Deputy Prime Minister of Canada of service of Allan J. MacEachen. Before then, Trudeau had given the title of "Senior Minister" to a member of his cabinet. The last to occupy that position was Paul Hellyer. Joe Clark's government did not have a deputy prime minister. Similarly, Prime Minister Stephen Harper did not designate a deputy prime minister, meaning Canada's most recent deputy prime minister was Anne McLellan, who in 2006, was also the first deputy prime minister to lose her seat in the House of Commons. Harper gave special status in the line of authority to members of his cabinet: under an order-in-council issued
Prime Minister of Canada the House of Commons; as a practical matter, this is often the leader of a party whose members form a majority, or a very large plurality, of Members of Parliament (MPs). While there is no legal requirement for the prime minister to be a member of parliament, for practical and political reasons the prime minister is expected to win a seat very promptly. However, in rare circumstances individuals who are not sitting members of the House of Commons have been appointed to the position of prime minister. Two former prime ministers—Sir John Joseph Caldwell Abbott and Sir Mackenzie Bowell—served in