How to prepare a petition

What is a Petition?

A petition is a document that Islanders can give to the Legislative Assembly to tell MLAs about a problem or concern that affects Islanders, and to suggest ways to fix the problem/concern. Your petition will need signatures from citizens of Prince Edward Island.

Petitions may be prepared by a private individual or an organization.

How is a petition presented in the Assembly?

Petitions must be given to a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) to be presented in the Legislative Assembly. Any MLA can present your petition to the Assembly when it is in session. An MLA does not have to agree with the petition to present it.

There is a time set out in each sitting day for MLAs to stand and present petitions. The MLA tells the Assembly who the petition is from, how many people have signed it, what information the petition contains and what request is made. There is no debate on the petition after it is read.

What should I put in my petition?

1. The first line of your petition must say “To the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island:”
2. Next you should explain the problem or issue you want resolved.  Include background information that might help explain the problem/issue.
3. The last part of your petition is the “prayer,” where you request that the Assembly take some form of action about the problem/issue. This is the part where you propose a solution or plan to fix the problem. A petition must include this proposal.

Your proposed solution must fall within the powers of the Legislative Assembly.

Your petition can be handwritten or typed. It must be submitted on paper (not electronic). There must be no marks from erasing, inserting or crossing out parts of the petition.

All important information must be included in the petition and nothing can be attached to it.

Sample Petition Format

TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND:

These are the reasons for this petition:
[Here you should explain the problem or complaint you want resolved. Include background information that might help explain the problem or issue]

We petition the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island as follows:
[Here you include the prayer, the proposed action you would like the Legislative Assembly to take about the problem or issue]

• If your petition has more than one page of signatures, make sure the prayer of your petition is written at the top of each page. Signatures on pages without the prayer will not be counted.
• All signatures must be original signatures. You may not copy and paste them in any way, and no person can sign on behalf of another person or group of people.

What should I not put in my petition?

• Foul or disrespectful language
• Disrespectful expressions toward the King, the Lieutenant Governor, the Legislative Assembly or its members, or the courts
• Opinions on the Legislative Assembly, the Government or things an MLA has done
• Blame directed toward a Minister or senior government official
• Discussion of a problem that is not within the Legislative Assembly’s power to address
• Requests for the spending of public money

Questions about petitions?

Contact the Office of the Clerk at 902-368-5970 or assembly@assembly.pe.ca.

Further details on the presentation of petitions can be found in the Rules of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island (PDF).

Petitions successfully presented in the Legislative Assembly become part of the Assembly’s permanent records. Recent petitions can be found at Tabled Documents.