Canada is a multi-party democracy located in North America. In 2015, the country was governed by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who has been in power since 2006 and is the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. During his time in office, Prime Minister Harper has been credited with bringing stability to Canada after years of economic turmoil. See ehealthfacts for Canada in the year of 2005.
In 2015, Canada held federal elections in which Prime Minister Harper won a majority of votes and was re-elected for a fourth term. This victory was attributed to his successful economic policies such as reducing taxes, encouraging foreign investment, and providing basic services such as healthcare and education to its citizens. The Conservative party also benefited from its strong national security policies which have helped to maintain peace and stability throughout Canada.
Despite its successes, Prime Minister Harper’s government has been criticized for its lack of commitment to human rights such as freedom of speech and assembly. Additionally, corruption remains a major issue in Canada with high-level officials frequently accused of abusing their power for personal gain. Despite these challenges, Prime Minister Harper’s government remains committed to furthering economic development and maintaining political stability throughout the country.
Yearbook 2015
Canada is a country located in North America and one of the largest country in the world. Several reports in January indicated that Canadian soldiers should have been involved in ground fighting against the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq. Prime Minister Stephen Harper was criticized for breaking the promise that no Canadian soldiers would participate in ground fighting. In March, the government extended the mandate for the operation against IS and decided to extend the operation to include Syria. The decision was criticized by the opposition.
In February, Secretary of State John Baird resigned and was replaced by Rob Nicholson.
Provincial elections were held in May in several states. The Liberal Party won in Prince Edward Island Province while the closest Social Democratic New Democratic Party (NDP) won in Alberta, ruled by the Progressive Conservative Party (PCP) for 44 years.
In August, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced parliamentary elections until October 19. Opinion figures indicated that the ruling Conservative Party, which is accused of causing many of the country’s economic problems, could lose government power. The Social Democratic NDP had a scarce lead while the Liberal Party was third. According to COUNTRYAAH, Ottawa is the capital of Canada which is located in North America.
- Also see AbbreviationFinder.org for Canada country abbreviations, including geography, history, economy and politics.
Figures showed in September that Canada had entered a recession when GDP fell by half a percent during the second quarter of the year. During the first quarter, the country also experienced negative growth.
In the October parliamentary elections, the Liberals won big and gained their own majority when Canada changed government. The Liberals got almost 40% of the vote, while the Conservative party got just under 32%. Conservative leader Stephen Harper acknowledged being defeated and announced that he intended to step down as party leader. Rona Ambrose temporarily took over the party leader post in the Conservative Party. She had previously held a number of ministerial posts, including those responsible for environmental issues.
Justin Trudeau was named new prime minister. Canada got its first government with as many women as men. Most of them were under 50 years of age. For the first time, a person from the indigenous peoples got the post of Minister of Justice. Shortly thereafter, the newly elected prime minister announced that the country will take home its fighter aircraft from military action against IS in Syria and Iraq. Withdrawal was one of his election promises. However, Trudeau wanted to retain the Canadian military sent to train Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.
In Quebec, the provincial parliament in October adopted a motion condemning Islamophobia. At the same time, reports of an increase in Muslim harassment came.
In November, the government decided to accept up to 900 Syrian refugees a day from 1 December. The new government had promised to receive 25,000 Syrian refugees before the turn of the year, but as a result of the terrorist attacks in Paris, only families, single women and children, were accepted while single men were deported.
In January, the United States Senate gave a clear sign that the Keystone XL pipeline, which will transport oil from Alberta to the United States, should be built. Then only the approval of the US House of Commons remained, an approval that came in February. However, US President Barack Obama vetoed the plans. The project was postponed while waiting for the US Department of Foreign Affairs to review it. In November, President Obama announced that he would quit Keystone XL. He pointed out that oil prices had fallen and that a management would not be compatible with the US role as a leader in environmental work.
In February, the Somali Islamist group al-Shabab called on its supporters to carry out terror attacks on shopping malls in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.
In May, stricter anti-terror laws were pushed through. Among other things, it is forbidden to encourage terrorist attacks in the country and the country’s security service CSIS is given increased powers. Suspected terrorists can also be held in custody for seven days instead of three without prosecution being brought. A number of websites belonging to, among others, Parliament and the intelligence service were hacked in June. The hackers network Anonymous took on the blame for the attack, which they claimed was a protest against stricter terrorist legislation.
Former Guantánamo prisoner Omar Khadr was released in May against the bail. However, he must stay with his lawyer, have electronic footsteps, get a nightly curfew and be allowed to use the Internet only under supervision.
The climate lab at the University of Toronto registered in January a dozen “earthquakes” in the districts of Ottawa and Montreal.
Dry weather and high temperatures in western Canada caused unusually many forest fires in July. So far, 565 fires had been reported during the year, which was three times more than at the same time the year before.
In September, together with four other Arctic countries, Canada adopted a 10-year action plan to reduce the polar bear threat. Among other things, they would try to reduce the impact that tourism, oil and mining industries have on the animal, which is one of the species most severely affected by climate change.
In Toronto, a mysterious discovery was made of an approximately 10-meter long tunnel near a sports arena. The tunnel had full headroom, electric generator and a pump to keep the space dry. The authorities again filled the tunnel so that the public would not hurt.
The Supreme Court made the decision to grant the right to active euthanasia for adults suffering from an incurable disease and risking a prolonged suffering. Euthanasia has been banned in Canada since 1993.
The three tobacco companies Imperial Tobacco, Rothmans Benson & Hedges and JTI-MacDonald were sentenced to pay the equivalent of SEK 106.5 billion to smokers and former smokers who claimed that they had never been warned about the health risks of smoking. It is the largest damages in the country’s history. The three companies intended to appeal the verdict.
The Canadian company, which was involved in the train crash in Lac-Mégantic that killed at least 42 people in 2013, agreed, after many trips, to pay damages of the equivalent of Canadian $ 445 million to the victims and their survivors.
Paleontologists in Canada unearthed a fossil from a 68 million year old dinosaur. Formally it is called Regaliceratops peterhewsi, but the scientists call it “Hellboy”.
In July, a 26-year-old was arrested in Calgary after flying around uncontrollably in a deck chair using 120 helium balloons. The whole thing was a public relations jump for the company the 26-year-old worked for. The 26-year-old was suspected of causing “danger to life,” as the Canadian criminal record reads, and was allowed to spend the night in custody.