The Fair Representation Act (French: Loi sur la représentation équitable) was an act of the Parliament of Canada and was passed by the 41st Canadian Parliament in 2011.^[1][2] The Act was introduced as Bill C-20 with the long title An Act to amend the Constitution Act, 1867, the Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act and the Canada Elections Act.^[3]

The legislation amended the Constitution Act, 1867 and modified the redistricting process contained within it.^[4] Amendments affecting proportionate representation between the provinces, require support of seven provinces representing at least 50% of the population of Canada. Because the Fair Representation Act did not affect the proportionate representation of the provinces, it was passed without approval of the provinces.^[4] The legislation could be passed by the Parliament of Canada alone, under section 44 of the Constitution Act, 1982.^[4]

In 2012, the federal electoral redistribution was conducted using the amended formula introduced by the Fair Representation Act. It increased the number of MPs in the most populous provinces: Quebec gained three, Ontario gained 15, British Columbia gained six and Alberta gained six.^[2]

The 2022 federal electoral redistribution began under the formula created by the Act, but in March 2022 the House of Commons rejected the allocation it produced.^[5][6] As a result, the government introduced the Preserving Provincial Representation in the House of Commons Act.^[5][7] The Act received royal assent on June 23, 2022, repealing the constitutional amendments made by the Fair Representation Act.^[8]