From the moment Stephen Harper decided to shut down Parliament, he has used Parliamentary history to justify his decision. A closer look at the facts, however, shows just how unusual Mr. Harper’s prorogation gambit really is when compared to recent Parliamentary practice.
Stephen Harper said shutting down Parliament is “routine,” citing the historical average of 3.6 times per Parliament – even though prorogation has become half as frequent since the 1960s.
Mr. Harper compared the length of the most recent session of Parliament, at 128 days, to the historical average – when Parliamentary sessions have become considerably longer since the 1960s.
Finally, Mr. Harper compared the length of the current Parliamentary shut down, at 63 days, to the historical average of 151 days – when the time between sessions has shrunk dramatically since the 1960s.
Mr. Harper’s claims are put into proper context when compared to four distinct periods in Canada’s Parliamentary history:
Confederation to 1940: Sessions of Parliament were short as government business was limited and MPs had to travel long distances by horseback, boat or train to serve in Ottawa. The House of Commons had no set calendar, and special adjournment motions had to be passed for the House to take a day off for a statutory holiday. Prorogation was the only tool available to adjourn the House for the long periods of time when Parliament wasn’t sitting.
Number of Parliaments: 18 (1st to 18th Parliament)
Number of sessions: 79
Average number of sessions per Parliament: 4.4
Total sitting days: 6,055
Average number of sitting days per session: 77
Total prorogued days between sessions (not counting elections): 14,639
Average length of prorogation per session: 185 days
1940 to 1964: During the Second World War and Canada’s post-war years, more government business was required, resulting in sessions of longer sitting duration. The length of time between sessions shrank considerably, even though prorogation remained the only tool for adjourning the House and was still quite common.
Number of Parliaments: 8 (19th to 26th Parliament)
Number of sessions: 33
Average number of sessions per Parliament: 4.1
Total sitting days: 3,259
Average number of sitting days per session: 99
Total prorogued days between sessions (not counting elections): 1,908
Average length of prorogation per session: 58 days
1964 to 1982: In 1964, the Standing Orders of the House were amended to specify specific days, usually statutory holidays, during each session when Parliament didn’t sit. Prorogation grew far less common, and it became regular practice to start the next session of Parliament the day after the House was prorogued. With increasingly large amounts of government business, Parliament sat even longer to complete a session.
Number of Parliaments: 6 (27th to 32nd Parliament)
Number of sessions: 15
Average number of sessions per Parliament: 2.5
Total sitting days: 2,872
Average number of sitting days per session: 191
Total prorogued days between sessions (not counting elections): 13
Average length of prorogation per session: 1 day
1982 to present: In 1982, the House adopted the parliamentary calendar, which provided a fixed schedule of both sittings and adjournments and allowed for more effective use Parliament’s time and even less frequent prorogations.
Number of Parliaments: 8 (33rd to 40th Parliament)
Number of sessions: 17
Average number of sessions per Parliament: 2.1
Total sitting days: 3,111
Average number of sitting days per session: 183
Total prorogued days between sessions (not counting elections): 361
Average length of prorogation per session: 21 days
