- Crown corporations of Canada
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Canadian Crown corporations are enterprises owned by the federal government of Canada (the Queen in Right of Canada[1]), one of Canada's provincial governments (the Queen in right of a province) or one of the territorial governments. Crown corporations have a long standing presence in the country and have been instrumental in the formation of the state. They are involved in everything from the distribution, use, and price of certain goods and services to energy development, resource extraction, public transportation, cultural promotion, and property management.
Contents
Structure
In Canada, Crown corporations, within either the federal or provincial sphere, are technically owned and operated by the monarch, as the institution's sole shareholder; this follows the legal premise that the Crown, as an institution, owns all the property of state. In practice, however, most Crown corporations operate at arm's length from the government, with direct government control only being exerted over the corporation's budget and the appointment of its chairperson and directors through Orders in Council.
History
The earliest Crown corporations in Canada date to early European settlement by Scotland, England and France. Much of the colonial territory was de facto settled and governed by the appointed managers of the corporations, often themselves called Governors. The first colonies on the island of Newfoundland were founded in this manner, between 1610 and 1728.
Perhaps Canada's most famous, and influential, Crown corporation was the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), founded on May 2, 1670, by Royal Charter of King Charles II (although HBC is not, and never has been, government owned). The HBC became the world's largest land owner, at one point overseeing 7,770,000 km2 (3,000,000 sq mi),[2] territories that today incorporate the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, as well as Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and the Yukon. The HBC thus often being the point of first contact between the colonial government and First Nations. By the late 19th century, however, the HBC lost its monopoly over Rupert's Land and became a fully privatised company. During the earlier part of the century, many British North American colonies that now comprise the Canadian federation had Crown corporations, often in the form of railways, such as the Nova Scotia Railway, since there was limited private capital available for such endeavours.
At the same time as the HBC was declining in influence and power, other Crown corporations were growing in its place. One of the most significant of that era was the Canadian National Railway (CNR), which spawned Air Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Via Rail, and Marine Atlantic. Today, Canada Post Corporation is an example of a functional department being realigned into a Crown corporation, while the Business Development Bank of Canada and Export Development Canada are modern examples of Crown corporations.
The importance of Crown corporations in the economy has declined in recent years, as a number of significant privatizations have occurred, particularly at the federal level. The heyday of government use of Crown corporations was the period from Confederation (the Intercolonial Railway being the first federal Crown corporation) through 1988 (the privatization of Air Canada).
List of Canadian Crown corporations
Federal
- Atlantic Pilotage Authority
- Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL)
- Bank of Canada
- Blue Water Bridge Authority
- Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC)
- Canada Council for the Arts (Canada Council)
- Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation
- Canada Development Investment Corporation
- Canada Employment Insurance Financing Board (CEIFB)
- Canada Lands Company
- Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
- Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
- Canada Post Corporation
- Canada Science and Technology Museum Corporation
- Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA)
- Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
- Canadian Commercial Corporation
- Canadian Dairy Commission
- Canadian Museum of Civilization
- Canadian Museum of Nature
- Canadian Race Relations Foundation
- Canadian Tourism Commission
- Cape Breton Growth Fund Corporation
- Defence Construction Limited
- Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation
- Export Development Canada
- Farm Credit Canada
- Federal Bridge Corporation Limited
- Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation
- Great Lakes Pilotage Authority
- International Development Research Centre
- Laurentian Pilotage Authority
- Marine Atlantic Inc.
- National Arts Centre
- National Capital Commission
- National Gallery of Canada
- National Museum of Science and Technology
- Old Port of Montreal Corporation Inc.
- Pacific Pilotage Authority
- Parc Downsview Park Inc.
- Public Sector Pension Investment Board
- Ridley Terminals Inc.
- Royal Canadian Mint
- Standards Council of Canada
- Telefilm Canada
- Via Rail Canada Inc.
Provincial
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Alberta
- Alberta Investment Management
- ATB Financial
- Agriculture Financial Services Corporation
- Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission
- Alberta Pensions Services Corporation
British Columbia
- BC Assessment
- BC Hydro (formed in 1961 taking over the assets of the British Columbia Electric Railway)
- BC Investment Management Corporation
- BC Lottery Corporation
- BC Pension Corporation
- Homeowner Protection Office
- Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (formed in 1973)
- Knowledge
- Liquor Distribution Branch
- Royal British Columbia Museum
- Transportation Investment Corporation (formed in 2008)
- Tourism British Columbia (formed in 1997)
Manitoba
- Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation
- Manitoba Arts Council
- Manitoba Boxing Commission
- Manitoba Film and Music
- Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation
- Manitoba Hydro
- Manitoba Lotteries Corporation (MLC)
- Manitoba Liquor Control Commission (MLCC)
- Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation (MPIC)
New Brunswick
- Atlantic Lottery Corporation
- NB Power
- New Brunswick Liquor Corporation
- Service New Brunswick
- New Brunswick Community College
Newfoundland and Labrador
- Nalcor Energy
- Newfoundland and Labrador Film Development Corporation
- Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro
- Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation
- Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation
- Research & Development Corporation
Nova Scotia
- Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
- Halifax-Dartmouth Bridge Commission
- Innovacorp
- Nova Scotia Agricultural College (though currently a department of the Department of Agriculture, it is currently in the process of transformation to a crown corporation by 2011.)
- Nova Scotia Arts Council
- Nova Scotia Beef Commission
- Nova Scotia Business Incorporated
- Nova Scotia Crop and Livestock Insurance Commission
- Nova Scotia Farm Loan Board
- Nova Scotia Film Development Corporation
- Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation
- Nova Scotia Harness Racing Incorporated
- Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC)
- Nova Scotia Municipal Finance Corporation (NSMFC)
- Nova Scotia Power Finance Corporation
- Nova Scotia Resources Limited
- Rockingham Terminal Inc.
- Sydney Environmental Resources Limited
- Sydney Steel Corporation
- Tidal Power Corporation
- Trade Centre Limited
- Waterfront Development Corporation Limited
Ontario
- Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario
- Hydro One (successor of Ontario Hydro)
- Independent Electricity System Operator (successor of Ontario Hydro)
- Infrastructure Ontario
- Liquor Control Board of Ontario
- Metrolinx (also responsible for the operation of GO Transit)
- Ontario Agricorp
- Ontario Clean Water Agency
- Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation
- Ontario Northland Transportation Commission
- Ontario Place
- Ontario Power Generation
- Ontario Science Centre
- Science North
- TFO
- TVOntario
- Workplace Safety & Insurance Board
Quebec
- Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec
- Hydro-Québec
- Investissement Québec
- Société des alcools du Québec
- Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec
- Société des casinos du Québec
- Société générale de financement du Québec
- Société de transport de Montréal
- Télé-Québec
- Loto-Québec
Saskatchewan
- Crown Investments Corporation
- Enterprise Saskatchewan
- Information Services Corporation of Saskatchewan
- Investment Saskatchewan
- Municipal Financing Corporation of Saskatchewan (MFC)
- Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation (SCIC)
- Saskatchewan Development Fund Corporation
- Saskatchewan Grain Car Corporation
- Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority
- Saskatchewan Government Growth Fund Management Corporation
- Saskatchewan Government Insurance
- Saskatchewan Housing Corporation (SHC)
- Saskatchewan Opportunities Corporation (SOCO)
- Saskatchewan Transportation Company
- Saskatoon Light & Power (owned by the city of Saskatoon)
- SaskEnergy
- Sask Gaming
- SaskPower
- SaskTel
- SaskWater
Territorial
Privatized ex-Crown corporations
See also: Category:Former Crown corporations of Canada and List of privatizationsSeveral private Canadian companies were once Crown corporations, including:
- Air Canada (privatized in 1988)
- Alberta Government Telephones / BCTel (Now Telus Communications)
- British Columbia Electric Railway (private company from 1891 to 1961 when it was nationalized and formed into BC Hydro before the rail portion was sold in 1989)
- BC Ferries has not been a crown corporation since April 2, 2003
- BCRail
- BC Rail Communications (formed in 1972 and sold in 1993 as Westel)
- Cameco Corporation
- Canadair (formed as a Crown Corp in 1944, privatized in 1946, acquired by government in 1976, privatized in 1986)
- Canadian National Railway
- de Havilland Canada (formed as a private company in 1928, nationalized during World War 2, privatized in 1986)
- Eldorado Mining and Refining Limited (Part of Cameco Corporation)
- Highway 407 ETR
- Intercolonial Railway (merged in Canadian National Railway in 1918)
- Manitoba Telephone System (Now MTS Allstream)
- Nova Scotia Power (formed in 1918, privatized in 1992)
- Petro-Canada
- Polymer Corporation
- Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (PCS)
- Saskatchewan Communications Network
- Saskatchewan Government Airways
- Saskatchewan Minerals
- Saskatchewan Mining Development Corporation (Part of Cameco Corporation)
- Saskatchewan Oil & Gas Corporation
- SPUDCO
- Teleglobe (formed in 1950, privatized in 1987)
- Wascana Energy
See also
- Canada Development Corporation
- Structure of the Canadian federal government
- Nationalization
- Executive Agency
References
- ^ Canada Development Investment Corporation (2008), Annual Report 2008, Ottawa: Queen's Printer for Canada, p. 13, http://www.cdiccei.ca/english/pdf/CDIC_Annual_Report_2008%20_Eng.pdf, retrieved 21 April 2010, "Canada Development Investment Corporation... is wholly-owned by Her Majesty in Right of Canada"
- ^ Galbraith, John S. (1957). The Hudson's Bay Company As An Imperial Factor 1821-1869. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.
- Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat: 2001 Annual Report To Parliament - Crown Corporations and Other Corporate Interests of Canada
- Canadian Heritage Performance Report; March 31, 1998
- Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat: 2007 Annual Report to Parliament - Crown Corporations and other Corporate Interests of Canada
External links
Canadian monarchy The Crown Viceroys Constitutional Queen-in-Council · Queen-in-Parliament · Queen-on-the-Bench · Queen's peace · The Canadian Crown and the Canadian Forces · The Canadian Crown and Aboriginal peoplesLegal Royal charter · Royal commissions · Crown corporations · Crown copyright · Queen's Printer · Crown CollectionCeremonial and symbolic Related Categories:- Crown corporations of Canada
- Monarchy in Canada
- Lists of companies of Canada
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