The lieutenant governor has many duties related to the executive council (premier and cabinet ministers).
These include:
- Ensuring there is always a premier
- Appointing members of the executive council
- Approving government decisions
Appointing the premier
The lieutenant governor’s foremost responsibility is ensuring that Ontario always has a premier who can command the confidence of the elected Legislative Assembly. The appointment of a premier is a royal prerogative power that the lieutenant governor exercises personally in accordance with constitutional convention.
When a premier decides to leave office, they notify the lieutenant governor of his or her intention to resign. The outgoing premier may identify a possible successor who they believe will be able to command the confidence of the Legislative Assembly. The lieutenant governor then invites a successor to form a government.
Once the incoming premier has accepted the lieutenant governor’s invitation, a time and a date are agreed upon for the swearing-in of the new Government.
To ensure a smooth transition, the Government continues in office until the outgoing premier tenders his or her formal resignation, very shortly before the swearing-in of the new premier.
Should a premier die in office, the lieutenant governor may exercise discretion to select a new premier. In any case, the lieutenant governor is guided by constitutional convention. The main requirement is to find someone, almost certainly a party leader, who can command the confidence of the Legislative Assembly.
Appointing executive councillors (ministers)
The lieutenant governor appoints members of the executive council on the advice of the premier.
Swearing in a new government
Upon taking office, the new premier presents the lieutenant governor with his or her formal recommendations for appointments to the executive council and ministerial portfolios.
Once the lieutenant governor has approved the recommendations, the new ministers must take the oath of allegiance, the executive councillor’s oath, and their own oaths of office.
The lieutenant governor then entrusts the Great Seal of Ontario to the minister of government and consumer services.
The swearing-in ceremony for members of the executive council usually takes place in the Lieutenant Governor’s Suite or the Legislative Chamber.
According to the Table of Titles to be used in Canada, members of the Executive Council are styled “Honourable” while in office.
Once appointed, ministers remain in office until:
- The lieutenant governor accepts their resignation (on the advice of the premier), OR
- The premier advises a change in ministerial portfolios or a change in the composition of the executive council (often called a cabinet shuffle), OR
- The minister dies
Cabinet shuffles
From time to time, the premier may wish to change the composition of the executive council.
The premier presents the lieutenant governor with his or her formal recommendations for changes to the executive council and ministerial portfolios. Once the lieutenant governor has approved the recommendations, new members of the executive council swear the oath of allegiance and the executive councillor’s oath. Existing members switching portfolios swear only the necessary oath of office.
If a new minister of public and business service delivery and procurement has been appointed, the lieutenant governor presents them with the Great Seal of Ontario.
Depending on the circumstances and extent of the cabinet shuffle, the swearing-in ceremony may take place in public or private.
Approving government decisions
Many government decisions require the lieutenant governor’s formal approval before receiving the force of law.
Decisions are frequently set out in an order-in-council, a document signed by the lieutenant governor on the recommendation of the premier or another member of the executive council (hence the term “order-in-council”). Orders have a wide variety of uses and are most frequently used to:
- Set up agencies, boards, or commissions
- Appoint people to agencies, boards, or commissions and set their salaries
- Bring laws (or parts of laws) into effect
- Appoint provincial judges and certain senior public servants
- Create advisory bodies and appoint special advisors
- Assign legal responsibilities to government ministers
Most orders-in-council are made under specific laws granting the “Lieutenant Governor in Council”* the power to make orders. They may also be made under the royal prerogative, powers that exist under the common law and remain with the Crown. Both types of orders are made on ministerial advice and are subject to judicial review.