Canada Today, 2015–2026: Political Developments and Your Own Inquiry

History is still being written

Everything in this unit began in 1982, but the story does not stop. In 2025 alone, Canada changed prime ministers, held a federal election, faced a trade war, and heard its King deliver a Speech from the Throne. In 2026, Parliament's balance of power changed, Quebec elected a sovereigntist government, and Alberta scheduled a referendum on remaining in Canada.

In this final lesson you will pull the political story together, from 1982 to October 2026, and then use the historical inquiry process to investigate a question of your own. This is what historians do: connect the past to the present and make careful, evidence-based judgements.

Political developments and policies, 1982–2015: a quick review

• Mulroney (1984–1993): free trade (1989), the GST (1991), the Meech Lake and Charlottetown accords, the Multiculturalism Act (1988), the Japanese Canadian redress (1988), the Air Quality Agreement (1991).
• Campbell (1993): Canada's first woman prime minister.
• Chrétien (1993–2003): spending cuts and balanced budgets, the 1995 referendum and the Clarity Act (2000), the Firearms Act (1995) creating a long-gun registry, the creation of Nunavut (1999), ratifying the Kyoto Protocol on climate change (2002), and staying out of the Iraq War (2003).
• Martin (2003–2006): the Civil Marriage Act (2005).
• Harper (2006–2015): the residential schools apology (2008), the Head Tax apology (2006), cutting the GST to 5%, the Afghanistan combat mission, withdrawing from Kyoto (2011), and ending the long-gun registry (2012). He focused on the economy, the military and Arctic sovereignty.

2015–2026: recent developments

Justin Trudeau (2015–2025). Elected with a majority in 2015, he named Canada's first gender-balanced cabinet. His governments:

• joined the Paris Agreement on climate change (negotiated in 2015, signed in 2016) and introduced national carbon pricing (from 2019);
• legalized medical assistance in dying (2016) after a Supreme Court ruling, and cannabis (October 17, 2018);
• created the Canada Child Benefit (2016) and, later, agreements for $10-a-day child care and a national dental care plan;
• passed the UNDRIP Act and made September 30 a national day (2021);
• banned many models of assault-style firearms in May 2020, after a mass shooting in Nova Scotia;
• led Canada through the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2022).

He faced controversies, such as the SNC-Lavalin affair (2019), in which the federal Ethics Commissioner found he had broken conflict-of-interest rules. His party won minority governments in 2019 and 2021. Facing low polls, he announced his resignation on January 6, 2025.

Mark Carney (2025–). A former governor of the Bank of Canada and of the Bank of England, Carney won the Liberal leadership on March 9, 2025 and became prime minister on March 14. Among his first actions, he ended the consumer carbon price (April 1, 2025). He called an election for April 28, 2025, fought mainly on how to respond to U.S. tariffs and annexation talk. The Liberals won 169 seats, just short of a majority. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre lost his own seat but returned in a by-election in August 2025. The NDP fell to 7 seats.

On May 27, 2025, King Charles III opened Parliament by reading the Speech from the Throne in Ottawa, the first time a monarch had done so since 1977, which many saw as a statement of Canadian sovereignty.

From late 2025, five opposition MPs crossed the floor to the Liberals. After the Liberals won three by-elections on April 13, 2026, they held 174 seats, a majority. Opposition parties criticized the floor crossings; the government said no rule was broken.

Why these skills matter beyond history class (A2)

The skills you practised in this unit are transferable:

• Evaluating sources helps you spot misinformation online, including AI-generated content.
• Considering multiple perspectives helps in teamwork, family discussions and community decisions.
• Making evidence-based judgements helps when you vote, choose a program after high school, or make a major purchase.
• Communicating clearly and citing sources matters in every course and job.

Careers that use historical inquiry skills include: journalist, lawyer or paralegal, archivist, museum curator, teacher, policy analyst in government, Indigenous relations advisor, researcher for film and TV, librarian, and public servant. These skills connect to Grade 11 and 12 courses in history, law, politics and world issues.