The Federal Spending Power in Canada: Nation-Building or Nation-Destroying?

Abstract

For the past 40 years, the federal spending power in Canada has been one of the most contentious issues in federal-provincial relations, and it has been central to Quebec's dissatisfaction with the Canadian federation. The dispute is rooted in two different conceptions of federalism and different perceptions of the federal compact in Canada. English-speaking Canadians tend to view the federal spending power as the source of highly valued “national” social programs, while the government of Quebec maintains that the federal spending power constitutes an invasion of provincial autonomy and, as such, poses a threat to the cultural distinctiveness of the Quebec nation. The governments of Canada and Quebec have reached a tenuous modus operandi, but the fundamental conflict remains unsolved. Copyright 2003, Oxford University Press.