Nova Scotia House Of Assembly
The Nova Scotia Legislature, consisting of the Lieutenant Governor (sometimes referred to as the Governor) and the House of Assembly, is the legislative branch of the provincial government of Nova Scotia, Canada. The Assembly is the oldest in Canada, having first sat in 1758, and in 1848 was the site of the first responsible government in colonies of the British Empire.
Originally (in 1758), the Legislature consisted of the Governor (later a Lieutenant Governor), the appointed Nova Scotia Council (upper chamber) (which met in the Red Chamber shown on the right and now used for committee meetings and social functions) and the elected House of Assembly (lower chamber). The Council had both executive and legislative functions. In 1838, the Council was replaced by an Executive Council with the executive function and a Legislative Council with the upper chamber legislative function. In 1928, the Legislative Council was abolished.
There are 52 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) representing 52 electoral districts. Members nearly always represent one of the three main political parties of the province, the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia, Liberal Party of Nova Scotia, and Nova Scotia New Democratic Party.
The Assembly meets in Province House. Located in Halifax Province House is a National Historic Site and Canada's oldest and smallest legislative building. It opened on February 11, 1819. The building was also the original home to the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, and the location of the "Freedom of the Press" trial of Joseph Howe. Its main entrance is found on Hollis Street in Halifax.
Read more about Nova Scotia House Of Assembly: Party Standings, Seating Plan
Famous quotes containing the words nova scotia, nova, house and/or assembly:
“Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Canada are the horns, the head, the neck, the shins, and the hoof of the ox, and the United States are the ribs, the sirloin, the kidneys, and the rest of the body.”
—William Cobbett (1762–1835)
“I’m a Nova Scotia bluenose. Since I was a baby, I’ve been watching men look at ships. It’s easy to tell the ones they like. You’re only waiting to get her into deep water, aren’t you—because she’s yours.”
—John Rhodes Sturdy, Canadian screenwriter. Richard Rossen. Joyce Cartwright (Ella Raines)
“This house was designed and constructed with the freedom of stroke of a forester’s axe, without other compass and square than Nature uses.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Our assembly being now formed not by ourselves but by the goodwill and sprightly imagination of our readers, we have nothing to do but to draw up the curtain ... and to discover our chief personage on the stage.”
—Sarah Fielding (1710–1768)