Category Archives: Parliament

Stripping Disgraced Former Senators of their Honorific Title

Posted on 2022/12/07 by J.W.J. Bowden

The Saga of Former Senator Don Meredith Haunts Us Still Don Meredith resigned as a Senator from Ontario in May 2017 before the Senate could expel him outright on the recommendation of the Second Report of the Standing Committee on … Continue reading →

Posted in Crown (Powers and Office), Parliament, Parliamentary Privilege, The Honours System | 1 Comment

Question Period and the “Administrative Responsibility” of Federal Ministers

Posted on 2022/11/05 by J.W.J. Bowden

The Moral Panic Over Ontario’s Invocation of the Notwithstanding Clause Breaks the Rules of the House of Commons The moral panic over the Notwithstanding Clause escaped containment in Toronto and spread to Ottawa on 2 November 2022. The federal House … Continue reading →

Posted in Constitution (Written), Decorum, Notwithstanding Clause, Parliament, Traditions and History | Leave a comment

Parliamentary Decorum and How Canadians Perceive Britons

Posted on 2022/07/15 by J.W.J. Bowden

Earlier this year, I noted that the current Speaker of the British House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, does not enforce the Standing Orders properly and allows members to address one another in the second person unchecked, with entire flocks of … Continue reading →

Posted in Decorum, Parliament | Leave a comment

The Disgrace of Boris Johnson

Posted on 2022/02/03 by J.W.J. Bowden

  The British press first reported on allegations on 30 November 2021 that Number 10 Downing Street had held numerous parties and social gatherings in contravention of the lockdowns and restrictions throughout 2020 and 2021. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson … Continue reading →

Posted in Parliament | 1 Comment

Orrrrrrrddaaaaa! Speaking in the Second Person

Posted on 2022/01/18 by J.W.J. Bowden

Rhoticity Makes Melody Speakers of the House of Commons of Canada sound so flat when they say, “Order” in our rhotic (pronouncing the ‘r’) North American accents. Australian and British Speakers of the House sound far more comical and entertaining … Continue reading →

Posted in Decorum, Parliament | Leave a comment