The CLARITY ACT, officially known as An Act to give effect to the requirement for clarity as set out in the opinion of the Supreme Court of Canada in the Quebec Secession Reference, is federal legislation enacted in 2000 in response to the narrow 1995 Quebec referendum on sovereignty. It establishes the conditions under which the Government of Canada would enter into negotiations regarding the secession of a province.
Key provisions of the Clarity Act
- A referendum question on secession must be clear and unambiguous, directly asking whether the province should become independent.
- The vote must reflect a clear majority in favor of secession—though the exact threshold is not defined in the Act and is left to the House of Commons to determine.
- House of Commons must formally decide, by resolution, whether the referendum question and results meet the clarity criteria before any negotiations can begin.
- The Act emphasizes that secession requires a constitutional amendment, which needs the consent of the federal Parliament and all provincial governments.
The Act was introduced after the Supreme Court ruled in 1998 that Quebec could not unilaterally secede, but that the federal government would be obligated to negotiate if a clear expression of will emerged from a clear question. The Clarity Act formalized this process, ensuring that any secession would require broad consensus and legal clarity.
While the Act applies to all provinces, it was primarily shaped by Quebec’s sovereignty movement. It has been criticized for excluding the Senate from decision-making and for not fully addressing Indigenous rights in secession scenarios. Despite these concerns, it remains a cornerstone of Canada’s constitutional framework for managing national unity.
Stella's Place 
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I remember the Quebec referendum. I was listening to the results and the speeches, with a French to English interpreter, when their loss was blamed on “money and the ethnic vote”.
Up to the day of the referendum, the feds and all across the country, people were working to convince Quebec not to leave. We love you! We want you to stay! and so on. Once they lost, all Quebec has had to do is threaten to leave, and the feds would give in and throw them more billions.
Now that Alberta wants a referendum, it’s pure hate from the Eastern provinces in particular, but a lot of accusations of treason, etc. from leftists across the country. They truly hate Alberta and Albertans, but do love those “equalization” payments!
I lived in Alberta for many years. They came very close to being ruined when they accidentally elected an NDP government, largely because the media propaganda went into overdrive. So many people voted for the party they didn’t think could win, as a protest vote, that they actually won. The damage the NDP did within one year was staggering.
I look forward to AB’s referendum. The response in favour of independence is massive – I was part of it, back in the day, and the momentum was lost, largely due basically to infiltrators that were very good at causing division and strife – if not simply taking over groups and, once in positions of authority, showing their true colours and tearing them apart. This time, the numbers are just too big to rig. The Feds will do everything they can to block it, of course.
Once AB goes independent, SK will soon follow. BC and MB want to as well, but they are stuck with NDP premiers right now. BC is a real hot mess at the moment. Ultimately, I’m looking towards a Republic of Western Canada, which will likely include the territories, too. The East can’t survive without Alberta’s money and will fall apart.
Assuming the feds don’t start making like voters are ostriches in a holding area. Which, at this point, wouldn’t surprise me.
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