and increased support for the separatist Bloc Quebecois and Parti Quebecois, while seriously damaging support for provincial Liberals. However, it is too early to predict how this will play out in the next Quebec provincial election, not likely to be held before 2007 or 2008.
Facts about Canada – Hard Facts
The official name of the country is simply Canada. It covers an area of landmass over 3.8 million square miles in size and is the second largest country by square mileage in the world. The Capital is Ottawa with a population of over 1.1 million people. Other major cities include Toronto with 4.8 million residents, Montreal with just under 3.5 million people and the beautiful city of Vancouver with a population of roughly 2 million people. With its far northern location, Canada is a country with a cool climate. The farther north one goes, the colder it becomes until artic conditions apply.
Citizens of Canada are known as Canadians. The most recent study put the total population at more than 32.4 million Canadians. Of this figure, ethnicity breaks down into a wide variety of groups with no group forming a majority. Specifically, Canadians are comprised of 28 percent British-Irish heritage, 23 percent French, 15 percent general European and a whopping 26 percent are classified as mixed.
Religious preferences share the break down found in ethnicity. 44 percent of Canadians claim the Roman Catholic faith as their own, while 29 percent are Protestant. Other Christian and Muslim denominations are claimed by roughly 8 percent of the population.
English and French are the languages spoken in Canada. Literacy rates are 99 percent. Average life expectancy for a Canadian man is 77 years while a Canadian woman will live to 82 years of age on average.
Often overshadowed by its neighbor to the north, these facts about Canada reveal a country more than able to stand on its own merits.
