Point of Order
October 1, 1991
Questions put by Parliamentary Secretaries
Hon. John Fraser
Speaker of the House
Ruling Text
The Speaker:
I want to respond immediately to the honourable Member for Winnipeg Transcona. He raises a point and he is correct that twice within the last couple of weeks a Parliamentary Secretary has been recognized.
I want to say first of all to the honourable Member and to the House that that was an inadvertence and an oversight on my part for which I apologize if it has caused any anxiety.
I want to make it very clear that the Sixth Edition of Beauchesne, Citation 413, deals with questions by Parliamentary Secretaries and I read the section:
Those such as Parliamentary Secretaries who are clothed with the responsibility of answering for the Government ought not to use the time of the Question Period for the privilege of asking questions of the Government.
It cites Debates, November 5, 1974, pages 1059 [to 1064].
That practice has been adhered to and there may have been a slippage out of inadvertence, but that practice has been adhered to and I want to assure the House that I am not unilaterally changing the practice.
F0313-e 34-3 1991-10-01.
[1]
Debates, September 30, 1991, p. 2916.
[2]
Debates, October 1, 1991, p. 3001.
Edit Metadata
Holding
"Parliamentary Secretaries are prohibited from asking questions during Oral Questions (Question Period) because they are considered part of the government responsible for answering."
AI Summary
The Speaker sustained a Point of Order confirming that Parliamentary Secretaries are prohibited from asking questions during Question Period, citing Beauchesne and apologizing for recent inadvertent breaches of the practice.
AI Analysis
- Outcome
- Sustained
- Tone
- Educational
- Procedural Stage
- Question Period
- Significance
Low
High