order in council

British

noun

(in Britain and various other Commonwealth countries) a decree of the Cabinet, usually made under the authority of a statute: in theory a decree of the sovereign and Privy Council

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Governor General Mary Simon signed an order in council proclaiming the new sovereign after a Cabinet meeting.

From Reuters

He read the order in council proclaiming the new monarch to the public in both English and French, ending with, “Long live the King!”

From Reuters

“We, the undersigned, citizens of Canada, call upon the Prime Minister to immediately scrap his government’s May 1, 2020, Order in Council decision related to confiscating legally owned firearms and instead pass legislation that will target criminals, stop the smuggling of firearms into Canada, go after those who illegally acquire firearms, and apologize to legal firearms owners in Canada,” the petition reads.

From Fox News

Former Prime Minister John Major also suggested that government ministers could use something called an “order in council” which would allow them to suspend the Benn Act using royal powers without requiring the assent of parliament or Queen Elizabeth.

From Reuters

“This means that the order in council to which it led was also unlawful, void and of no effect and should be quashed.”

From The Guardian

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023