Action4Canada - March 16, 2022


Charter of RIghts vs Bill of Rights


Episode Stats

Length

5 minutes

Words per Minute

128.99352

Word Count

716

Sentence Count

45


Summary

In this episode, I talk about the importance of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and why it is the most important piece of legislation in Canada. I also talk about why the Bill of Rights was not written down anywhere in any document related to the law of Canada.


Transcript

00:00:00.000 We all know that Canada was formed in 1867, and from 1867 until 1960, individual rights
00:00:20.920 and freedoms were not written down anywhere in any document related to the law of Canada.
00:00:27.660 Our individual rights and freedoms were protected by unwritten British common law and other
00:00:36.360 customs that arose after 1867, okay?
00:00:41.100 And so that was the basis of our protection as individuals on our rights and freedoms.
00:00:47.740 It was unwritten law.
00:00:50.540 In 1960, Prime Minister John Diefenbaker and his government passed a Bill of Rights.
00:00:57.140 It became law in August 1960.
00:01:01.200 But I want you to remember, it was a law of the federal parliament.
00:01:08.120 It was not a law of all of the parliaments of Canada, because if it was, it would have been
00:01:15.500 the law of every province of Canada.
00:01:17.580 It was just a law of one parliament, and therefore, only had jurisdiction or power over people
00:01:27.140 who were under federal jurisdiction.
00:01:30.080 In other words, it didn't have complete jurisdiction or power to protect the rights and freedoms
00:01:37.600 of every individual in Canada.
00:01:40.000 It was just a federal law.
00:01:41.940 The difference between that and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the Charter of Rights
00:01:48.700 and Freedoms applies, is in the Constitution.
00:01:53.620 And the Constitution is the supreme law of Canada, not of the federal government and just its jurisdiction,
00:02:03.800 but all Canadians right across the country.
00:02:06.780 So there's a big difference between a provincial law and a federal law and the Constitution.
00:02:14.880 A provincial law applies to the provinces.
00:02:17.980 The federal law applies to the jurisdiction of the federal government.
00:02:22.780 The constitutional law, if you will, or the Constitution, applies to the whole nation by its very definition.
00:02:30.340 So, therefore, the Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms takes precedence over all the other laws
00:02:41.720 in the provinces and the federal government.
00:02:45.280 In Section 52 of the Constitution Act of 1982, it says,
00:02:50.540 the Constitution of Canada is the supreme law of Canada.
00:02:55.060 So there you have it.
00:02:56.360 It's clear, unmistakable.
00:02:58.700 The Charter of Rights and Freedoms is what we are fighting for today, because it applies to all Canadians.
00:03:08.260 And it is the supreme law of Canada.
00:03:10.620 And it was passed in 1982 in the House of Commons, in the British Parliament.
00:03:19.000 It was signed into law in April 1982 by Her Majesty the Queen right here in Canada.
00:03:25.900 Some people are saying that it never became law.
00:03:29.580 Oh, yes, it did.
00:03:30.580 It was passed by all the relevant parliaments, and it was signed off by the Queen.
00:03:35.880 And when she signed that, in that 1982 Constitution Act, which also contained the Charter of Rights and Freedoms,
00:03:45.040 there are statements which say,
00:03:47.440 no more laws of England apply to Canada.
00:03:52.320 All of Canada's laws in the future will be passed and completed in Canada.
00:03:57.960 We don't need to go back to London anymore for any reference.
00:04:03.520 We were totally and absolutely sovereign after the Constitution Act was passed.
00:04:09.320 It was passed by all relevant parliaments.
00:04:12.020 It was signed off by everybody that had to sign it, including the Queen.
00:04:16.000 And it made Canada completely and absolutely sovereign.
00:04:19.980 So everything after 1982 that Canada wanted to do, they could do under that Act,
00:04:27.560 without any reference to any other country, including London, okay, or the United Kingdom,
00:04:32.780 where a lot of us came from, and of course, where we were crowned colonies before we became a nation.
00:04:39.120 So I hope that's clear to everybody, because there's still some people who try to allege
00:04:46.060 that the Bill of Rights is more important than the Charter.
00:04:50.660 The Bill of Rights was very important in its day, don't get me wrong, and it's still a federal law.
00:04:55.280 But it's not applicable to all Canadians, because it is a federal law.
00:05:00.440 Remember, we are not a unitary state like the United Kingdom or like France.
00:05:05.500 We are a federal state where there are certain powers in the provinces,
00:05:09.300 and there are certain powers in the federal government.
00:05:12.820 That's why a federal act only applies to federal things.
00:05:16.880 Provincial act only applies to provincial things.
00:05:20.080 But the Constitution applies to both federal and provincial things.
00:05:25.620 It is the glue that keeps the country together.
00:05:29.060 It is the main document and the supreme law of Canada.