Responsible government in the Dominions: Responsible government in the Dominions

Responsible government in the Dominions (Vol. 1)

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Multivolume work

Identifikator:: 1896933912

Document type:: Multivolume work

Author:: Keith, Arthur Berriedale http://d-nb.info/gnd/119086794

Title:: Responsible government in the Dominions

Place of publication:: Oxford

Publisher:: Clarendon Press

Year of publication:: 1912-

Collection:: Economics Books

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Volume

Identifikator:: 1896934455

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-236504

Document type:: Volume

Author:: Keith, Arthur Berriedale http://d-nb.info/gnd/119086794

Title:: Responsible government in the Dominions

Volume count:: Vol. 1

Place of publication:: Oxford

Publisher:: Clarendon Pr.

Year of publication:: 1912

Scope:: LI, 568 Seiten

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Chapter

Document type:: Multivolume work

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Part II. The executive Government

Collection:: Economics Books

180 THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT [PART II is passive; he refuses action, and thus forces ministers sither to resign or give way. - But if ministers resign and do not give way—and of course normally over any matter of importance the Ministry is anable to give way, for its supporters would not approve such action—then the Governor must be prepared to find other ad- visers in every case where the action is taken as head of the Dominion Government and not under Imperial instructions. As was said to the Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia in 1846.1 it was impossible to carry on the Government of Canada except with the will of the people, and therefore, if the ministers whom the Governor has refused to accept have the ear of the people, he must yield or go, and a sensible Governor will, bearing this in mind, remember that his duty is only to appeal to the verdict of the people when he thinks that on the whole he will secure it—that is, when the Ministry are not really in touch with the wishes of the people. It is a complete mistake to suppose that the Governor is entitled to refuse advice because he does not approve the actions of his ministers and thinks that he may have a good chance of getting a majority for the Opposition if he refuses their advice ; his duty is not to his own conscience, but to the people of the Dominion which he governs, and he should exe- cute that duty independently of every other consideration. The normal form of the refusal to accept ministerial advice is when a Ministry beaten in Parliament, or which is losing its hold on Parliament, asks for a dissolution in order that it may strengthen its hand in the country.? Now the Imperial practice in this regard is, of course, that the minister receives a dissolution when he asks for it. There is in favour of this view the most important authority, and the expressions of opinion which have been made on the other side from time to time are hardly authoritative. It is indeed clear that the refusal of a dissolution is much too dangerous a course for the Crown to take ; it at once reduces the Crown, however Parl. Pap., H. C. 621, 1848, pp. 7, 8. Cf. Hansard, ciii. 1262-89. * A Governor cannot dissolve except on advice, if for no other reason than that he could not without advice arrange the machinery fora generalelection.

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