Just how many days do provincial politicians spend legislating? We did the math

About nine and a half work weeks — that’s how long, on average, provincial and territorial legislatures were in session for last year. 

Quebec’s National Assembly clocked in the most at 79 days, while Newfoundland and Labrador’s House of Assembly sat the least — 23 days. 

Some politicians say the number of days spent in legislatures matters less, because key work is done in constituency offices. Others say fewer sitting days allow governments to avoid accountability and pass flawed legislation. 

Legislative sittings days, by the numbers

Earlier this month, Ontario’s opposition leaders decried the time away from the Ontario Legislature when it rose for a 21-week break.

However, Ontario is actually scheduled to sit the most days of all the provincial and territorial legislatures this year. On the other hand, the Northwest Territories is expected to sit the least, with 37 days in its legislative calendar. 

But governments often aren’t obligated to follow those schedules, according to Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor emeritus at the University of Toronto. Across Canada, parliamentary calendars are generally set out by standing orders, but can often be changed by the party in power or by members voting.

More scandals, less sitting

Several factors, including election schedules and the popularity of the government, can influence the number of days spent in a legislature. 

When a provincial or territorial election is called, politicians want to spend more time campaigning in their communities, according to Joel Harden, a former MPP for Ontario’s NDP. 

WATCH | Ontario Legislature has sat 30 days this year:

Why Ontario’s legislature is taking almost 5 months off

Ontario’s legislature began a 21-week break on Tuesday and won’t return until Oct. 27. The Ford government says the extended recess is meant to avoid interfering with municipal elections. Opposition leaders disagree, arguing that time for debating and passing legislation has shrunk under Premier Doug Ford and that the lengthy adjournment is a way to avoid accountability.

But government popularity also plays a key role.

Wiseman said he believes newly elected governments tend to sit more, because they aren’t dogged by scandals or political baggage that bring persistent criticism in question period.

“If you’re unpopular, why do you want the legislature to meet? They’re just going to trumpet all these problems that the public is upset with you about,” he said. 

Does it matter? 

Short sittings may not be a bad thing — depending on who you ask. 

Politicians still work when the legislature rises. Members handle issues in their constituencies and ministers continue running the public service, Wiseman said. 

Or, as Ontario Premier Doug Ford described rising for the summer: “Rather than sitting here and arguing with each other, we’re actually going to get out there and talk to the people and start bringing more jobs to Ontario.”

Former Saskatchewan Party MLA Donna Harpauer said the time needed in legislature versus in constituency depends on how many bills are put forward and their subjects.

“The bill varies from one session to another,” she said. “So you could, if you shorten those days, you could short change the opposition on the time that they need to give a good scrutiny of a bill.” 

The greater issue is governments across the political spectrum introducing controversial legislation near the end of a sitting — no matter how long the session may be — to push it through quickly, according to Karin Kirkpatrick, a former B.C. United MLA. 

“When you’ve got things that are done quickly instead of on a quality basis, you end up with flawed legislation and flawed policy,” said Kirkpatrick, who is the leader of the new CentreBC party, which has no seats in the legislature.

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Harden called short sittings “unfortunate,” because opposition MPPs can’t lobby the government to change proposed legislation and advocates miss out on connecting with politicians to have their concerns heard. 

“You can do some of that from home, working through your constituency office,” he said, “but my experience was, it was pretty important to keep those relationships alive at Queen’s Park.”