In recent years the study of the Canadian Parliament has lost some of
its original momentum. Major gaps in research have begun to appear, an
d critics have argued that students of Parliament take a much too doci
le, uncritical view of parliamentary government as it is practiced in
Canada. This article reviews recent research on the Canadian Parliamen
t in light of these criticisms and compares it to more established wor
k on the subject. The prospects are not as bleak as the critics mainta
in, but the authors express concern that Parliament may no longer pose
the kind of intellectual challenge that attracted researchers in prev
ious generations.