The Statute of Westminster grants Canada legislative independence
Britain's parliament can no longer legislate for Canada without its consent
Quick facts
- Passed
- 11 December 1931
- Basis
- 1926 Balfour Report
- Key limitation
- Constitution amendment power remained in Britain
- Final court of appeal shift
- 1949, to the Supreme Court of Canada
What happened
The Statute of Westminster, passed by the British Parliament on 11 December 1931, enacted the findings of the 1926 Balfour Report, which had declared Britain and its self-governing Dominions constitutionally 'equal in status.' The statute gave Canada and fellow Dominions, including Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, full legal authority over their own affairs, ending the default power of British law to override Dominion legislation. Canada accepted one major limitation on its own initiative: because federal and provincial governments could not agree on a domestic formula for amending the constitution, Canada asked Britain to retain the power to amend the BNA Act until Canadians worked out their own process, a gap that would not close until 1982. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London also remained Canada's final court of appeal until 1949, when that role passed to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Why it matters
The Statute is often called Canada's declaration of independence, marking full legal sovereignty in nearly every respect except the constitutional amending formula, and its limits reveal how incomplete and negotiated Canadian independence actually was, a process not finished until the 1982 patriation of the Constitution.
How we know
The Statute of Westminster's text is a public act of the British Parliament and is reproduced and analyzed directly by the Canadian Encyclopedia and Canada's History Society.
Sources
- The Canadian Encyclopedia. Statute of Westminster, 1931 · Reputable sourcethecanadianencyclopedia.ca · The domain "thecanadianencyclopedia.ca" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
- Canada's History Society. Canada's Declaration of Independence · General sourcecanadashistory.ca · Cited as a "reference" source (no stronger domain match). · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
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