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Fusion of powers is a feature of someparliamentary forms of government where different branches of government are intermingled or fused, typically theexecutive andlegislative branches.[1] It is contrasted with theseparation of powers[2] found inpresidential,semi-presidential anddualistic parliamentary forms of government, where the membership of the legislative and executive powers cannot overlap. Fusion of powers exists in many, if not a majority of, parliamentary democracies, and does so by design. However, in all modern democratic polities thejudiciary does not possess legislative or executive powers.[a]
The system first arose as a result of political evolution in theUnited Kingdom over many centuries, as the powers of themonarch became constrained byParliament.[3] The termfusion of powers itself is believed to have been coined by theBritish constitutional expertWalter Bagehot.[4]
Australia has a partially Westminster-derived parliamentary system in which the executive branch is entirely composed of members of the legislative branch.[5] Government ministers are required to be members of parliament—but the federal judiciary strictly guards its independence from the other two branches.[6]
Canada, like other parliamentary countries using theWestminster system, has a fusion between the executive and the legislative branches, with thePrime Minister and otherCabinet ministers being members of Parliament. SenatorEugene Forsey ofCanada remarked that "in Canada, theGovernment and theHouse of Commons cannot be at odds for more than a few weeks at a time. If they differ on any matter of importance, then, promptly, there is either a new government or a new House of Commons."[7] However, the two branches have distinct roles, and in certain instances can come into conflict with each other. For example, in June 2021, theSpeaker of the House of Commons directed a member of the public service to comply with an order of the House of Commons to share certain documents with the Commons, and the public servant refused to do so. The federal government announced that it would challenge the Speaker's ruling in the Federal Court,[8] but dropped the lawsuit in August when Parliament was dissolved for afederal election.[9]
TheDanish government relies on theconfidence of the parliament,Folketinget, to stay in power. If there is a successfulmotion of no confidence against the government, it collapses and either a new government is formed or new elections are called. The executive branch thus relies on the legislative branch.
The currentFrench Fifth Republic provides an example of the fusion of powers from a country that does not follow theWestminster system. Rather France follows a model known alternatively as asemi-presidential system or 'mixed presidential-parliamentary' system, which exists somewhere betweenparliamentary democracies andpresidential democracies.
Israel has a Westminster-derived parliamentary system, in which theGovernment is generally made up of members of theKnesset, Israel's parliament. It is legally possible in Israel to appoint ministers who are not members of Knesset, but that is usually not done. By law, thePrime Minister andDeputy Prime Minister must be members of Knesset.[10]
The parliamentary system in Sweden has since its new constitution in 1974 instituted a fusion of powers whereby the principle of "popular sovereignty" serves as the guiding light of principle of government and forms the first line of the constitution.[11]
The United Kingdom is generally considered the country with the strongest fusion of powers. Until 2005, theLord Chancellor was a full fusion of all branches, beingspeaker in the House of Lords, a government minister heading theLord Chancellor's Department, and head of the judiciary.
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