Higher Education

Canadian Democracy, A Concise Introduction - Chapter 5

Instructions: For each question, click on the radio button beside your answer. When you have completed the entire quiz, click the “Submit my answers” button at the bottom of the page to receive your results.

Question 1:

A constitution is “fundamental” because all other laws must conform to the constitution in terms of what?
a) How they are made and their style
b) How they are made and their substance
c) How they are celebrated and their substance
d) How they are preserved and their substance
e) How they are interpreted by political scientists.

Question 2:

Which two sets of relations are dealt with by Canada’s Constitution?
a) The relations between the public and private sectors, and between the different components of the state
b) The relations between the state and the environment, and between the different components of the state
c) The relations between the citizen and the state, and between the state and the environment
d) The relations between the citizen and the state, and between the different components of the state
e) None of the above

Question 3:

The written documents and common law comprise what?
a) Constitutional law
b) Unwritten conventions
c) Civil law
d) Written conventions
e) Tradition

Question 4:

Which of the following is not a constitutional function?
a) Representation
b) Succession
c) Power
d) Rights
e) All of the above are constitutional functions.

Question 5:

What does the “principle of federalism” mean?
a) The provinces are subordinate to the federal government and the federal government is not dependent on the provinces for the exercise of its powers.
b) The provinces are not subordinate to the federal government and the federal government is not dependent on the provinces for the exercise of its powers.
c) The provinces are superior to the federal government and the federal government is dependent on the provinces for the exercise of its powers.
d) Some provinces are superior and others are subordinate to the federal government and the federal government is dependent on some provinces for the exercise of its powers.
e) None of the above

Question 6:

Why was there no explicit indication in the pre-Charter Constitution that it was democratic?
a) The founders intended to implement a Charter at a later date.
b) The founders intended to establish a dictatorship until Canada was fully established as a country spanning from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.
c) The representative and democratic of Canada’s political institutions was assumed.
d) Both A and B
e) None of the above

Question 7:

What does “parliamentary supremacy” mean?
a) All government action must be in conformity with the Constitution.
b) Parliament can override laws passed by provincial legislatures.
c) Parliament can override the Constitution in any way it chooses.
d) Parliament can override all actions taken by the Governor General.
e) None of the above

Question 8:

The recognition of minority rights was included in which document?
a) The Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 1982
b) The Royal Proclamation, 1763
c) The Quebec Act, 1774
d) Both A and C
e) All of the above

Question 9:

What has the inclusion of the various rights and freedoms in the Charter meant?
a) Groups are more likely to access the juridical arm of government in the protection of their rights.
b) Groups are more secure.
c) Groups are less likely to access the judicial arm of government in the protection of their rights.
d) Both A and B
e) Both B and C

Question 10:

Which of the following is not a fundamental freedom?
a) Freedom of expression
b) Freedom of power
c) Freedom of assembly
d) Freedom of the media
e) Freedom of association

Question 11:

Which of the following is not a basic democratic right enshrined in the Canadian Constitution?
a) The House of Commons and provincial legislatures must meet once per year.
b) Every citizen has the right to elected representation.
c) Every citizen has the right to campaign.
d) Every citizen has the right to vote.
e) There is a five-year limit on the life of the House of Commons and legislatures.

Question 12:

What has been the result of the entrenchment of legal rights in the constitution?
a) The courts became much bolder in striking down parts of the law.
b) The courts became more reluctant to strike down parts of the law.
c) Parliament became less reluctant to pass laws that limit the legal rights of the accused, convicted criminals, and immigrants.
d) Provincial legislatures became less reluctant to pass laws that limited the legal rights of the accused, convicted criminals, and immigrants.
e) None of the above

Question 13:

Which of the following is true about equality rights as enshrined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms?
a) They provide individuals with grounds for redress if they believe the law discriminates against them and provide a basis for laws that treat different groups of people differently.
b) They provide individuals with grounds for redress if they believe the law discriminates against them and deliberately excludes the basis for laws that treat different groups of people differently.
c) They prevent individuals from seeking redress if they belief that the law discriminates against them and provide a basis for laws that treat different groups of people differently.
d) They prevent individuals from seeking redress if they believe that the law discriminates against them and deliberately excludes the bases for laws that treat different groups of people differently.
e) None of the above

Question 14:

Who exercises the powers of the Privy Council?
a) The Governor General
b) Past members of cabinet
c) The Queen
d) Past prime ministers
e) Present members of cabinet

Question 15:

As a constitutional principle, what does responsible government mean?
a) That the prime minster and cabinet require the confidence of the unelected Governor General in order to govern
b) That the prime minster and cabinet require the confidence of the elected provincial legislatures in order to govern
c) That the prime minister and cabinet require the confidence of the unelected Senate in order to govern
d) That the prime minister and cabinet require the confidence of the elected House of Commons in order to govern
e) None of the above

Question 16:

Party discipline is a tradition of British Parliamentary government that requires what?
a) Political parties to report their plans to the Governor General
b) MPs of a party to adhere to rules of conduct in the legislature
c) MPs of a party to vote as a unified block in the legislature
d) Political parties to disclose their spending to the public
e) MPs of a party to attend Question Period.

Question 17:

What does ministerial responsibility entail?
a) The obligation of opposition MPs to explain and defend their criticisms of government
b) The obligation of the Governor General to explain and defend policies and actions carried out by the government
c) The obligation of a representative of a ministry to explain and defend policies and actions carried out in its name
d) The obligation of a cabinet minister to explain and defend policies and actions carried out in his/her name
e) None of the above

Question 18:

What does judicial independence mean?
a) Judges are to be free from interference by the cabinet in their decision-making.
b) Judges are to be free from any and all interference in their decision-making.
c) Judges are to be free from any and all interference in their decision-making, except by the Governor General.
d) Judges are to be free from any and all interference in their decision-making, except by the prime minister.
e) None of the above

Question 19:

The superiority of the House of Commons over the Senate is reinforced by which two constitutional conventions?
a) The selection of the cabinet and the legislative process
b) The selection of the prime minister and the legislative process
c) The selection of judges and the judicial decision-making process
d) The selection of senators and the judicial decision-making process
e) None of the above

Question 20:

Statism refers to which set of biases?
a) A strong political executive and a population distrustful towards those in power
b) A weak political executive and a population deferential towards those in power
c) Strong civic engagement and a population distrustful towards those in power
d) Weak civic engagement and a population deferential towards those in power
e) None of the above

Question 21:

The 1982 Constitution Act did not do which of the following?
a) Establish formal mechanisms for changing the constitution
b) Transform the constitution from a set of British laws into Canadian constitutional law
c) Enshrine all constitutional conventions into constitutional law
d) Entrench the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in the constitution
e) Both B and C

Question 22:

Which procedure for amending the Constitution is required in order to reduce or eliminate certain powers, rights, or privileges of provincial governments or legislatures?
a) General (ss. 38, 42)
b) Unanimous consent (s. 41)
c) Ottawa and one or more provinces (s. 43)
d) Ottawa or a province acting alone (s. 44, 45)
e) None of the above

Question 23:

Which procedure for amending the Constitution is required in order to alter the boundaries between provinces?
a) General (ss. 38, 42)
b) Unanimous consent (s. 41)
c) Ottawa and one or more provinces (s. 43)
d) Ottawa or a province acting alone (s. 44, 45)
e) None of the above

Question 24:

Which of the following was not one of the changes proposed by the Meech Lake Accord?
a) Constitutional recognition of a provincial right for a province to control its own health-care policy
b) Constitutional recognition of a provincial right for a province to control its own immigration policy
c) Changes to constitutional amendment procedures and categories
d) Constitutional entrenchment of a provincial right to opt out of federal–provincial shared-cost programs, and to be reimbursed for running their own parallel programs
e) Provincial power to nominate justices to the Supreme Court of Canada

Question 25:

Which of the following was not one of the questions asked in the reference submitted by Ottawa to the Supreme Court regarding Quebec separation?
a) Under the Constitution of Canada, can Quebec unilaterally secede from Canada?
b) Does Quebec’s international status make it likely that a declaration of independence by Quebec would be recognized by countries such as France?
c) Does international law give Quebec the right to secede from Canada?
d) If there is a conflict between international law and the Canadian Constitution regarding the separation of Quebec, which takes precedence?
e) All of the above questions were asked.

Question 26:

A constitution is a necessary condition for democratic politics.
a) True
b) False

Question 27:

A constitution can include unwritten components.
a) True
b) False

Question 28:

Constitutional conventions are enforceable by the courts.
a) True
b) False

Question 29:

Representation by population is based on the principle of “representation by the people, for the people.”
a) True
b) False

Question 30:

Democratic constitutions must establish the right of citizens to choose their government.
a) True
b) False

Question 31:

Constitutions can be applied outside of the territory of the country for which they were written.
a) True
b) False

Question 32:

Some of what is included in the written constitution would, if acted on, likely result in a constitutional crisis.
a) True
b) False

Question 33:

Canada’s constitution is less lengthy and detailed than the United States Constitution.
a) True
b) False

Question 34:

The constitutionalism principle gives government the latitude to exact any law provided that it does not trespass into jurisdictional areas of another level of government.
a) True
b) False

Question 35:

Mobility rights were not explicitly enshrined in the constitution before 1982.
a) True
b) False

Question 36:

The language rights entrenched in the Constitution Act 1867 do not include the right of Anglophones and Francophones to have their children educated in their mother tongue, where numbers warrant.
a) True
b) False

Question 37:

The separation of powers principle ensures that the federal government and the provinces each possess exclusive jurisdiction over certain matters.
a) True
b) False

Question 38:

Limited reforms to a constitution result from a process called coup d’état.
a) True
b) False

Question 39:

Constitutional change can also occur through the gradual evolution of principles and practices.
a) True
b) False

Question 40:

Canada’s founders did not even discuss a procedure for making major changes to the constitution, such as an amending formula.
a) True
b) False