Legislative Council of Quebec
Image:Legislative Council of [Quebec.jpg|thumb|The chamber of the Legislative Council of Quebec before its abolition]
The Legislative Council of Quebec was the unelected upper house of the bicameral legislature in the Canadian province of Quebec from 1867 to 1968. The Legislative Assembly was the elected lower house.
The council was composed of 24 members, appointed by the lieutenant governor upon the recommendation of the premier. Each councillor nominally represented a portion of the Province of Quebec called a division. The boundaries of these divisions were identical to the ones used for Canada East by the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada and were also identical to the boundaries still used today by the Senate of Canada for Quebec. The division boundaries were never changed to accommodate territorial expansions of Quebec in 1898 and 1912.
The Legislative Council was abolished in 1968 and the Legislative Assembly was renamed the National Assembly of Quebec. Since the abolition, Quebec has a unicameral legislature.
Powers of the Legislative Council
The council had the right to introduce bills, except of a financial nature, and to amend or reject bills passed by the Legislative Assembly. Its speaker, known in French as orateur, was by right a member of the Cabinet, and its members could serve as ministers or even premier. Two Quebec premiers, Charles-Eugène Boucher de Boucherville and John Jones Ross, were members of the Legislative Council.Appointment of members of the Legislative Council
Members were originally appointed for life. In 1963, the rule was changed to force members to retire at age 75, but that did not apply to members who had already been appointed. In the event, the change remained entirely theoretical since the council was abolished before it could be applied to anyone.Abolition of the Legislative Council
Effective December 31, 1968 the Legislative Council was abolished, and the Legislative Assembly of Quebec was renamed the National Assembly. As a consequence, Quebec now has a unicameral legislature. The establishment of the original system dates back to the Constitutional Act of 1791.The Union Nationale government of Premier Jean-Jacques Bertrand passed the legislation, known as "Bill 90", to implement the change. Previous governments had made unsuccessful attempts to eliminate the upper chamber. In fact, the first attempt dated all the way back to Félix-Gabriel Marchand, in the late 19th century. Quebec was the last Canadian province to abolish its upper house.
When it was dissolved, it had 15 members of the Union Nationale and 9 Liberal Party members.
The Red Chamber
The large chamber that housed the Legislative Council is also known in French as le salon rouge and in English as "the Red Room" because of the predominance of the colour on the walls. It is now used for committee meetings and for important state functions that require a large, impressive hall, such as inductions into the National Order of Quebec.Speakers of the Legislative Council of Quebec (1867–1968)
The Speaker of the Legislative Council was appointed by the government. Most Speakers sat in the Cabinet. The Speaker was the presiding officer of the Legislative Council, but could vote like other members. In the event of a tie, the Speaker did not have a casting vote. The motion simply failed.Legislative Council divisions
The twenty-four members of the Legislative Council were each appointed to represent a division of Quebec. The divisions were originally defined by statute for the Legislative Council of the Province of Canada in 1856, when elected members were included in the Legislative Council. The statutory descriptions of the divisions were then incorporated into the Consolidated Statutes of Canada, 1859. In 1867, the British North America Act, 1867 simply adopted the existing twenty-four divisions for the new Legislative Council of Quebec, although the new Council was appointed, rather than elected.Although the boundaries of Quebec were extended northwards twice, in 1898 and again in 1912, the boundaries of the Legislative Council divisions were never altered.