Parliament of Canada

Parliament of Canada Parlement du Canada
Currently dissolved Most recent: 44th Parliament
Type
Type	Bicameral
Houses	Senate House of Commons
History
Founded	1 July 1867 (1867-07-01)
Preceded by	Initially assumed some jurisdiction from: Parliament of the Province of Canada General Assembly of Nova Scotia New Brunswick Legislature Later added some jurisdiction from: Hudson's Bay Company Legislative Council of British Columbia General Assembly of Prince Edward Island General Assembly of Newfoundland (then suspended) Parliament of the United Kingdom
Leadership
Monarch	Charles III since 8 September 2022
Governor General	Mary Simon since 26 July 2021
Speaker of the Senate	Raymonde Gagné, (Non-affiliated) since 12 May 2023
Speaker of the House of Commons	Greg Fergus, (Liberal) since 3 October 2023
Prime Minister	Mark Carney, (Liberal) since 14 March 2025
Leader of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition	Pierre Poilievre, (Conservative) since 10 September 2022
Structure
Seats	443 105 senators 338 members of Parliament
Senate political groups	Independent Senators Group (41)   Non-affiliated (19)   Canadian Senators Group (18)   Progressive Senate Group (15)   Conservative (12)   Vacant (0)
House of Commons political groups	His Majesty's Government   Liberal (151) His Majesty's Loyal Opposition   Conservative (120) Parties with official status   Bloc Québécois (33)   New Democratic (24)[1] Parties without official status   Green (2)   Independent (3)   Vacant (5)
Elections
Senate voting system	Appointment by the governor general on advice of the prime minister
House of Commons voting system	First-past-the-post
Last House of Commons election	20 September 2021
Meeting place
Centre Block – Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Ontario (both houses, permanent) Senate of Canada Building, 2 Rideau Street, Ottawa, Ontario (Senate only – temporary during renovations) West Block – Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Ontario (House of Commons only – temporary during renovations)
Website
parl.ca

The Parliament of Canada (French: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons.^[2] By constitutional convention, the House of Commons is dominant, with the Senate rarely opposing its will. The Senate reviews legislation from a less partisan standpoint and may initiate certain bills. The monarch or his representative, normally the governor general, provides royal assent to make bills into law. According to Section 16 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the official languages of the parliament are English and French.^[3]

The governor general, on behalf of the monarch, summons and appoints the 105 senators on the advice of the prime minister, while each of the 338 members of the House of Commons – called members of Parliament (MPs) – represents an electoral district, commonly referred to as a riding, and is elected by Canadian voters residing in the riding. For the 2025 federal election, the number of seats in the House of Commons will increase to 343.^[4]

The governor general also summons and calls together the House of Commons, and may prorogue or dissolve Parliament, in order to either end a parliamentary session or call a general election. The governor general also delivers the throne speech at the opening of each new Parliament (the monarch occasionally has done so, instead of the governor general, when visiting Canada).

The 44th Parliament of Canada was dissolved by Governor General Mary Simon on 23 March 2025. The election for the 45th Parliament will be held on 28 April.