House of Commons of Canada

The House of Commons of Canada (French: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower chamber of the bicameral Parliament of Canada, the legislative branch of the federal government of the Canadian Republic. According to the Constitution of Canada, the Parliament of Canada (including the Senate, the upper chamber of Parliament) is the highest institution of state power in the country at the federal level, although legislative authority belongs to the President of Canada between House of Commons sessions. Joint sessions of the Parliament of Canada (that is, sessions simultaneously including both chambers) are opened, moderated and closed by the President of Canada, one of many ceremonial roles the President of Canada conducts in his capacity as head of state of Canada. The House of Commons currently meets in a temporary Commons chamber in the West Block of the parliament buildings on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, while the Centre Block, which houses the traditional Commons chamber, undergoes a ten-year renovation.

The House of Commons is a democratically elected body whose members are known as Members of Parliament (MPs). There have been 338 MPs since the most recent electoral district redistribution for the 2015 federal election, which saw the addition of 30 seats. Members are elected by simple plurality ("first-past-the-post" system) in each of the country's electoral districts, which are colloquially known as ridings. The party or coalition of parties with the most seats nominates their leader or another party executive for the position of Prime Minister of Canada (the head of government and de facto most powerful office in the Canadian political system, given the President's mostly ceremonial role), which can be challenged at any time by a vote of no confidence, which if successful automatically calls for a new election. The President of Canada becomes Acting Prime Minister following the post-no confidence vote dismissal of the sitting prime minister or as a result of the prime minister's incapacitation or death, upon which a new parliamentary election must be called to determine a new government including Prime Minister and his cabinet. MPs may hold office until Parliament is dissolved and serve for constitutionally limited terms of up to six years after an election. Historically however, terms have often ended before their expiry and the sitting government has typically dissolved parliament within three to four years of an election according to a long-standing convention. In any case, an Act of Parliament now limits each term to six years, coinciding with the term of the President of Canada, who is elected separately in a popular election.

Seats in the House of Commons are distributed roughly in proportion to the population of the riding they represent, meaning that each MP represents more or less the same number of people (give or take 30,000).

The House of Commons was established in 1867, when the British North America Act 1867 (now called the Constitution Act, 1867) created the Dominion of Canada and was modelled on the British House of Commons. The lower of the two houses making up the parliament, the House of Commons in practice holds far more power than the upper house, the Senate. Although the approval of both Houses is necessary for legislation to become law, the Senate very rarely rejects bills passed by the Commons (though the Senate does occasionally amend bills). Moreover, the Cabinet is responsible solely to the House of Commons. The prime minister stays in office only so long as they retain the support, or "confidence", of the lower house.