Rule of Debate / Order and Decorum

Unparliamentary language

October 22, 2018

Debates, pp. 22676–7

On October 3, 2018, Larry Miller (Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound) rose on a point of order to express his concerns regarding the response from Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister) after Lisa Raitt (Milton) raised a point of order about the Prime Minister’s use of the expression “ambulance chaser”.^[1] Candice Bergen (Portage—Lisgar) added that, during an exchange between the Prime Minister and Chris Warkentin (Grande Prairie—Mackenzie), the Prime Minister had also replied that he was in charge of the Speaker.^[2] After hearing from other members, the Speaker took the matter under advisement.^[3]

Resolution

On October 22, 2018, the Speaker delivered his ruling. First, the Speaker addressed the matter of the independence of the Chair. Although the Speaker was unable to confirm the allegations, he stated that with absolute certainty, the Speaker does not serve any one member but is the servant of the entire House and the guardian of the rights and privileges of all members. Second, the Speaker noted that as the term used by the Prime Minister was not directed at Ms. Raitt but rather in a broader sense, it fell within the accepted practice of the House. The Speaker nevertheless encouraged members to be vigilant in their choice of words.

Decision of the Chair

The Speaker: I am now prepared to rule on the point of order raised on October 3, 2018, by the hon. member for Bruce—Grey— Owen Sound regarding unparliamentary language. I would like to thank the member for Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound for having raised this serious matter, as well as the Leader of the Opposition, the Prime Minister, and the members for Milton, Portage—Lisgar, Grande Prairie—Mackenzie, and Barrie—Innisfil, for their comments.

The member for Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound expressed his concern about the response from the Prime Minister after the member for Milton raised a point of order regarding his use of the English expression “ambulance chaser”, an alleged unparliamentary term.

The member for Portage—Lisgar added that allegations which question a member’s integrity, honesty or character are not in order. Furthermore, she argued that comments allegedly made by the Prime Minister in an exchange with the member for Grande Prairie— Mackenzie effectively questioned my impartiality and integrity as your Speaker.

Let me address the second issue first. The issue of the independence of the Chair is pivotal to not only our proceedings but also to our parliamentary system. Therefore, I thoroughly reviewed the audio, video and interventions relevant to this allegation. Although I was unable to confirm the allegations, I want the House to know with absolute certainty that, as Speaker, I am the guardian of the rights and privileges of all members. That is to say, I am not the servant of any one part of the House nor of any one member. Rather, as your Speaker, I remain the servant only of the entire House, much as Speaker William Lenthall described on January 4, 1642. All members can be assured that I am guided by this core principle, which he helped to establish, by the way, every day, come what may.

As for the first question raised, it continues to be the responsibility of the Chair to ensure that the language used by members in the House falls within the parameters of what is considered to be parliamentary language. In fulfilling this responsibility, the Chair is guided by practice and precedent. As the House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition, says at page 624:

Expressions which are considered unparliamentary when applied to an individual member have not always been considered so when applied ‘in a generic sense’ or to a party.

As the expression used by the Prime Minister in response to a question from the member for Milton was not aimed directly at her but rather had a broader scope, technically speaking, the language used fell within our accepted practice. That being said, I want to remind members of their responsibility to be vigilant in their choice of words, given their potential effect.

My predecessor encouraged members to be mindful of this when he stated, in a ruling on October 30, 2013, at page 593 of the Debates:

Previous Speakers have tried to draw some lines around certain phrases.… My advice to all members on all sides is that when Speakers attempt to draw those lines, members should try to stay clear of them and not try to tiptoe up to them and see how far you can lean over.

As your Speaker, I know we can do better through a continued collaboration and cooperation from all members.

I thank all hon. members for their attention.