Canadian
House of Commons
The Canadian
House of Commons, the Speaker
of the House, the Deputy
Speaker of the House and
Selected House Operations
By David Kilgour, MP for
Edmonton Southeast
Notes Prepared for Detroit
College of Law at Michigan
State University Interns
National Press Building,
Ottawa, June 19, 1997
HISTORY
-- Great Britain
The Speaker
of the House is an office
inherited from Great Britain
that "dates back at
least 600 years" and
whose "principal function
was to act as a spokesman
for the House in its dealings
with the House of Lords
and the Crown." Over
this period of time, the
office has changed from
one of a mere spokesman,
to one of advancing policy,
and then, finally, to one
of a non-partisan presiding
officer charged with overseeing
the procedural aspects of
House business.
In Great
Britain, there is a principle
of continuity of office
whereby the Speaker, upon
election, "renounces
all party affiliation and,
when seeking re-election
to the House, runs as Speaker."
Re-election of the Speaker
is almost certain since
he is not usually opposed.
Finally, when he retires,
he receives an appointment
to the House of Lords and
a pension.
HISTORY
-- Canada
In Canada,
the Speaker of the House
fulfills a similar role
of spokesman and presiding
officer. However, the British
practice of continuity has
not been adopted in Canada,
and, with few exceptions,
tenures of Speakers have
been limited to two Parliaments.
Also, while there is confidence
that the Canadian Speaker
is impartial, there is no
tradition or requirement
of renouncing all party
affiliation or running for
re-election as Speaker,
as is done in Great Britain.
Furthermore, upon retirement,
there is no guarantee of
a position or appointment,
although former Speakers
have been appointed to ambassadorships,
judgeships and the like.
ROLES
AND RESPONSIBILITIES - Speaker
of the House
A number
of legal documents govern
the Speaker’s position.
The Constitution Act of
1867 establishes the position
of Speaker and requires
election of a member to
the position immediately
after a General Election,
which only recently has
been done by secret ballot,
for a term which lasts through
the life of a Parliament.
The Act also delineates
that the Speaker is to preside
at all meetings of the House
of Commons, and establishes
the Speaker’s right
to a casting vote in the
event of ties, which is
the only time when the Speaker
has a right to vote. In
presiding over sessions
of Parliament, the Speaker
maintains an atmosphere
of decorum where members
have a reasonable opportunity
to speak and be heard, thus
facilitating debate.
The Parliament
of Canada Act of 1985, specifies
the salary and administrative
duties of the Speaker, establishes
additional offices, such
as Deputy Speaker, and provides
that, upon dissolution,
the members holding the
offices of Speaker, Deputy
Speaker, and others, are
to remain in office until
the new Parliament is seated
for the purpose of handling
administrative affairs.
There are
also almost a dozen other
statutes, as well as the
Standing Orders, which govern
the roles and the responsibilities
of the Speaker of the House.
The Speaker
has two other primary responsibilities
beyond that of presiding
officer and spokesman. First,
he is responsible for the
House administration, comprising
more than 1700 individuals
providing services to Members
of Parliament. Second, the
Speaker is chair of the
Board of Internal Economy,
one of the most powerful
committees on the Hill.
The Board is responsible
for the House budget and
the establishment of guidelines
for the use of all resources
provided to the Members
for use in carrying out
their parliamentary functions.
These resources include
goods, services, and premises,
in addition to funds. The
Board also authorizes expenditures
and renders opinions on
the propriety of any funds
spent or resources utilized.
It also must approve most
legal processes affecting
an MP while Parliament is
in session.
So, for
example, the Board may refuse
to allow an MP to be released
from his Parliamentary duties
to make a court appearance.
Or, when the RCMP is investigating
an MP for alleged criminal
violations regarding the
use of House resources,
the RCMP must first bring
the search warrant request
to the Board of Internal
Economy for authorization.
ROLES
AND RESPONSIBILITIES--Deputy
Speaker of the House
The Deputy
Speaker of the House, the
position I held in the last
Parliament, is not an elected
one, as the Speaker’s
office is. Instead, the
newly elected Prime Minister
appoints a Member to this
position, as well as appointing
Members to other positions,
such as Assistant Speakers.
The Members
of Parliament holding these
offices continue to represent
their constituencies to
the extent possible under
a strict party system and
continue to ensure that
their voters’ concerns
are advanced to the right
places while carrying out
the added responsibilities
of their appointment. This
can be challenging since
the Speaker and Deputy Speaker,
at least, are neither to
criticize nor defend the
government or the opposition
parties on their policies
due to the need to remain
impartial.
The Deputy
Speaker has all of the legal
powers a Speaker has and
acts in the Speaker’s
place in his absence. The
Deputy Speaker also acts
as the Chairman of Committees
of the Whole, is a member
of the Panel of Chairmen
for the legislative committees
and a member of the Board
of Internal Economy. He
is also required to have
"full and practical
knowledge of the official
language which is not that
of the current Speaker of
the House."
Like the
Speaker, the Deputy Speaker
is expected to be impartial.
However, the Deputy Speaker
is entitled to engage in
debate and participate in
voting, unless acting in
the role of Speaker in the
Speaker’s absence.
Yet, while the Deputy Speaker
may engage in debate, precedent
and practice has resulted
in the Deputy Speaker refraining
from participating in debate,
thus retaining the appearance
of impartiality.
[SOURCE:
Briefing Notes for the Speaker,
Table Research Branch, House
of Commons, 1993.]
Selected
House Operations
The
Board of Internal Economy
Members
have access to a variety
of resources, services,
and facilities in addition
to receiving various allowances
and benefits during their
tenure in Parliament. The
Board of Internal Economy,
pursuant to various statutory
limitations, is authorized
to approve and control the
expenditures of the House
of Commons, is empowered
to make by-laws governing
the use of funds, and goods,
services and premises purchased
with such funds, and also
acts as the employer of
the staff of the House.
Under the Parliament of
Canada Act, the Board has
the capacity of a natural
person, thus enabling it
to enter into contracts
and other arrangements in
the name of the House or
the Board and to take such
actions as are necessary
to exercise its powers and
functions, including taking
legal action against third
parties.
Members’
Services
Members
have access to a wide variety
of both office operations
support services as well
as Parliamentary facilities
and services. Members also
receive an orientation when
newly elected to the House
of Commons. To assist with
office operations, Members
have access to translation
services and linguistic
consultation services in
French or English only,
(unless the translation
to or from a third foreign
language is to communicate
with constituents), access
to an internal mail and
messenger service, and access
to OASIS Network services,
which include a variety
of audio-visual, e-mail,
Internet and other data
services and equipment
Members
also have access to Parliamentary
facilities and services
such as the Public Information
Office and its education
and visitor services; the
Library of Parliament and
its research services; and
language training in either
French or English for the
Members, their spouses,
and their employees. Food
services are available at
the Centre Block Restaurant
as well as a number of cafeterias,
canteens and lounges, and
room service; preventive
health services. Daycare
services for Members and
their staff, mini-bus transportation
between Parliamentary buildings,
and other services, such
as a barber shop, beauty
salon, tailor, steam room,
massage therapist, recreation
room and gymnasium are also
accessible to Members. Further,
each MP receives offices
in one of the buildings
around Parliament as assigned
by the Sergeant-at-Arms
in consultation with party
officials. Finally, substantial
research funds are made
available to officially
recognized parties (i.e.
those with a minimum of
12 elected M.P.s), with
Government receiving significantly
more than the Official Opposition
or 2nd Party Opposition.
Members’
Allowances and Benefits
Members
receive an annual sessional
allowance of $64,000 and
an expense allowance of
$21,300 annually, although
Members representing Schedule
III electoral districts
receive an annual expense
allowance of $26,200 and
those representing the Northwest
Territories receive an expense
allowance of $28,200. Additional
allowances are given to
Members occupying certain
offices and positions, as
follows:
- Prime
Minister - $69,920
- Cabinet
Ministers - $46,645
- Secretaries
of State - $34,984
- Speaker
- $49,100
- Leader
of the Official Opposition
- $49,100
- Leader
of the Other Opposition
Party - $29,500
- Deputy
Speaker - $25,700
- House
Leader--Official Opposition
- $23,800
- Chief Whips--Govt. & Official
Opposition - $13,200
- Parliamentary
Secretaries - $10,500
- Deputy
Chair--Committees of the
Whole House - $10,500
- Assistant
Deputy Chair--Comm. of
the Whole House - $10,500
- House
Leader--Other Opposition
Party - $10,100
- Chief
Whip--Other Opposition
Party - $7,500
- Deputy Whips--Govt. & Official
Opposition - $7,500
Each Member
also receives an Office
Budget which can be used
for Ottawa office staff
costs, a constituency office
and its staff costs and
operating expenses, constituency
travel expenses, and certain
other authorized expenses.
(See attached.) There is
also a graduated Elector
Supplement for constituencies
where the number of electors
is 70,000 or more, and a
graduated Geographic Supplement
for constituencies where
the area to be served is
8000 square kilometres or
more. (See attached.) Members
also receive $3000 per Parliament
if re-elected or $5000 if
newly elected for the purchase
of furniture and equipment
for constituency offices.
In addition, Members have
free mailing privileges
to anywhere in Canada and
constituents may send mail
to a Member free of postage
from anywhere in Canada.
Also, Members
may hire staff with their
office budgets, whose rates
of pay are determined by
the Member upon appointment,
but may not exceed an annual
rate of $60,460, and pay
increases may be made up
to three times each year,
not including raises resulting
from promotions. Members,
as employers, recruit, hire,
promote, define job responsibilities,
and discharge staff "for
cause," although in
reality staff can likely
be discharged even without
cause. However, MP employment
practices are subject to
human rights legislation
if there is discrimination
on gender, age, religion,
race, etc. Furthermore,
an MP is not allowed to
hire a spouse or family
members--there were even
uproars in the past when
M.P.s hired each other’s
children.
Members
also receive allowances
for travel, subject to the
limits authorized by the
Board of Internal Economy.
These include up to 64 return
trips per year to travel
anywhere in Canada, which
may be converted into travel
points that can be used,
under certain conditions,
by spouses, dependent children
and employees; free rail
transportation; and reimbursement
for local ground transportation
to and from airports, bus
depots, etc. There are also
reimbursements for travel-related
expenses incurred for accommodations,
meals and other incidental
expenses.
In addition
to these allowances, Members
also receive a variety of
benefits. A pension is available
to former Members, aged
55, who served for a minimum
of six years and who contributed
the required percentage
towards their retirement
benefits (currently 9% of
their sessional indemnity).
The amount of the pension
is based upon the total
number of years of pensionable
service and the average
sessional indemnity over
the best six consecutive
years of service. In addition
to the retirement plan,
Members also have access
to insurance for life, supplementary
life, accidental death and
dismemberment, health, hospital,
dental, long-term disability,
special risk insurance,
flight insurance, and personal
insurance.
[SOURCE:
Manual of Allowances and
Services, issued under the
authority of the Board of
Internal Economy, House
of Commons, 1993.]
Major
Policy Interests
Interaction
with the Role of Deputy
Speaker of the House
I have had
a number of major policy
interests during my tenure
thus far as an MP. Although,
since my appointment as
the Deputy Speaker, you
must realize the difficulties
in pursuing legislative
changes while refraining
from taking positions in
support of or opposition
to either the government’s
or the opposition’s
proposals. Nevertheless,
I’ll mention three
of my interests -- the criminal
justice system, human rights,
and senate reform.
Criminal
Justice
The first
duty of any government is
to attempt to ensure the
public safety of its citizens.
As a former prosecutor and
an attorney, naturally,
the justice system has long
been an interest of mine.
As a result, I’ve been
concerned about various
types of legislation related
to the criminal justice
system. For example, reforming
the Young Offender Act to
better balance the interests
of the public and the young
criminal; advocating on
behalf of victim’s
rights since they are the
individuals most affected
by the wrongdoing of others;
and advocating for a balanced
approach to crime prevention,
as opposed to merely focusing
on punishment for offenses,
while ensuring that the
protection and safety of
Canadians takes priority
over the wishes of the convicted
offender. At one time, I
had even introduced a private
bill on child prostitution
which was, unfortunately,
unsuccessful, as most such
bills are. Currently, I
am also in the midst of
projects related to new
alternatives to effective
crime prevention that are
being attempted in various
different countries around
the world and the exclusion
of evidence obtained in
violation of Canada’s
Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Human
Rights
I also have
significant interests in
human rights. Protecting
and promoting human rights
truly is a matter of common
sense. It is also a sign
of respect for others and
for human dignity. I have
often spoken and written
on this subject. I have
also made it a priority
to visit other countries
coping with these issues
in order to advocate for
better human rights. With
my efforts, I try to bring
attention to the rights
of individuals to their
freedom of thought and conscience,
their freedom of expression,
and the right not to be
subjected to arbitrary arrest
or detention. I’ve
also tried to bring attention
to such crises as the genocide
in Rwanda and the proper
role of humanitarian aid
and intervention in such
circumstances.
One of my
particular human rights
concerns is freedom of religion,
regardless of the specific
faith involved. The freedom
to worship one’s faith,
or even the freedom not
to do so, is a cornerstone
of Canada’s appeal
to so many people from other
lands who wish to come to
our country to pursue a
better life. Unfortunately,
the freedom to worship is
not enjoyed worldwide. So
many world conflicts are
driven by religious motives,
witness Bosnia, as one example
among many. In many areas
of the world, where armed
conflict is not the means
of oppression, there are
still severe sanctions against
those of certain faiths.
There may be state regulation
or even official state harassment
in the forms of fines or
criminal prosecutions, even
torture. In other cases,
officials merely tolerate,
without intervening, riots,
burnings of religious buildings,
and beatings of religious
leaders, educators, or worshippers.
Senate
Reform
With regard
to Senate reform, my interest
stems from my position as
an MP representing a Western
Province. There is a great
deal of alienation felt
in the West as a result
of the fact that the federal
government is controlled
by the House of Commons,
where representation based
on population inevitably
results in control of the
"national interest"
by the provinces of Ontario
and Quebec at the expense
of all the other provinces.
Furthermore,
there is not another chamber
to effectively balance regional
interests as in the Senates
of the United States or
Australia. For, as you know,
the American Senate, where
each state has an equal
number of Senators, was
specifically built on a
compromise to avoid the
effective disenfranchisement
of less populous, less prosperous
states.
The Australian
Senate is similarly structured
for similar reasons. In
Australia, the founding
fathers of the four smaller
states refused to join a
federal union where the
other two states would enjoy
two-thirds of the population
unless there was a second
house representing each
state equally.
Yet, while
American and Australian
Senators are elected and
accountable to the people,
Canada’s Senators,
are not only appointed,
rather than elected, but
are appointed until they
are 75 years old, still
a virtual life appointment.
I have long thought that
a Senate constituted of
an equal number of Senators
for each province, elected
at fixed intervals for fixed
periods of time, would be
appropriate. This structure
would provide equal representation
for each province and provide
a check and balance to the
interests of the House of
Commons which is dominated
by Ontario and Quebec.
The
HON. DAVID KILGOUR, P.C., M.P., received
a B.A. in economics from
the University of Manitoba,
an L.L.B. from the University
of Toronto and pursued doctoral
studies in constitutional
law at the University of
Paris. Admitted to the bars
of Alberta, British Colombia
and Manitoba, Mr. Kilgour
has served as a member of
the International Commission
of Jurists, s assistant
city prosecutor of Vancouver,
as a senior advisor to the
Department of Justice in
Ottawa and as a constitutional
advisor to the Government
of Alberta. In addition,
he has worked as an investment
analyst, an economist, a
journalist, a teacher, and
a ranch hand before beginning
a career in federal politics.
Since his election as a
Member of Parliament for
Edmonton Strathcona in 1979,
Mr. Kilgour has served as
the parliamentary secretary
to three Ministers, the
Minister of External Relations,
the Minister of Indian and
Northern Development and
the Minister of Transport.
Mr. Kilgour’s
outspoken criticism of ethics
within the Progressive Conservative
Party and the treatment
of Western Canada along
with his vote against the
Goods and Services Tax,
resulted in his departure
from the Progressive Conservative
Party and his becoming a
member of the Liberal Party
in 1991. He recently served
as Deputy Speaker of the
House of Commons and Chairman
of Committees of the Whole
for the 35th Parliament.
He is currently active as
the M.P. from Edmonton Southeast
and is the Secretary of
State for Latin America
and Africa.
Mr. Kilgour
is the author of Uneasy
Patriots: Western Canadians
in Confederation (1989),
Inside Outer Canada
(1990), and Betrayal:
The Spy Canada Abandoned
(1994). He is also the recipient
of the Masaryk Award from
the Czechoslovak Association
of Canada and the Human
Rights Award of B’Nai
Brith Canada, both are for
his activities related to
human rights.
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