Canada lies in the north of North America. It borders the Atlantic Ocean in the east, the Pacific Ocean in the west, Alaska in the northwest, the United States in the south and the Arctic Ocean in the north. The coastline is about 240 thousand kilometers long. The temperature in the east is slightly lower, the climate in the south is mild, the climate in the west is mild and humid, and the climate in the north is cold and tundra. The highest temperature in the midwest is above 40℃, and the lowest temperature in the north is as low as -60℃.
Canada has the longest coastline in the world. The south borders the United States, with a border of 8892 kilometers.
Due to the cold climate in the north, only 12% of the land is suitable for farming. Therefore, most of Canada's 30 million people live in a narrow area with mild climate and within a few hundred kilometers from the southern border, especially in the lakes and St. Lawrence area bordering the United States, with flat terrain, fertile land and rich products. It is the most densely populated area in Canada and the most concentrated area of industry and agriculture.
There are many lakes in Canada. If you fly over Manetho or northern Ontario in summer, you will see more water than land, and there are countless lakes, large and small. It is estimated that Canada has one seventh of the world's fresh water. In addition to the Great Lakes connected with the United States, there are many rivers in Canada. Canada is a rainy and snowy country. Trees and crops can get enough water, so they thrive. The changeable and dazzling scenery of Xuefeng is world-famous.
Canada's forest coverage accounts for 44% of the country's total area, ranking second in the world after Russia. Canada is rich in mineral resources and is one of the largest mineral countries in the world except the United States and Russia.
Canada has five geographical regions. They are the eastern, central, grassland, west coast and northern regions of the Atlantic Ocean. The eastern region is dominated by fisheries, agriculture, forestry and mining. Ontario and Quebec in the middle are the most densely populated areas, accounting for three quarters of Canada's manufacturing industry. Grassland includes Manetho, Saskatchewan and Alberta, where the land is flat, fertile and rich in energy. The west coast area is British Columbia, a famous mountain and forest area, which is rich in resources such as wood, fruit and marine assets. The northern region consists of Yukon and Northwest China, and is rich in oil, natural gas, gold, lead and zinc.
administrative division
Canada is divided into ten provinces and three regions. The provinces have gained considerable autonomy from the federal government, while the autonomy of the SAR is even smaller. Every province and region has a unicameral parliament.
Alberta (English, French: Alberta, founding year: 1905, capital: Edmonton)
British Columbia (English: British Columbia, French: Colombie-Britannique, accession year: 187 1, capital: Victoria)
Manitoba (English, French: Manitoba, accession year: 1870, capital: Winnipeg)
Newfoundland and Labrador (English: Newfoundland and Labrador, French: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador, accession year: 1949, capital: St. John).
New Brunswick (English: New Brunswick, French: Nouveau-Brunswick, accession year: 1867, capital: Federicton)
Northwest China (English: Northwest China, French: Northwest China, accession year: 1870, capital: Yelonev).
Nova Scotia (English: Nova Scotia, French: Nouvelle- Cosse, accession year: 1867, capital: Halifax)
Nunavut (English, French: Nunavut, 1999 separated from northwest China, capital: Iqaluit).
Ontario (English, French: Ontario, accession year: 1867, capital: Toronto)
Prince Edward Island (English: Prince Edward Island, French:? Leduprins? Douard, year of accession: 1873, capital: Charlottetown)
Quebec (French: Québec, English: Quebec, accession year: 1867, capital: Quebec City).
Saskatchewan (English, French: Saskatchewan, founding year: 1905, capital: Regina)
Yukon (English, French: Yukon, year of accession: 1898, capital: Whitehorse)
politics
Since the establishment of the 1867 Federation, basically, the Liberal Party and the Progressive Conservative Party have taken turns to govern. 1993, the liberal party won the 35th federal parliamentary election, and Chretien became the prime minister. 1997 and the general elections in 2000, the Liberal Party won one after another, and Ke came to power again. In June 2003, Paul Martin was elected as the new leader of the Liberal Party. In February 2003, Chretien announced his retirement, and Martin succeeded him as Prime Minister. After Martin took office, medical and health care, educational innovation, strengthening urban construction, and enhancing Canada's economic competitiveness and international status were listed as the key points of governance. In March 2004, a corruption scandal broke out in the liberal government, and the support rate once fell to the lowest point in 10 years. In June, Canada held a general election, and the Liberal Party won again, and Prime Minister Martin was re-elected. In 2006, Conservative Party leader stephen harper won the general election and was elected as the 22nd Canadian Prime Minister.
form
1867, the British Parliament passed the British North America Act, and Canada gained autonomy in internal affairs, but foreign affairs and military affairs were still under British control.
193 1 year, the Westminster Act upgraded Canada to an autonomous territory, with diplomatic and military autonomy, but still belonging to the British king (such as the "Royal Canadian Army").
In 1982, the current Canadian Constitution was adopted and came into effect by 9 provinces (Quebec opposed) in 10, with the Canadian Charter of Freedoms and Rights in 1960 as the preface. According to the Constitution, Canada has a federal parliamentary system, with the King of England as the head of state and the Governor-General as the representative of the Queen of England in Canada. Both English and French are official languages. Constitutional purpose: peace, order and good governance.
parliament
It consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Bills passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives are signed into law by the Governor. The Governor has the power to convene and dissolve Parliament "at the request of the Prime Minister". The Senate has a total of 65,438+005 seats, and the number of seats is allocated according to the population ratio and historical practice of the Canadian Parliament and related institutions. Senators are nominated by the Federal Chancellor and appointed by the Governor-General. 1965 Those who were employed before June 2 were appointed for life, and those who were employed after that were retired at the age of 75. Daniel Philip Hayes, Speaker of the Senate, took office at 5438+0 and 1 in 2006. There are 308 seats in the House of Representatives, and the members of the House of Representatives are directly elected by federal constituencies according to the proportion of the population in each province. The term of office shall not exceed five years. The Speaker of the House of Representatives is Peter milliken, a liberal. The 40th election of the Federal House of Representatives was held on June 5438+ 10, 2008. The seats occupied are: Conservative Party 143, Liberal Party 77, Quebec Group 49, New Democracy Party 37, and independents 2.
government
Cabinet system The political parties with the majority seats in the House of Representatives form the Cabinet, and its leader is the Prime Minister. The current cabinet was formed by the Conservative Party on June 5438+065438+ 10, 2008. In addition to the Prime Minister, there are 1 deputy prime ministers, 32 ministers, 1 Senate leaders, 1 House leaders and deputy leaders, and 8 ministers of state. Mainly: Prime Minister stephen harper; Minister of Foreign Affairs and Multiculturalism jason kenny; Secretary of Defense Peter McKay; And Lawrence Cannon, Minister of International Relations and Foreign Trade.
judicial authority
There are three levels of courts in Canada: federal courts, provincial courts and local courts (collectively referred to as municipal courts). Federal courts generally accept financial, maritime and related economic cases. The Supreme Court is composed of 1 justices and 8 jury judges. It mainly arbitrates major political, legal and constitutional issues appealed by the federal and provincial governments, as well as major civil and criminal cases. The decision of the Supreme Court is final. Judges of the Supreme Court are nominated by the Prime Minister, appointed by the Governor and retired at the age of 75. Ms Beverly McLachlin, Chief Justice, took office in June 2000. Owen kotler, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, took office in June 5438+February 2003. Each province has provincial high courts and provincial courts, which mainly try criminal cases and other important cases related to the province, but some provincial courts also try civil cases. Local courts usually hear civil cases.
political party
(1) Liberal Party: The formal opposition party in Parliament was established in 1873. Represent the interests of monopoly capital groups in the industry and give consideration to the interests of small and medium-sized enterprises. Leader: stephane dion.
(2) Conservative Party of Canada: the current ruling party. Add a right-wing party. It was formed in February 2003 by the merger of Canada's Improved Conservative Alliance Party and the Progressive Conservative Party, representing the monopoly capital of banking, insurance, railway transportation, energy industry and the interests of large farmers. Leader: stephen harper.
(3) Quebec block: founded in 1990. This group represents the interests of Quebec people and advocates Quebec independence. Leader: Gilles Dusep.
(4) New Democracy Party: Canadian left-wing party. 196 1 is composed of the Civil Cooperative Alliance and the Canadian Labour Congress. The party belongs to the Social Democratic Party, represents the interests of the middle and lower working classes, advocates enterprise public ownership and flaunts socialism. Leader: Jack Leighton.
Other political parties include: Social Credit Party, Canada Party, Green Party and Canada.
tourism
Tourism in Canada is very developed. According to the statistics of the World Tourism Organization, Canada ranks ninth among the countries with the highest income in the World Tourism Organization. In 2003, the tourism revenue was 22.666 billion Canadian dollars, accounting for 65.438+0.87% of GDP. Received 38.9027 million foreign tourists. The number of people directly engaged in tourism service industry is 5610.4 million (5438+0 in 2006). The main tourist cities are Vancouver, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City.