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The Planning of Foreign Policy in Canada

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2011

Barry Farrell
Barry Farrell
Affiliation:
Harvard
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Extract

In the past fifteen years Canada has emerged from the position of a somewhat obstreperous exponent of isolationism and Canadian nationalism to become a leading middle power. This rapid rise to international importance has brought in its train many significant developments in Canada. Few are more interesting than the process by which Canadian foreign policy is presently being made, for its examination throws some light on the substance of Canadian foreign policy and provides the student of comparative politics with an important example of the planning of foreign policy under a Cabinet form of government. It also shows some of the problems and possibilities of a rapidly developed governmental organization.

Type
Research Article
Information
World Politics , Volume 1 , Issue 3 , April 1949 , pp. 351 - 380
Copyright
Copyright © Trustees of Princeton University 1949

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References

1 In this discussion of the role of the Cabinet in the making of Canadian foreign policy the technical distinction between the “Cabinet” and the “Council” will not be made. On this as well as on various aspects of Canadian Cabinet procedure and organization, see Heeney, A. D. P., “Cabinet Government in Canada: Some Recent Developments in the Machinery of the Central Executive,” Canadian Journal of Economics and Political Science, August, 1946, pp. 282–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar Excellent brief discussions of the role of the Cabinet in Canadian government are in Dawson, Robert MacGregor, The Government of Canada, Toronto, University of Toronto Press, 1947, pp. 228–81Google Scholar, and in Cony, J. A., Elements of Democratic Government, New York, Oxford University Press, 1947, pp. 74–104.Google Scholar The latter provides some comparative material on American, British and Canadian executive organization. I am indebted to Mr. Heeney for making available to me certain information on developments in Canadian Cabinet organization since 1946.

2 The deputy-minister in Canada is the permanent departmental head. The Under-Secre-tary of State for External Affairs has the rank of deputy-minister.

3 Fifteen to twenty such committees are now appointed in each session to deal with particular topics. Although not all of them have been active, some like the committee on radio broadcasting have been investigation and policy committees in a very positive way. During the latter half of the Parliamentary session most members of Parliament spend more time in their committees than they do in the House.

4 Attorney General of Canada v. Attorney General of Ontario, (1937) A. C. 326.