Imperial Acts passed since Union. Veto of Crown. A similar view was expressed in Smiles v. Belford1 in regard to the Dominion power of legislating on copyright, which by section 91 of the Act of 1867 is placed within the "exclusive" jurisdiction of the Dominion Parliament and yet was affected by Imperial Acts passed after the Union. The following are some of the chief Acts passed since the Union by the Imperial Parliament relating to Canada. Merchant Shipping Acts, 32 & 33 Vic. c. 11; 34 & 35 Vic. c. 110; 39 & 40 Vic. c. 80; 43 & 44 Vic. c. 16; Ib. c. 18; Ib. c. 22; Ib. c. 43; 45 & 46 Vic. c. 76; 46 & 47 Vic. c. 41. Naturalisation Acts, 33 & 34 Vic. c. 14; 33 & 34 Vic. c. 102. Extradition Act, 33 & 34 Vic. c. 52. Foreign Enlistment Act, 33 & 34 Vic. c. 90. Act relating to Treaty of Washington, 35 & 36 Vic. c. 45. Unseaworthy Ships Act, 38 & 39 Vic. c. 88. Confirmation of Marriages on Her Majesty's Ships Act, 42 & 43 Vic. c. 29. Shipping Casualties Investigations Act, 42 & 43 Vic. c. 72. Companies Colonial Registers Act, 46 & 47 Vic. c. 30. Submarine Telegraph Act, 48 & 49 Vic. c. 49. Medical Act 1886, 49 & 50 Vic. c. 48. Submarine Telegraphs Act, 50 Vic. c. 3. 3. Powers of the Crown. (a). PROVINCIAL BILLS. The Crown has no power of vetoing a provincial bill. Power is given to a Lieutenant-Governor, when a bill is 1 1 Ont. App. Rep. 436; 1 Cart. 576. presented to him for his assent, to reserve the same for the signification of the pleasure of his Excellency the Governor-General'. If within one year from the date of such reservation the Governor-General does not issue a proclamation intimating that it has received his assent, the bill never comes into force2. vation. Instead of reserving the bill the Lieutenant-Governor Resermay assent to it, but the Governor-General has the power to disallow the bill at any time within one year from its passing. If the Governor-General does not disallow the Act within such year then it can be questioned only in an action in which it is alleged that the subject-matter was not within the legislative powers of the province. It is however open to the Governor-General to com- Consulting Home municate with the Imperial Government in regard to the Governdisallowance of a provincial law. For instance, when the ment. Ontario Legislature passed an Act conferring upon the Legislative Assembly the same privileges as those enjoyed by the Dominion House of Commons, the competency of the Legislature to pass this Act was doubted, and on the recommendation of the Dominion Minister of Justice, the question was referred to the English law officers of the Crown. They were of opinion that the Act was ultra vires, and it was therefore disallowed by the Governor-General in Council". to obtain inter Attempts have been made in several cases by the Attempts Dominion House of Commons, and by parties interested in Imperial provincial legislation, to persuade the Imperial Government ference. to interfere with provincial legislation. When New Brunswick in 1871 passed an Act relating to common schools, not only did the Dominion House of Commons ask the GovernorGeneral to take the opinion of the law officers of the Crown 1 B. N. A. Act, s. 90. 4 Todd, p. 365. 2 Ib. 3 See ante, 165. Governor General may consult Home Government. Petitions sent direct ment. on the validity of the Act, but they applied through the Governor-General to the Privy Council for its opinion. The law officers reported in favour of the Act, and on the ground that the power of confirming or disallowing provincial Acts was vested by law absolutely and exclusively in the GovernorGeneral', the Lord President of the Council declined to interfere. The legality of the Act was upheld by the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, but notwithstanding this, the Dominion House of Commons asked the Governor-General to disallow certain other statutes amending the Act in question. At the request of his Ministers the Governor-General laid the whole matter before the Imperial Government, and the Secretary of State for the Colonies replied, that as the Acts. in question were within the powers of the local legislature, they ought to be allowed to remain in force and could not be interfered with by the Dominion House of Commons*. It is a standing rule of the Colonial service that all toImperial communications from a Colony should be transmitted to the Govern- Imperial Government through the Governor, and when a petition against an Act of Ontario granting special privileges to an Orange Society was presented to the Colonial Secretary, it was forwarded to the Governor-General. The Colonial Secretary in acknowledging the petition laid down the principle, "that it is contrary to established constitutional procedure for Her Majesty's Government to interfere unless in very special circumstances with such legislation as is within the competency of a provincial Legislature3.” The rule may be taken as established-that, except in very special or extraordinary circumstances, the Home Government will not recommend the Governor-General to disallow a provincial Act that falls within the matters over which the Provinces have full jurisdiction. 1 Todd, p. 347; Can. Sess. Pap. 1877, No. 89, p. 343. 3 Todd, p. 357. (b). DOMINION BILLS. When a bill has passed the Dominion Parliament it is presented to the Governor-General for the Queen's assent. Instead of assenting to the bill, he may reserve the bill for the signification of Her Majesty's pleasure. If he assents to the bill, he is required to transmit a copy to one of her Majesty's Secretaries of State, and if the Queen in Council within two years after the receipt thereof by the Secretary of State disallows the Act, it is annulled from the date of such signification. The Imperial Government has therefore full control over Dominion legislation. Bills. The power of the Governor-General to assent to bills is, Reserved by the B. N. A. Act, s. 55, limited by his instructions. Previous to 1878 the instructions required him, in the case of certain bills, not to assent to the bill except in case of urgent necessity, unless there was a clause suspending the operation of the bill, until Her Majesty's pleasure could be signified. In accordance with these instructions the Governor-General reserved twenty-one bills between the years 1867 and 1878. Eleven of these related to divorce and received the royal assent. In 1872 a Copyright Bill was not approved, as it conflicted with imperial legislation. Two Extradition Bills were not allowed in 1873 and 1874. A Merchant Shipping Bill was disallowed in 1878, as it contained provisions in excess of Dominion powers, whilst a reserved bill that might have prejudiced the rights of subjects not resident in Canada was dropped in 1874, and a modified bill passed in the following year1. In the revised instructions issued in 1878 the clauses Modern practice. relating to the reservation of bills were omitted, “because her Majesty's Government thought it undesirable that they should contain anything which could be interpreted as 1 See Todd, p. 144. Disallowance of Bills. limiting or defining the legislative powers conferred in 1867 on the Dominion Parliament1." Since 1878 it has not been the custom to reserve bills, as it is understood that the statutory power to disallow any bill within two years is sufficient for all purposes. A reserved bill has no force until the Governor-General signifies by speech or message to the Dominion Parliament or by proclamation that it has received Her Majesty's assent. The B. N. A. Act, s. 56, requires the Governor-General to send to a Secretary of State by the first convenient opportunity an authentic copy of every Act to which he assents; and a Dominion Act requires the Clerk of Parliaments to certify and deliver to the Governor-General a bound copy the Statutes for transmission to one of the Secretaries of State, together with certified copies of all reserved bills. of |