Ruling
November 19, 2007
Unparliamentary language
Hon. Peter Milliken
Speaker of the House
Ruling Text
The Speaker:
I would like to return to the exchange between the hon. Member for Scarborough Centre and the hon. Minister of Veterans Affairs during Question Period on November 1, 2007. I have had an opportunity to review the Debates of that day.
The hon. Member for Scarborough Centre used the words "intellectually dishonest" in reference to the Minister, who in response used the word "hypocrite" in reference to the Member for Scarborough Centre.
It is the duty of the Speaker to ensure that all debates in the House are conducted with a certain degree of civility and mutual respect in keeping with established practice of the House.
Standing Order 18 specifies:
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; nor use offensive words against either House, or against any Member thereof.
In addition, House of Commons Procedure and Practice states at page 526:
In dealing with unparliamentary language, the Speaker takes into account the tone, manner and intention of the Member speaking; the person to whom the words were directed; the degree of provocation; and, most importantly,— I stress "most importantly", —whether or not the remarks caused disorder in the Chamber.
In my opinion, the remarks made by the hon. Members quite clearly created disorder in the Chamber.
Therefore, I would ask that the hon. Member for Scarborough Centre and the Minister of Veterans Affairs withdraw their remarks.
Editor's Note At this point, both the Minister and Mr. Cannis rose to withdraw their remarks.
The Speaker:
I would like to take this opportunity to remind all hon. Members that the Canadian public watches the proceedings closely and that I regularly receive communications from members of the public concerned about decorum in the Chamber.
I therefore encourage Members to refrain from making offensive or disrespectful remarks directed at one another. All Members may disagree with one another from time to time, but such disagreement need not be manifested by the use of offensive names or personal insults that can only create disorder and lessen the respect that is due to all hon. Members.
I want to thank the Minister of Veterans Affairs and the hon. Member for Scarborough Centre for withdrawing their remarks today..
[1]
Debates, November 1, 2007, p. 696.
[2]
Debates, November 1, 2007, p. 698.
Edit Metadata
Holding
"The terms 'intellectually dishonest' and 'hypocrite' are unparliamentary because they created disorder in the Chamber, and the members who used them must withdraw their remarks."
AI Summary
The Speaker rules that the terms 'intellectually dishonest' and 'hypocrite' are unparliamentary for causing disorder and requires the members to withdraw them.
AI Analysis
- Outcome
- Sustained
- Tone
- Educational
- Procedural Stage
- Question Period
- Significance
Low
High