Canada in Question: Exploring our Citizenship in the Twenty-First Century

University of Toronto Press/March 2022

Reviewed by Daniel Béland

May 16, 2022

When we think about the future of Canada, citizenship is a key concept that requires close attention. This is especially the case in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has generated a debate on social solidarity and the rights and responsibilities of citizens. In this short book, Peter MacKinnon — president emeritus of the University of Saskatchewan and currently interim director of the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary — explores recent economic, political, and social developments reshaping Canadian citizenship today.

In only 120 pages, including notes and references, MacKinnon discusses the challenges facing the country, but also potential solutions to “renew our Canadian citizenship in light of the contemporary pressures to which it is being subjected.” As McKinnon states early on, his “concern is not with the concept of citizenship in general; it is with the influences acting upon Canadian citizenship and with its vitality and future.” Yet, the book draws on both the Canadian and international literature to map the pressures facing Canadian citizenship and the possible ways to address them.

His analysis begins with a general discussion of citizenship, cosmopolitanism, and identity politics in the Canadian context. Rejecting the claim that Canada only has provincial identities, MacKinnon emphasizes the importance of institutions, which “provide the constitutional framework for our federation, and…are the only legitimate arbiters of our political differences, including those related to identity.”

Then, he turns to populism and an “us-versus-them” approach to politics and society that he sees as a major threat to governance institutions that foster citizenship in Canada. According to MacKinnon, the rejection of pluralism as central to populism is especially problematic; he is also concerned by what he sees as an attack on “Enlightenment values” in Canadian society, including on university campuses.

Another crucial issue for contemporary citizenship MacKinnon tackles is Reconciliation with Canada’s Indigenous Peoples, which raises crucial issues regarding education, governance, and public administration. He also stresses the importance of public opinion for Reconciliation in the aftermath of the massive early 2020 protests of the Coastal GasLink pipeline project in northern British Columbia.

Along with wanting to improve the relationship between Canada and Indigenous peoples, MacKinnon is also concerned about the fate of immigrants in Canada. Although Canadians tend to hold relatively positive views on immigration, episodes such as the multiplication of asylum seekers crossing the Canada-U.S. board by foot during the Trump presidency can weaken support for immigration. More generally, Canada needs to prepare for the next waves of global migration triggered by climate change, which are likely to impact Canada directly.

For MacKinnon, to address the many challenges discussed in his book, it is essential to focus on enhanced political participation, shared citizenship and what people have in common, rather than focusing almost exclusively on what sets them apart.

Domestic economic and demographic factors are also a source of preoccupation for MacKinnon. He is concerned by Canada’s lagging productivity and the enduring existence of regional disparities currently exacerbated by the country’s demographic imbalance; this is synonymous with faster population aging and increased healthcare costs in the five provinces located east of Ontario. Although he supports the principle of equalization, he thinks the program needs significant reform, including a transformation of its governance to reduce the politicization of this federal program. To stimulate economic growth, MacKinnon also advocates a reduction of tariff and non-tariff barriers to internal trade within Canada’s fragmented federal system.

This discussion leads to a bleak assessment of declining confidence in key political institutions such as the House of Commons, the Senate, and the federal public service. According to MacKinnon, the only silver linings are the greater trust Canadians place in municipal governments and universities, which play a major role within our democratic system.

For MacKinnon, to address the many challenges discussed in his book, it is essential to focus on enhanced political participation, shared citizenship and what people have in common, rather than focusing almost exclusively on what sets them apart. Here he discusses concrete institutional and policy recommendations to improve citizenship integration such as compulsory voting, earlier voting age, and the creation of “a Team Canada to enable young Canadians to learn about and serve the country.” These proposals are only three of the many policy ideas MacKinnon puts forward.

We must commend the author for writing such a clear and concise book that covers so much ground while raising important issues and assessing clear policy proposals about the future of Canadian citizenship and democracy. MacKinnon is a former university president advancing a moderate, centrist, and pragmatic agenda. Readers may not agree with his vision, but they are likely to appreciate the quality of his writing and the lack of gratuitous polemic in a very thoughtful book.

This book has a couple of significant flaws, however. First, MacKinnon says little about Quebec and almost nothing about the politics of language in Canada. In this context, it is impossible to assess what he thinks of the two official languages, English and French, and their relationship with Canadian citizenship, especially identity in an era of greater ethno-cultural diversity. The limited attention to Quebec is also interesting because it reflects a broader fatigue of many anglophone academics and intellectuals vis-à-vis the “Quebec question,” which has faded to the background since the late 1990s.

Second, some of the policy recommendations formulated in the last chapter are rather vague, and they would have beneficiated from a bit more detail. For example, at the end of the book, parliamentary reform is mentioned, but some proposals like “a Senate more capable of adding voice to the different parts of the country” lack specificity.

Despite these two limitations, what we have here is an excellent example of the kind of short and clearly-written books that academics should write to contribute to important public debates within and beyond the Ivory Tower. As a former university president, MacKinnon believes academics should contribute to broader policy and political debates, and he clearly preaches by example here. We need more books like his in Canada today.

Daniel Béland is Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada and James McGill Professor of Political Science, McGill University.