<P> To raise a flag in this position, the flag must be flown to the top of the pole first, then brought down halfway before the flag is secured for flying . When such mourning occurs, all flags should be flown at that position or not be flown at all, with the exception of flags permanently attached to poles . </P> <P> A controversy surfaced in April, 2006, when the newly elected Conservative government discontinued the practice, initiated by the previous Liberal government following the Tarnak Farm incident, of flying the flag at half - mast on all government buildings whenever a Canadian soldier was killed in action in Afghanistan . The issue divided veterans' groups and military families, some of whom supported the return to the original tradition of using Remembrance Day to honour all soldiers killed in action, while others felt it was an appropriate way to honour the fallen and to remind the population of the costs of war . In spite of the federal government's policy, local authorities have often decided to fly the flag at half - mast to honour fallen soldiers who were from their jurisdiction, including Toronto and Saskatchewan . </P> <P> On 2 April 2008, the House of Commons voted in favour of a motion calling on the government to reinstate the former policy regarding the half - masting of the flag on federal buildings . The motion, however, was not binding and the Cabinet refused to recommend any revision in policy to the Governor General . At the same time, a federal advisory committee tabled its report on the protocol of flying the national flag at half - mast, recommending that the Peace Tower flag remain at full height on days such as the Police Officers National Memorial Day and the National Day or Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women, stating that the flag should only be half - masted on Remembrance Day . At last report, the committee's findings had been forwarded to the House of Commons all - party heritage committee for further study . </P> <P> The National Flag Law provides for a number of situations on which the flag should be flown at half - mast, and authorizes the State Council to make such executive orders: </P>

Who decides when the flag is flown at half mast