The 5th Parliament of the Province of Canada was summoned in August 1854, following the general election for the
Legislative Assembly in July 1854. The number of seats in the Assembly had been increased by the
4th Parliament of the Province of Canada to 130, 65 for each section. Sessions were held in
Quebec City
Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...
until 1856 and then in
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
. The Parliament was dissolved in November 1857.
In 1854 and 1855, measures were introduced to abolish
seigneurial tenure in Canada East and the
clergy reserves in Canada West. The
Canadian–American Reciprocity Treaty
The Canadian–American Reciprocity Treaty of 1854, also known as the Elgin-Marcy Treaty (after its key negotiators, James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin and William L. Marcy), was a treaty between the United Kingdom and the United States that applied ...
was negotiated in 1854. In 1855, a bill was passed to make the
Legislative Council
A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...
an elected body, effective the following year. The Audit Act of 1855 established an auditor of public accounts, the first
auditor general
An auditor general, also known in some countries as a comptroller general or comptroller and auditor general, is a senior civil servant charged with improving government accountability by auditing and reporting on the government's operations.
Freq ...
and the Audit Board, a new government department, which reviewed the public accounts.
The
Speaker of this parliament was
Louis-Victor Sicotte.
Canada East - 65 seats
Canada West - 65 seats
References
* George Emery, Elections in Oxford County 1838-1875, University of Toronto Press (2011)
*''Upper Canadian politics in the 1850s'', Underhill (and others), University of Toronto Press (1967)
*
External links
Ontario's parliament buildings ; or, A century of legislation, 1792-1892 : a historical sketch Assemblée nationale du Québec (French)
{{Parliament of the Province of Canada
1854 in Canada
05