Point of Order
April 26, 2023
Point of order concerning a statement about the monarchy
Hon. Anthony Rota
Speaker of the House
Ruling Text
The Speaker:
I am now prepared to rule on the point of order raised on April 25 by the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan concerning the statement made the same day about the monarchy.
[Translation]
Standing Order 18 states the following, and I quote:
No member shall speak disrespectfully of the Sovereign, nor of any of the royal family, nor of the Governor General or the person administering the Government of Canada.
As stated at page 431 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition, during Statements by Members, provided that guidelines are respected, I quote, "Members who are not Ministers can address the House for up to one minute on virtually any matter of international, national, provincial or local concern."
[English]
Statements must therefore respect these guidelines. They may touch on the institution of the monarchy itself or its institutional role in our system of government. As has always been the case, they cannot, however, contain disrespectful remarks directed at the sovereign.
After having considered the matter, the Chair finds that the statement respected the guidelines for Statements by Members and Standing Order 18.
I thank the members for their attention.
Edit Metadata
Holding
"Statements may critique the institution of the monarchy but cannot contain disrespectful remarks personally directed at the Sovereign; the statement in question was found to be in order."
AI Summary
The Speaker denied a point of order, ruling that a statement about the monarchy was permissible as it addressed the institution and was not personally disrespectful to the Sovereign.
AI Analysis
- Outcome
- Denied
- Tone
- Neutral
- Procedural Stage
- Routine Proceedings
- Significance
Low
High