Even though Canada and the U. K. share similar parliamentary systems, Canada has not seen the same revolving door of prime ministers that the U. K. has experienced over the last decade.
Observers suggest that the Brexit vote was a turning point, leading to multiple leaders at 10 Downing Street within just ten years – but there are deeper reasons why U. K. MPs can more readily remove a leader compared to their Canadian peers.
“I think it’s more difficult to govern the country now and that there’s a lot of unrest about this decision,” Lori Turnbull, a political science professor at Dalhousie University, said regarding the U. K.’s choice to leave the European Union.
“As a result, it’s harder for any of the people who are prime minister to stick it out.”
At least two of the six recent resignations directly stemmed from the Brexit fallout. Conservative David Cameron was the first to step down after the 2016 referendum, stating his personal opposition to leaving the EU as his main reason for stepping down.
Theresa May succeeded Cameron but ended up resigning due to her failure in uniting her party over specific Brexit terms.
WATCH | Why Starmer had to resign:
Why Britain’s PM Keir Starmer had no choice but to resign | About That
Less than two years following his landslide electoral victory, Keir Starmer from the U. K. announced his resignation as prime minister. Andrew Chang explains why Starmer’s time in office was short-lived and what his impact will be as only the sixth prime minister in ten years. (Photo credits: The Canadian Press, Reuters, Adobe Stock and Getty Images)
After May came Boris Johnson, who successfully pushed through Brexit but fell victim to numerous scandals during COVID-19. This led to Liz Truss’s notably brief time in office. Rishi Sunak took over from Truss but struggled with declining popularity among Conservatives.
Andrew Mac Dougall – former director of communications for Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper and current partner with Trafalgar Strategy in London – mentioned that Keir Starmer lacked a solid plan when he led Labour against Sunak in 2024.
“[Starmer] won because he was not a Tory,” Mac Dougall said.
“It wasn’t that he presented some grand vision for everything and a plan to get there. He was caught on the hoof by the early election call, didn’t do the planning, ran into Number 10 Downing without a plan [and] got creamed.”
While Brexit acted as a catalyst, Mac Dougall pointed out that global incidents before and after 2016 – such as the Iraq war, 2008 financial crisis, COVID-19 pandemic, and Ukraine conflict – have chipped away at public trust in political institutions.
The combination of these events along with “a disintegrating public sphere” is making governance increasingly “impracticable and impossible,” according to Mac Dougall.
Canada has also faced challenges related to diminishing trust in institutions while dealing with global events affecting this century beyond Brexit.
Cultural Differences Affect Political Dynamics
Both Turnbull and Mac Dougall highlight that political culture plays an important role; thus far allowing parties in Britain greater means of removing their leaders compared to Canada.
The Labour Party and Conservative Party in Britain both possess internal mechanisms enabling caucus members to challenge their leaders openly if they gather enough support. In certain cases like with Starmer’s situation, leaders opt for resignation before facing an internal challenge since it often becomes evident what’s coming next.
In contrast, both Canadian Liberals and Conservatives have leadership review processes specified within their charters; however these only activate following election losses.
The House of Commons also passed The Reform Act in 2015 which permits MPs requiring sufficient backing from colleagues’ caucus members pushing for leadership votes – yet this act remains largely unused aside from former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole’s case.
![]()
Erin O’Toole is notably recognized as being ousted via The Reform Act since its adoption back in 2015. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
The Liberal Party hasn’t embraced provisions outlined by The Reform Act which prevented them from utilizing it against Justin Trudeau despite waning popularity levels. Trudeau finally stepped down only after one year following calls made publicly by some MPs advocating for leadership votes along with internal pressure encouraging him towards departure.
Additionally , backbenchers holding positions where they could question party leaders hold greater acceptance , even expectations within British politics.
“In Britain you have much more robust political culture which includes challenging internal aspects among parties. It isn’t unusual seeing significant numbers arising against various policies ” remarked Mac Dougall.
He contrasted this dynamic stating how just one lone MP dissenting against party line creates headlines across Canada.
Turnbull further asserted managing large group dynamics proves harder given sheer size difference between British Parliament vs smaller Canadian structure.
U K contains total seats reaching 650 while Labour Party’s membership encompasses larger representation (403 members ) exceeding entire sum comprising Canada’s House Of Commons itself!
This means unlike leaders down south utilizing promises tied promotions/demotions alongside smaller factions influencing them heavily , UK counterparts lack those options entirely stated Turnbull herself!
“There simply exists too many individuals involved here hence making administrative posts virtually impossible distributing among everyone involved here.” she added observing how many remain unknown personally!
![]()
Andy Burnham believed likely successor succeeding Starmer posed alongside colleagues belonging towards Labour faction shown throughout Westminster Hall located inside London city limits ( Yui Mok/The Associated Press)
Moreover , traditional party identities maintain precedence outweighing any individual leader branding unlike observed occurring within regions such Mark Carney pivot resulting center orientated approach compared earlier era under Trudeau administration periods !
“To identify oneself categorized Tory or belonging Labour membership carries historic roots barely ever seen anyone leading figure develop significant identity transcending overall association” echoed sentiments shared among her observations !
Macdougall highlighted increasing divisions emerging amongst respective parties possibly complicating management strategies particularly stemming fragmented information networks evolving rapidly alongside societies progressions overall!
This implies knowing full well transformations await Canadians should current trends persist relatively unchanged across borders similarly faced elsewhere today!” exclaimed Mc Dougal highlighting ongoing challenges present continuously across nations maintaining stability amidst evolving landscapes surrounding us today !
Source link
