The Crown's powers originated from a "whole bundle of ancient privileges". As the concept of democracy took root, some of these powers were limited or abolished and others were transformed into written laws. These powers are still mostly unwritten, with the exception of the right to summon and dissolve Parliament (Constitution Act). As such, these powers are vulnerable to parliamentary restriction.
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Those powers which still remain with the Crown and its representatives that are used without the authority of an Act of Parliament, are referred to as the royal prerogative. These prerogative powers if studied are impressive, and are discussed later. However in a democracy, these powers exercised with the advice of the government of the day. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The Queen still maintains a minimal right to decide on certain symbolical honours, such as the Royal Victorian or the Victoria Cross, both of which the Governor-General does not have a right cannot proclaim.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Practically, the royal prerogative provides an effective mechanism for the activities of the government that would otherwise have no legal basis. Unlike most countries, Canada's Constitution has provisions that are not dictated by rules set in a single document. The Constitution of 1867 has no mention of the cabinet, the Prime Minister, nor any mention of 'responsible' government which is the basis of Canadian democracy. It is the mechanism of the royal prerogative that these offices and institutions found their source; from it the Prime Minister receives his power and the authority.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The Crown (through the Governor-General or Lieutenant-Governors) has an obligation to see that Canada and its provinces have a Prime Minister or Premier (both positions can be called first ministers). Normally this is taken care of by democratic elections, and the Governor-General and Lieutenant- Governor 'sends' the leader of the party commanding a majority in the elected house to form a government. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]Should a first minister die in office, the Crown must find a replacement (a Prime Minister or new political party) as soon as possible. Should a first minister resign, or loses his majority it is the Crown that must send for the person able to command the majority. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The reverse of this responsibility is that for dismissal. In extreme circumstances, the representative of the Crown could resort to dismissal when a government has violated the Constitution, or has failed to perform its duties, such as providing a budget or refusing to summon Parliament.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The other instances in which the Crown can retain the personal discretion is the dissolution of Parliament. Again, in a democratic age, the Queen and her representatives cannot force an unwilling Prime Minister to dissolve the Parliament. But in certain cases, the Crown has the moral authority to dissolve Parliament without the Prime Minister's willing. Such an instance would be if the government won an election by means of corruption or fraud. The royal prerogative can also be used, with justification when the government refuses to resign after an election defeat or after a vote of non-confidence, to dismiss the government.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]In today's democratic world, the royal prerogative is rarely used. In fact, the last time the royal prerogative was used, was the King-Byng dispute of 1926. In this instance, Governor-General Lord Byng refused to dissolve Mackenzie King's Parliament in 1926 and call an election. Lord Byng's decision was influenced by the fact that King, with a minority government, had tried to curtail debate and avoid a defeat in the Commons after a scandal in the Customs Department. This event caused so much controversy that scholars have come to the conclusion that "the controversy over the rightness of the action [of the Crown] is so great as to imperil future use of the discretionary powers". It is therefore, essential that the Crown use its royal prerogative only in certain cases, or loose the support of the public.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The Crown's royal prerogative, at same time, should not be viewed as constitutional nonsense, because it is rarely used. In some cases, the presence of the royal prerogative by the Crown may be one of the few constitutional safeguards which prevent politicians from becoming too powerful or abusing their authority. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The royal prerogative still holds an undeniable reserve of power, an authority which the representative of the Crown can use in emergency and exceptional circumstances. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]However, some may argue that hypothetically speaking, the chances for the use of the royal prerogative are slim. While this maybe is true, but the lack of the use of the royal prerogatives does not render them useless. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]According to Professor Frank MacKinnon, a Canadian political scientist, the Crown an the royal prerogative are: "constitutional fire extinguishers with a potent mixture of powers for use in great emergencies. Like real extinguishers... everyone hopes their emergency powers will never be used; the fact they are not used does not render them useless; and it is generally understood there are severe penalties for tampering with them... [These powers] have developed because serious trouble is inevitable in government and some special apparatus must be kept in reserve ready for use should other safety devices fail."[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]The Crown therefore, must use these powers only in extreme cases, in order to allow the basic continuation and functioning of the government. At the same time, these powers can enhance democracy by dismissing politicians who have abused the constitution. The Crown can be viewed as the custodian of the constitution, and it is the Crown's responsibility to see that the rules are followed and the complete continuity of Canadian politics. This is why the Crown still has the royal prerogative, along with its symbolic role.[/FONT]