Speaker Greg Fergus on Monday issued a stern warning to lawmakers to clean up their act as the Liberals prepare for a fierce debate over whether they should continue in power.
The Conservatives are set to formally introduce a promised motion on Tuesday asking the House of Commons to declare no confidence in the Liberal government or Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
But last week, news broke that NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and his party would not support the motion, sparking a heated debate in the House of Commons, with one member fearing it could escalate into an actual fistfight.
“There were words that went beyond the bounds of acceptability,” Fergus said before a question-and-answer session on Monday.
“There were some actions that deviated from parliamentary tradition.”
He was referring to an incident last Thursday when Singh stepped from his desk and shouted at the Conservative leader after Pierre Poirievre called him a hypocrite and a fraud for refusing to vote to topple the Liberal government.
The Conservative party said in a statement that Singh “lost control of his emotions and became erratic” and challenged Poirierbre to a fight during the exchange.
Shouting from all sides made it hard for those in the chamber to hear what Poirierbre and Singh were saying, and soon after the conversation began, the audio feed that helps amplify the speaker’s voice was cut off.
NDP House of Commons leader Peter Julian said Singh was simply standing up to threats from the Conservative leader.
“Mr. Poirievre’s actions are completely unacceptable. In 20 years I have never seen the microphone of a member of parliament cut off when he utters disrespectful and insulting language that is unbecoming of parliament,” Julien said in an interview last week.
He called on the Speaker to demand that Mr Poirievre retract his comments and apologise.
Fergus said he hoped to say more later this week in response to several calls from MPs for greater discipline in the House of Commons.
“It was only when I was sitting in the House of Commons that I thought, ‘If they come near me, they’re going to start punching each other,'” said Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, who sits directly opposite Singh in the House of Commons.
“I thought it was uncomfortably close to that.”
Fergus has so far not imposed any sanctions or asked for an apology from any MPs, but instead called on all MPs to conduct themselves “in a manner befitting their constituents” in future.
Bloc Québécois MP Claude Dubellefeuille tabled a motion Monday to remind MPs that violence, insults and intimidation will not be tolerated in Parliament, and urged all MPs to behave with courtesy and respect towards their colleagues.
Every member of the House of Representatives at the time voted in favor.
Meanwhile, both May and Julian called on the Speaker to do more to curb behaviour they say is undermining Commons decorum.
“The speaker has many powers that can be used to maintain civility, but they are not being used,” May said.
These powers include the Speaker’s ability to order a member to leave or apologise for behaviour or comments made, to ban a member from speaking in Parliament for a period of time, and to temporarily expel a member from the Chamber.
For example, earlier this year, Fergus expelled Poiriervle from the House of Commons after Poiriervle called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a “crazy guy” and refused to retract his remarks. The Conservative Party accused Fergus of not applying the rules fairly.
Lawmakers were much more amenable during question and answer session on Monday, which may have had something to do with Singh being the only party leader present.
The no-confidence motion in the Conservative party is expected to begin in earnest on Tuesday.
The Bloc Quebecois and NDP have already said they will not support the Conservative motion, drawing flak from the party, which has pledged to hold more similar debates in the future as it seeks to topple the government.
The Conservatives will have a chance to schedule a second confidence vote on Tuesday, when they will give notice of another motion that is due to be debated in the House of Commons later this week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2024.
