Category Archives: Parliament

A Law Can Be Repealed When Parliament Is Prorogued?


Introduction For a brief few minutes on January 3rd, I thought that the Minister of Education of Ontario, Laurel Broten, had inadvertently revealed that Premier McGuinty would advise the Lieutenant Governor to recall the legislature by the end of January … Continue reading

Posted in Crown (Powers and Office), Parliament, Prorogation | Tagged , , | 17 Comments

A Parliamentarist’s Christmas: The Christian Origins of the Westminster System


The Parliament of Canada The Centre Block of Parliament Hill stands out as one of the most impressive examples of neo-Gothic architecture in Canada. While attending a presentation there earlier this year, I walked along the Rotunda and admired the … Continue reading

Posted in Parliament, Traditions and History | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A True Parliamentarist: The Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives Dr Lockwood Smith


In “The Role of the Speaker”, The Speaker of the House of Representatives Lockwood Smith talked about the history of parliament as an institution and the core function, or main authority, of the House of Representatives: to hold the Crown … Continue reading

Posted in Parliament, Reaffirmation of, Traditions and History | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Myth of Civility and Decorum in the British House of Commons


I support the adoption of the British Question Time model as a replacement to the Question Period in the Parliament of Canada, as I will explain further tomorrow. However, the overhaul of Question Period is altogether separate from the pseudo-controversy … Continue reading

Posted in Decorum, Parliament | 6 Comments

Decorum in the Australian House of Representatives


I enjoyed these clips of Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating versus his various Liberal opponents, John Howard, Alexander Downer, etc., and more recently the appearance of “Cardboard Kev”.  Those in Canada who criticize the behaviour of our MPs call for … Continue reading

Posted in Decorum | 5 Comments