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The Canada Gazette

Martha Foote, B.A., M.L.I.S. (see footnote 1)

Seal

The Canada Gazette is the official newspaper of the Government of Canada. It has been published regularly by the Queen's Printer since 1841, although its antecedents can be traced back more than two centuries. In it are published new statutes and regulations, proposed regulations, decisions of administrative boards, private sector notices and an assortment of government notices which are required by statute to be published so as to disseminate this information to the public. This paper will examine the origins of the Canada Gazette, its early years and the effects of Confederation, the creation of separate parts for regulations and new statutes, and the development of an Internet edition.

History of the gazette

The earliest gazettes originated in Italy in the fifteenth century as newsletters which enjoyed wide circulation throughout Europe. In England, the first gazette was the Oxford Gazette, which published its first issue on November 16, 1665. At this time the court of Charles II had moved to Oxford in order to escape the plague. Gazettes were published concurrently in London and Oxford, but when the court returned to London early in 1666 the Oxford edition ceased and the publication became known as the London Gazette, the name it has retained ever since. In addition to its reputation for accuracy and authoritativeness, its importance lies in its emergence as the first real newspaper in England. Prior to the establishment of the Oxford Gazette, news had been published in the form of a book or booklet. The Oxford Gazette was a two-column half sheet printed on both sides, establishing a format for news publication which has continued, with some modifications, to the present day. Both the Oxford Gazette and the London Gazette were used by the Government to communicate information to the public as well as to exercise control over the dissemination of news. The gazettes were non-partisan and contained no editorial commentary, publishing instead foreign news and shipping reports (see footnote 2).

In addition to the London Gazette, which is now published each weekday, there are a number of other Commonwealth gazettes, and each province and territory of Canada also publishes its own gazette.

Footnotes

Footnote 1
Originally published 1995; revised December 2000. The author wishes to thank Michel LeClerc, Regulatory Analyst, Department of Fisheries and Oceans; Elizabeth Deavy, formerly Official Publications Specialist, National Library of Canada; and Carole Kennedy, Director of the Canada Gazette Directorate, Communication Canada, for generously sharing their expertise on this subject.

Footnote 2
P.M. Handover, A History of the London Gazette1665-1965 (London: H.M.S.O., 1965) at 2-12.

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