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Vict., c. 3.

where the population of the province is two hundred thousand, but does not exceed four hundred

thousand, of one hundred and eighty thousand dollars;

where the population of the province is four hundred thousand, but does not exceed eight hundred thousand, of one hundred and ninety thousand dollars;

where the population of the province is eight hundred thousand, but does not exceed one million five hundred thousand, of two hundred and twenty thousand dollars;

where the population of the province exceeds one million five hundred thousand, of two hundred and forty thousand dollars; and

(b) Subject to the special provisions of this Act as to the provinces of British Columbia and Prince Edward Island, a grant at the rate of eighty cents per head of the population of the province up to the number of two million five hundred thousand, and at the rate of sixty cents per head of so much of the population as exceeds that number.

(2) An additional grant of one hundred thousand dollars shall be made yearly to the Province of British Columbia for a period of ten years from the commencement of this Act.

(3) The population of the province shall be ascertained from time to time in the case of the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta respectively by the last quinquennial census or statutory estimate of population made under the Acts establishing those provinces or any other Act of the Parliament of Canada making provision for the purpose, and in the case of any other province by the last decennial census for the time being.

(4) The grants payable under this Act shall be paid half-yearly in advance to each province.

(5) The grants payable under this Act shall be substituted for the grants or subsidies (in this Act referred to as existing grants) payable for the like purposes at the commencement of this Act to the several provinces of the Dominion, under the provisions of section one hundred and eighteen of the British North America Act, 1867, or of any Order in Council establishing a province, or of any Act of the Parliament of Canada containing directions for the payment of any such grant or subsidy, and those provisions shall cease to have effect.

(6) The Government of Canada shall have the same power of deducting sums charged against a province on account of the interest on public debt in the case of the grant payable under this Act to the province as they have in the case of the existing grant.

(7) Nothing in this Act shall affect the obligation of the Government of Canada to pay to any province any grant which is payable to that province, other than the existing grant for which the grant under this Act is substituted.

(8) In the case of the provinces of British Columbia and Prince Edward Island, the amount paid on account of the grant payable per head of the population to the provinces under this Act shall not at any time be less than the amount of the corresponding grant payable at the commencement of this Act; and if it is found on any decennial census that the population of the province has decreased since the last decennial census, the amount paid on account of the grant shall not be decreased below the amount then payable, notwithstanding the decrease of the population.

2. This Act may be cited as the British North America Short title Act, 1907, and shall take effect as from the first date of July, nineteen hundred and seven.

SCHEDULE

TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY

Most Gracious Sovereign,

We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Senate and Commons of Canada, in Parliament assembled, humbly approach Your Majesty for the purpose of representing that it is expedient to amend the scale of payments authorized under section 118 of the Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly called the British North America Act, 1867, or by or under any terms or conditions upon which any other provinces were admitted to the Union, to be made by Canada to the several provinces of the Dominion for the support of their Governments and Legislatures by providing that—

A. Instead of the amounts now payable, the sums hereafter payable yearly by Canada to the several provinces for the support of their Governments and Legislatures be according to population, and as follows:

(a) Where the population of the province is under 150,000, $100,000; (b) Where the population of the province is 150,000, but does not exceed 200,000, $150,000;

(c) Where the population of the province is 200,000, but does not
exceed 400,000, $180,000;

(d) Where the population of the province is 400,000, but does not
exceed 800,000, $190,000;

(e) Where the population of the province is 800,000, but does not
exceed 1,500,000, $220,000;

(f) Where the population of the province exceeds 1,500,000, $240,000.

B. Instead of an annual grant per head of population now allowed, the annual payment hereafter be at the same rate of eighty cents per head, but on the population of each province, as ascertained from time to time by the last decennial census, or in the case of the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta respectively, by the last quinquennial census or statutory estimate, until such population exceeds 2,500,000, and at the rate of sixty cents per head for so much of said population as may exceed

and interpretation.

C. An additional allowance to the extent of one hundred thousand dollars annually be paid for ten years to the province of British Columbia.

D. Nothing herein contained shall in any way supersede or affect the terms special to any particular province upon which such province became part of the Dominion of Canada, or the right of any province to the payment of any special grant heretofore made by the Parliament of Canada to any province for any special purpose in such grant expressed.

We pray that Your Majesty may be graciously pleased to cause a measure to be laid before the Imperial Parliament at its present Session repealing the provisions of section 118 of the British North America Act, 1867, aforesaid, and substituting therefor the scale of payments above set forth, which shall be a final and unalterable settlement of the amounts to be paid yearly to the several provinces of the Dominion for their local purposes, and the support of their Governments and Legislatures.

Such grants shall be made half-yearly in advance to each province, but the Government of Canada shall deduct from such grants as against any province all sums chargeable as interest on the public debt of that province in excess of the several amounts stipulated in the said Act. All of which we humbly pray Your Majesty to take into your favourable and gracious consideration.

(2) "As early as 1869 increased subsidies were granted to Nova Scotia by Dominion statute. Edward Blake moved in the Canadian House of Commons against that procedure on the ground that it was an unauthorized assumption of power on the part of the Dominion, but the Dominion parliament declined to accept his view and the law officers of the Crown in London, when consulted, advised that the Act was one which the Dominion parliament was competent to pass under section 91. Later in the same year the Legislature of Ontario voted an address to the Queen to have it declared that parliament had not power to disturb the financial relations between the Dominion and the several provinces as established in the B.N.A. Act. Blake, admitting that the Federal parliament now possessed the power to vary those relations, in view of the interpretation that had been given by the law officers, sought vainly to prevent the power being used-but a resolution was passed by the House of Commons by 130 to 10, against any further increases in provincial grants, a resolution which proved not worth the paper it was written on. Mr. J. A. Maxwell sums up the development thus: "In the sixty odd years since 1869, there have been three general revisions scaling up the grants given to all the provinces, and more than a score of special revisions affecting every one. Despite heavy withdrawals from capital account (i.e. debt allowances) the four original provinces in 1928-1929 drew more than 3 times as much from the federal treasury as had been promised in the B.N.A. Act." (Dr. O. D. Skelton, op. cit. p. 33.)

THE BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT, 1915(1)

5-6 GEORGE V, CHAPTER 45

An Act to amend the British North America Act, 1867

[19th May, 1915.]

Be it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

of Constitution

1. (1) Notwithstanding anything in the British North Alteration America Act, 1867, or in any Act amending the same, or in any Order in Council or terms or conditions of union made or approved under the said Acts or in any Act of the Canadian Parliament

(i) The number of senators provided for under section
twenty-one of the British North America Act, 1867,
is increased from seventy-two to ninety-six:

(ii) The Divisions of Canada in relation to the constitution
of the Senate provided for by section twenty-two of
the said Act are increased from three to four, the
Fourth Division to comprise the Western Provinces
of Manitoba, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and
Alberta, which four Divisions shall (subject to the
provisions of the said Act and of this Act) be equally
represented in the Senate, as follows:-Ontario by
twenty-four senators; Quebec by twenty-four senators;
the Maritime Provinces and Prince Edward Island by
twenty-four senators, ten thereof representing Nova
Scotia, ten thereof representing New Brunswick, and
four thereof representing Prince Edward Island; the
Western Provinces by twenty-four senators, six thereof
representing Manitoba, six thereof representing British
Columbia, six thereof representing Saskatchewan, and
six thereof representing Alberta:

(iii) The number of persons whom by section twenty-six of
the said Act the Governor General of Canada may,

(1) Dr. Skelton's comments in the case of this amendment are as follows (op. cit. p. 35):—

"Object: To increase the number of senators and alter the main senatorial divisions.

Procedure: The procedure adopted was that the Act was passed by the United Kingdom parliament following an address by the Senate and House of Commons of Canada. Prince Edward Island made representations before a House of Commons committee, which were not accepted. Other provinces were not consulted and made no representations. The suggestion was made in the House of Commons by Mr. O. Turgeon, now Senator Turgeon, that the provinces should be consulted, but it was not acted upon."

of Senate.

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Vict., c. 3.

upon the direction of His Majesty the King, add to the Senate is increased from three or six to four or eight, representing equally the four divisions of Canada: (iv) In case of such addition being at any time made the Governor General of Canada shall not summon any person to the Senate except upon a further like direction by His Majesty the King on the like recommendation to represent one of the four Divisions until such Division is represented by twenty-four senators and no

more:

(v) The number of senators shall not at any time exceed one hundred and four:

(vi) The representation in the Senate to which by section one hundred and forty-seven of the British North America Act, 1867, Newfoundland would be entitled in case of its admission to the Union is increased from four to six members, and in case of the admission of Newfoundland into the Union, notwithstanding anything in the said Act or in this Act, the normal number of senators shall be one hundred and two, and their maximum number one hundred and ten:

(vii) Nothing herein contained shall affect the powers of the Canadian Parliament under the British North America Act, 1886.(2)

(2) Paragraphs (i) to (vi) inclusive of subsection (1) of this section shall not take effect before the termination of the now existing Canadian Parliament. (3)

2. The British North America Act, 1867, is amended by adding thereto the following section immediately after section fifty-one of the said Act:

"51A. Notwithstanding anything in this Act a province shall always be entitled to a number of members in the House of Commons not less than the number of senators representing such province."

3. This Act may be cited as the British North America Act, 1915, and the British North America Acts, 1867 to 1886, and this Act may be cited together as the British North America Acts, 1867 to 1915.

(2) To this number of senators must be added 6 senators from Newfoundland. See the B.N.A. Act (No. 1) 1949, infra, and c. 1 of the Statutes of Canada, 1949 (1st session).

(3) Subsection two of section one, repealed by the Statute Law Revision Act, 1927 (c. 42). See supra p. 86.