441-01088 (Parliament and politics)

The Government of Canada recognizes the importance of maintaining national unity and is committed to working openly and collaboratively with every provincial and territorial government to serve and improve the lives of all Canadians. It recognizes and respects provinces’ autonomy to pass laws and implement policies within their areas of jurisdiction.

Many of Canada’s most pressing challenges transcend borders and require intergovernmental cooperation, like reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, combatting climate change, and controlling inflation in a globalized economy. The Government of Canada favours a flexible view of federalism, best described as a modern cooperative federalism, that accommodates and encourages intergovernmental cooperative efforts.

As such, the Government of Canada is committed to working with provincial and territorial governments to find solutions to common challenges that respect the division of powers and harness the ideas and expertise of each order of government. Through bilateral and multilateral forums, federal-provincial-territorial ministers and senior officials from their respective civil services meet regularly to advance intergovernmental initiatives in the interest of all Canadians.

The Government of Canada values the contribution of provinces and territories in building and maintaining national unity through intergovernmental cooperation, which necessarily entails respectful dialogue and compromise.