Opinion: The monarchy in Canada is more than whoever is sitting on the throne

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Queen Elizabeth II has died. After 70 years as the Queen of the United Kingdom as well as
Canada, New Zealand and a host of other countries, her son, Charles has become the reigning
monarch. The displays of affection and grief at the passing of the 96-year-old Queen are sincere.

Elizabeth was a constant presence in our lives. She embodied what the Constitution Act 1867
referred to as “peace, order and good government” — the signature virtues of the Canadian
political system. Now that role has been passed to her son.

There are many questions about the new King Charles III. And there are many legitimate questions about the future of this ancient institution. But it should be understood — and Elizabeth seems to have grasped this essential fact — that the monarch or Crown is much more than one individual or even the current group of Royal Family members.

It is important for Canadians to remember that Canada is a constitutional monarchy and we have a connection to the Crown which has existed since the beginning of Canada. To alter this relationship would be very difficult.

Critics of the monarchy now question its place in our current social and political world. They
react with anger at the behaviour of some of the members of the Royal Family. Others believe
that the Crown represents a colonial past which exploited and oppressed peoples around the
globe.

These questions of personal behaviour and the subjugation of peoples are being addressed
and will continue to animate political discussion in Canada and other places which were once
colonies of the United Kingdom. There is no excuse for these wrongs of the colonial past in
Canada or any other former member of the British empire.

But to view the Crown as no more than these terrible injustices is to miss its role in Canada’s legal, constitutional and political system. The Crown is not made up simply of the individuals who inhabit certain positions at a particular moment in history. It is a buffer against the seemingly endless array of political leaders who would mangle, intentionally or otherwise, our constitutional, legal and political order.

It should be noted that the monarch or the monarch’s representatives in Canada do not participate in policy debates. That is left to the politicians. The role of the monarchy is largely, but not entirely, symbolic.

While Charles III is now the King of Canada, the United Kingdom has not been able to legislate for Canada since the Statute of Westminster in 1931 and the last formal constitutional link ended with the Constitution Act 1982. Simply put, Canada is in no way constitutionally connected to the United Kingdom other than a shared monarch.

In Canada, the governor general is the monarch’s representative in Canada while the lieutenant-governors have that role in the provinces. Most of the duties of the Crown’s representative are
ceremonial. They open Parliament and legislative sessions with a speech from the throne. They
attend ceremonial openings for schools and other public buildings. And they present awards such as the Governor General’s Literary Awards, educational scholarships, awards for bravery and the performing arts.

The governor general and the lieutenant-governors as the head of state swear in members of the executive council — the cabinet — at the federal and provincial levels. As well, the governor general is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The Crown is the centre of
Canada’s constitutional, political and social order.

As the formal head of state, the governor-general represents the entire country and serves as a
unifying institution above the partisan politics of the day. The Crown is the embodiment of the
state at both the national level and in the provinces and territories as well as on the international
stage. It is there to ensure that a government is in place and, on the very rare occasion, act to
protect the Constitution.

While the governor general and the lieutenant-governors are critical to the ceremonial aspects of Canadian political life, their roles are not just symbolic. The governor general has, for instance, acted to ensure that the various constitutional conventions in Canada are respected. In the provinces, the lieutenant-governors have, in recent years, responded to various political and
constitutional crises to make certain a government is in place and that no government has
betrayed its responsibilities. This role cannot be underestimated.

The Crown permeates our legal system. The state — the provincial or federal government — acts in the right of the Crown. That is to say, the state acts for people and institutions that encompass an entire jurisdiction. It provides a legitimacy to the actions of the state in civil and criminal proceedings. It is not the amorphous idea of the people — and this can be a very select few — who make and enforce the laws. The Crown represents the entire state apparatus and citizens in a nonpartisan manner to provide a legitimacy that would not otherwise exist.

The governor general and the lieutenant-governors do not participate in policy debates. They
will sign into law all acts of the legislature, even those with which they profoundly disagree,
provided they fall within the constitutional parameters of the federal and provincial governments.
They cannot take exception to the policies of the government of the day.

Nevertheless, if a provincial government were to pass a piece of legislation that violated the Constitution in some manner, such as initiating a provincial separation from Canada, the lieutenant-governor would be obliged to set the act aside for consideration by the courts and the federal government.

The alternative to the Crown is an elected president or some other titular head of state who would perform these same duties. In order to become a republic and sever all connection with the monarchy, there would need to be a constitutional amendment. This constitutional amendment would necessitate a resolution through all 10 provincial legislatures and both houses of Parliament. This is not about to happen. If Prince Edward Island or Alberta or Ontario refused to do so, there would be no amendment. As well, opening up the Constitution would lead to a host of other demands from the provinces and various groups. This is a Pandora’s box which is best left closed.

There are numerous issues facing Canada. The Queen’s several representatives have taken a lead on many of them. For example, Indigenous reconciliation has been directly addressed by several governors general at the national level. And, lieutenant-governors across the country have focused on environmental issues. Their activities bring attention to these problems without the accusation of partisanship.

The Crown in Canada serves a serious purpose. It is at the centre of our legal, constitutional and political order. The King’s representative in Canada has an important role in leading Indigenous reconciliation. Who better to atone for the past mistakes of the Canadian state than an Indigenous Governor General? And how arrogant are we to think we can replace a system that has been in place for a millennium and which has worked, with admittedly a few mistakes, to provide both a symbolic and important part of our constitutional, legal and political order. To eliminate the monarchy would be virtue signalling. In an age of populist politics, social media and the continuing decline of public institutions, the monarchy and all its ceremony is comforting in its traditions. It helps maintain Canada as the “peaceable kingdom.”

Keith Brownsey is a professor of political science at Mount Royal University.