François Rocher

New trends in Canadian federalism

Introduction, Fran ois Rocher and Miriam Smith Part One: Constitutional Developments and Canadian Political Identity Chapter 1: The Four Dimensions of Canadian Federalism, Fran ois Rocher and Miriam Smith Chapter 2: The Constitutional Debate and Beyond, Jennifer Smith Chapter 3: Executive Federalism: Beggar Thy Neighbour?, Kathy Brock Chapter 4: Conceiving Diversity: Dualism, Multiculturalism, and Multinationalism, Kenneth McRoberts Chapter 5: The Law of Federalism: Judicial Review and the Division of Powers, Gerald Baier Chapter 6: Aboriginal Governance and Canadian Federalism: A To-Do List for Canada, Frances Abele and Michael J. Prince Chapter 7: Treaty Federalism: An Indigenous Vision of Canadian Federalisms, Kiera L. Ladner Part Two: Public Policy and the Division of Powers Chapter 8: Neo-Liberal Trade Policy and Canadian Federalism Revisited, Ian Robinson Chapter 9: Canadian Federalism and Active Labour Market Policy, Rodney Haddow Chapter 10: Social Assistance and Canadian Federalism, Gerard W. Boychuk Chapter 11: Health Care and Canadian Federalism, Antonia Maioni and Miriam Smith Chapter 12: Passing the Environmental Buck, Kathryn Harrison Chapter 13: Regional Development: A Policy for All Seasons and All Regions, Donald J. Savoie Chapter 14: Canadian Federalism and Federation in Comparative Perspective, Michael Burgess Contributors

The Presence (or Lack Thereof) of a Federal Culture in Canada: The Views of Canadians

Canada may be among the oldest federations in the world but this says nothing about the strength of federalism in Canada. Based on the results of public opinion polling and roundtables with provincial government officials, this article argues that the political culture of federalism in Canada is quite weak. With the notable exception of Québec, Canadians in general and the provincial government officials who work on their behalf demonstrate little understanding of the basic logic of federalism or, when they do, are willing to trade off federalism values against concerns about efficiency, private goods, and meeting the needs of clients and consumers.

Age, political knowledge and electoral turnout: a case study of Canada

This article attempts to explain declining levels of voter turnout among young adults in terms of decreasing levels of political knowledge. Using data from a representative national survey of the Canadian electorate conducted in 2007, we find through descriptive and inferential statistics that younger individuals are more politically illiterate than older generations by a margin of 20–30 percentage points. We also detect that this generational political knowledge gap accounts for approximately half of the turnout gap that exists between voters in their early 20s and voters in their 50s. Our results further demonstrate that eliminating the knowledge gap would significantly increase turnout among young voters by 15 percentage points.

Langue de publication des politologues francophones du Canada

This study presents the results of a survey of Canadas francophone political scientists on the language of knowledge dissemination in political science. Although almost all francophone political scientists agreed with the statement that English has become the lingua franca of political science, French continues to be a significant part of the dissemination of knowledge. However, there are important variations in language usage depending on the language in which the dissertation was written, the disciplinary sub-field within the discipline, and academic rank. Language choices are largely motivated by the desire to reach the widest possible audience while garnering recognition from peers.

(Mis)recognition in Catalunya and Quebec: The Politics of Judicial Containment

The issue of recognition of diversity in multinational states means that, in certain exceptional circumstances, political debates are transported into the judicial arena. The courts are thus required to define and circumscribe the political developments that are most able to maintain political stability while containing, to a certain extent, pressures from minority nations. In doing so, not only do they contribute to refocusing the debate on the conditions of acceptability of the claims of these minorities, but they also present, in a generally coherent way, the manner in which the majority group perceives itself. The recent Spanish Constitutional Court decision of June 2010, regarding the constitutionality of the Catalan Statute of Autonomy of 2006, has generated a serious crisis in the constitutional accommodation of Catalunya within Spain. The impact of this decision and the debates that have followed echo the significance of and discussion surrounding the Canadian Supreme Court’s decision on the Quebec secession reference in 1998, highlighting again the fundamental role of the Supreme/Constitutional Courts in the accommodation of national minorities in multinational polities.