(Redirected from Member of the Canadian House of Commons)
The initial seat distribution of the 39th Canadian Parliament
The '39th Canadian Parliament' is the current
Parliament of Canada, and has been in session since
April 3,
2006. The membership was set by the
2006 federal election on
January 23,
2006, and it has changed only somewhat due to resignations and
by-elections. The longest it could run, barring war or national emergency, is until
October 19,
2009 due to Bill C-16, passed by this Parliament. Historically, however,
minority governments in Canada such as the current one have rarely lasted more than two years.
It is controlled by a
Conservative Party minority, led by
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the
28th Canadian Ministry, which assumed power on
February 6,
2006. The
Official Opposition is the
Liberal Party, led first by interim leader
Bill Graham, and currently by
Stéphane Dion.
The
Speaker is Liberal
Peter Milliken. Milliken was re-elected as the Speaker of the House for the 39th Parliament on
April 3,
2006. The Speaker only votes in a tie, and, as Milliken is a Liberal, the Liberal caucus is effectively reduced by one. This, along with the defection of
Wajid Khan to the Conservatives enables the Conservatives to pass legislation with the cooperation of any one of the three
opposition parties:
Liberals,
Bloc Québécois, or
New Democratic Party (NDP).
On September 4, 2007, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced that he will be recommending to Governor General Michaëlle Jean that Parliament be
prorogued ending the First Session. He is recommending Parliament be recalled on October 16, 2007 to start the Second Session with a
Speech from the Throne.
[1]
There has been only one
session of the 39th Parliament:
| Session | Start | End |
|---|
| 1st | April 3 2006 | ''Announced on September 4, 2007 to be prorogued '' |
The party standings as elected and as of
August 31,
2007, are on the table below. Since the election, four members of the House of Commons
crossed the floor (two of whom had previously been forced to sit as an independent), one died, eight resigned, and two members have been elected in by-elections to fill vacancies (seven vacancies remain to be filled). In that same period, two senators have died, six have resigned (four of whom had reached the mandatory retirement age), and one has been appointed to fill a vacancy (twelve vacancies remain). Step-by-step changes are listed in the
Members section. See
List of Canadian federal electoral districts for a list of the ridings in this parliament.
★ Lillian Dyck was officially designated as affiliated with the
New Democratic Party, despite the fact that the party would not accept her affiliation (due to the party's position on the Senate). Her official affiliation did not change until
October 31,
2006.
★
★ André Arthur,
Louise Thibault, and
Bill Casey
★
★
★ Members of the Canadian Senate are appointed by the
Governor General on the advice of the
Prime Minister and remain as Senators until the age of 75, even if the House of Commons has been dissolved or an election has been called.
Major events
Floor-crossing
Four members of parliament have
crossed the floor since the election:
On
February 6,
2006,
David Emerson, elected as the Liberal
Member of Parliament for
Vancouver Kingsway, crossed the floor to join Stephen Harper's cabinet as Minister of International Trade.
On
January 5,
2007,
Wajid Khan, elected as the Liberal
Member of Parliament for
Mississauga—Streetsville, crossed the floor to join the Conservative Party.
On
February 6,
2007,
Garth Turner, elected as a Conservative MP for
Halton, moved to the Liberal caucus. He had been sitting as an Independent since being suspended from the Tory caucus on
October 18,
2006.
On
June 26,
2007,
Joe Comuzzi, elected as a Liberal MP for
Thunder Bay—Superior North, moved to the Conservative caucus. He had been sitting as an Independent since being suspended from the Liberal caucus on
March 21,
2007.
[2]
Liberal leadership
During the election campaign, the Liberal leader was then Prime Minister
Paul Martin. After the election results were announced, Liberal leader
Paul Martin announced his intention to resign, but did not indicate when, other than saying he would not lead the party into the next election. On
February 1, the Liberal Party Caucus chose
Bill Graham as
parliamentary leader, meaning he served as
Leader of the Opposition in the
House of Commons until the election of
Stéphane Dion as Liberal leader at the next Liberal Party leadership convention, held
December 2 through
December 3.
Some political observers had questioned whether Martin would have led the Liberals into an election had the Harper minority fallen in the first few months of the 39th Parliament.
[3]. In 1979,
Pierre Trudeau's Liberals lost to
Joe Clark's
Progressive Conservatives who only won a minority on
May 22 of that year. The Clark minority was defeated less than seven months after on a
confidence vote over the budget, which was much earlier than most observers had expected the government to fall. Trudeau had announced his resignation as leader of the Liberals on
November 21,
1979; however in light of the collapse of the government on
December 13,
1979, and the Liberal Party's not having chosen a replacement as leader, Trudeau was persuaded to change his mind, and he led the party into the
1980 election winning a
majority government. Unlike Martin, Trudeau did not appoint an
interim leader or withdraw from the day-to-day leadership of the party after announcing he would resign.
On
March 18,
2006 Martin officially tendered his resignation as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. This move was widely seen as a move by Martin to stop any talk of him leading the party into the next election.
Five priorities
Prime Minister Harper has said he will move forward with his top five priorities from the campaign. At least four of these will require legislative action: the passage of a ''
Federal Accountability Act'' in response to the
sponsorship scandal; combating crime by creating more police officers and setting longer
mandatory sentences; lowering the
Goods & Services Tax to 6% (and eventually to 5%); giving $1,200 for parents per child under the age of 6. On
December 6,
2006, another issue many expected to arise in the first session of parliament did, in fact, come to the fore, when the government introduced a motion calling "on the government to introduce legislation to restore the traditional definition of marriage without affecting civil unions and while respecting existing same-sex marriages."
[4] The next day, the House defeated the motion by a vote of 175 to 123, with six cabinet ministers voting against it, and Harper declared the issue settled.
[5] (See
Members of the 39th Canadian Parliament and same-sex marriage for more information.)
Resignations
On
September 20,
2006 Liberal MP
Joe Fontana (
London North Centre) resigned to run in the London mayoralty election. Fontana was replaced in the riding by Liberal
Glen Pearson after a by-election on
November 27,
2006.
Liberal MP
Jean Lapierre declared on
January 11,
2007 that he would resign from the Liberal Party at the end of the month to pursue a career in television. This took place on
January 28, leaving the
Outremont district vacant. On
July 28, Prime Minister Stephen Harper called a
by-election for this riding, to be held on
September 17,
2007.
On
21 February 2007,
Yvan Loubier (representing
Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot for the
Bloc Québécois) resigned in order to run in the
Quebec general election, 2007. Along with the
Outremont riding, a by-election will take place in this riding on September 17, 2007.
One day later, on
February 22, veteran Liberal MP and former
Liberal Party of Canada interim leader
Bill Graham announced that he would not seek reelection in the
next federal election. On
June 19 2007, Graham announced he would be resigning his
Toronto Centre seat effective
July 2,
2007, to allow former
Ontario New Democratic Party Premier and Liberal Party leadership candidate
Bob Rae to run in the riding.
On March 8, 2007, Liberal MP
Jim Peterson announced that he would not be a candidate in the next federal election. Former Liberal Party leadership candidate
Martha Hall Findlay was appointed as the Liberal candidate in his
Willowdale riding. On
June 20,
2007, Peterson followed Bill Graham's lead and announced his resignation from the House of Commons, effective
July 12. Both Bill Graham and Jim Peterson resigned their seats early in the hope that Prime Minister
Stephen Harper would be compelled to add those vacant seats to the scheduled September 17, 2007 by-elections in
Quebec.
[1] On July 23, the Tory government announced that it would delay the Ontario by-elections so as not to overlap with the impending
Ontario general election, 2007 scheduled for
October 10,
2007.
[2]
Also in March 2007, Bloc Québécois MP and former BQ House Leader
Michel Gauthier announced that he would not run in the next federal election. He resigned his seat of
Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean on
July 29,
2007. This riding will join the
Outremont and
Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot by-elections on September 17, 2007.
On
July 5,
2007, Liberal MP
Stephen Owen announced he would resign his seat of
Vancouver Quadra to accept a position at the
University of British Columbia, his resignation effective
July 27,
2007.
[6]
On
July 11,
2007, Liberal MP
Gary Merasty announced he would resign his
Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River seat, due to "family considerations", effective
August 31,
2007[7]
Major bills and motions
Important business of the 39th Parliament includes the following
bills and
motions. Note that not all of these bills have yet become law. Motions (excepting those which pass bills) have no effect in law. A
complete lists of bills of the 1st session of the 39th Parliament is on the Parliament's website. The bills are divided into government bills,
private member's bills, and
private bills for both the House and the Senate.
Acts passed by 39th Parliament
Federal Accountability Act
Bill C-2, the
Federal Accountability Act (officially ''"An Act providing for conflict of interest rules, restrictions on election financing and measures respecting administrative transparency, oversight and accountability"''), received
royal assent in the Senate on
December 12,
2006, and is now becoming law. The act plans to reduce the opportunity to exert influence with money by banning corporate, union, and large personal political donations; create a five-year lobbying ban on former ministers, their aides, and senior public servants; provide protection for whistleblowers; and enhancing the power for the Auditor General to follow the money spent by the government.
★
''full text of bill''
2006 Canadian federal budget
Bill C-13 is The
2006 Canadian federal budget, which received
royal assent in the Senate on
June 22,
2006.
★
''full text of bill''
Extending the Afghan War until 2009
A successful motion in the House to extend Canada's
mission in Afghanistan by two years, until early 2009. The motion was supported by the Conservatives and 30 Liberal MPs, allowing it to narrowly pass 149-145 on
May 17,
2006.
[3]
Softwood lumber deal
Bill C-24, the ''"Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006"'' put into effect the deal made between the Canadian and American governments regarding the longstanding softwood lumber debates. The Act received royal assent
December 14,
2006.
★
''full text of bill''
Quebecois nationhood
A successful motion in the House to recognise the
Québécois as a
nation within a united Canada. The motion was put forth by the
Prime Minister in reaction to an announced motion by
Bloc Quebecois leader
Gilles Duceppe that would recognise Quebec as a nation, but did not contain the words “in Canada” .
[4] The motion easily passed 266 to 16, with all party leaders voting in favour, including Duceppe
[5]
Reaffirming the Kyoto Protocol
A motion passed by the opposition parties (161 for to 115 against) on
February 5,
2007 to reaffirm Canada's commitment to the
Kyoto Protocol.
[6] The motion may not have any legal effect, but it is related to
Bill C-288 -- which received Royal Assent on June 22, 2007.
Fixed election dates
Bill C-16, titled ''"An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act"'', is a bill to set fixed election dates. If passed, elections will be held on the third Monday in October in the fourth calendar year following polling day for the last general election. The next general election under this act would be held on
October 19,
2009. Parliament could still be dissolved by a
motion of non-confidence. The provinces of British Columbia, Ontario, and Newfoundland and Labrador have already implemented fixed election dates for their own provincial elections. Bill C-16 passed in the House on
November 6,
2006 and the Senate on
March 28,
2007. The House began discussing the amendments made in the Senate on
April 21,
2007. The house voted down the amendments on
April 24,
2007.
[8] On
May 1,
2007, the Senate chose not to insist on its amendment. The bill received royal assent on
May 3.
[9]
★
full text of bill
Minimum penalties for offences involving firearms
Bill C-9, titled ''"An Act to amend the Criminal Code (conditional sentence of imprisonment)"'', is a bill to set minimum penalties for offences involving firearms. Under this act, persons convicted of a serious personal injury offence or a terrorism offence with a term of imprisonment of ten years or more would not be eligible for a
conditional sentence. Bill C-9 passed in the House on
November 3,
2006 and was passed by the Senate on
May 16,
2007. The bill received
Royal Assent on
May 31,
2007.
★
full text of bill
Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act
Bill C-288, an act of the opposition parties to try and make the government support its global climate change obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. It received Royal Assent on
June 22,
2007
★
full text of bill
2007 federal budget
Bill C-52 is the
2007 Canadian federal budget.
★
full text of bill
Failed acts and motions
Re-opening the same-sex marriage debate
A failed government motion to reopen the
same-sex marriage debate. The
38th Canadian Parliament, led by the Liberals, had legalised same-sex marriage a year earlier, and many provinces before that. Harper’s motion to reopen the issue was a promise he made while campaigning, but doing so would likely have been unconstitutional. The motion failed 175-123, so the issue is closed, again, leaving same-sex marriage legal in Canada.
[7]
Extending anti-terror laws
A failed government motion (159 opposed to 124 in favour) to renew certain sunsetted provisions of the
''Anti-terrorism Act'', first passed by the Liberals after
9/11 that suspended some civil liberties in order to combat
terrorism.
[8]
Eight-year Senate terms
Bill S-4, titled ''An Act to amend the Constitution Act, 1867 (Senate tenure)'' is a Senate bill to limit new
Senators' tenure to eight-year terms. Currently, senators can stay in office until they reach the age of 75. The bill was first introduced by the government in the Senate on
May 30,
2006. After several months of debates, and consideration of the subject-matter by a special committee, the bill was read a second time on
February 20,
2007. At the same time, it was referred to the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs for consideration. It was then delayed so that the Supreme Court of Canada could rule with respect to its constitutionality. It had been suggested that the Liberal Senate would modify the bill to extend the terms to twelve years so that a prime minister would not control the entire Senate after two parliaments. The bill did not pass by the end of the 1st session of parliament.
Age of consent
Bill C-22, titled ''"An Act to amend the Criminal Code (age of protection) and to make consequential amendments to the Criminal Records Act"'', is a bill to raise the
age of consent from 14 to 16. The bill was read a second time and referred to committee on
October 30,
2006. It was returned from committee on
April 23,
2007. The bill was passed by the
House of Commons on
May 4.
[10] The bill did not pass by the end of the 1st session of parliament.
Senate Appointment Consultations Act
Bill C-43, titled ''"An Act to provide for consultations with electors on their preferences for appointments to the Senate"'', is a bill to hold
referendums on Senate appointments, introduced
December 13,
2006.
[9] The bill is opposed by Liberals and has stalled after the
first reading. The bill did not pass by the end of the 1st session of parliament.
Expanding the House of Commons
Bill C-56, titled ''"An Act to amend the Constitution Act, 1867 (Democratic representation)"'' is a bill which would add 22 seats to the House of Commons. This would increase the number to 330 seats, although these seats probably will not be in use until at least 2014. Under the proposed plan,
Ontario would gain ten seats,
British Columbia would get seven seats, and
Alberta would receive five seats. The act has stalled after the first reading.
[11] The bill did not pass by the end of the 1st session of parliament.
Members
:''For full lists of members of the 39th Parliament of Canada, see
List of House members of the 39th Parliament of Canada'' and ''
List of senators in the 39th Parliament of Canada''.
Officeholders
Speakers
★ Hon.
Peter Milliken (the
Liberal Member for Kingston and the Islands) was re-elected
Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons on
April 3,
2006. He defeated
Diane Marleau (the
Liberal Member for Sudbury) and
Marcel Proulx (the
Liberal Member for Hull—Aylmer) on the first ballot, becoming only the third Speaker from an opposition party in history.
★ Hon.
Noël Kinsella is the
Speaker of the Senate (a
Conservative Senator for
New Brunswick).
Other Chair occupants
House of Commons
★ Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees of the Whole—Hon.
Bill Blaikie (the
New Democratic Party Member for Elmwood—Transcona),
★ Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole—
Royal Galipeau (the
Conservative Member for Ottawa—Orléans),
★ Assistant Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole—
Andrew Scheer (the
Conservative Member for Regina—Qu'Appelle)
Senate
★ Hon.
Rose-Marie Losier-Cool is the Speaker ''pro tempore'' of the Senate of Canada, (a
Liberal Senator for
New Brunswick).
Leaders
★
Prime Minister of Canada: Rt. Hon.
Stephen Harper (Conservative)
★
Leader of the Opposition (Liberal):
★ #Hon.
Bill Graham (interim)
★ #Hon.
Stéphane Dion (from December 2, 2006)
★ BQ leader:
Gilles Duceppe
★ NDP leader: Hon.
Jack Layton
Front Bench
★ Government: see
28th Canadian Ministry
Opposition:
★
Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet of the 39th Parliament of Canada (
Liberal Party of Canada)
★
Bloc Québécois Shadow Cabinet of the 39th Parliament of Canada
★
New Democratic Party Shadow Cabinet of the 39th Parliament of Canada
House Leaders
★
Government House Leader: Hon.
Peter Van Loan
★
★
Leader of the Government in the Senate: Hon.
Marjory LeBreton
★ Opposition house leader: Hon.
Ralph Goodale
★
★
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate: Hon.
Céline Hervieux-Payette
★ BQ house leader:
★ #
Michel Gauthier(until
April 20,
2007)
★ #
Pierre Paquette (from
April 20,
2007)
★ NDP house leader:
Libby Davies
Whips
★
Chief Government Whip: Hon.
Jay Hill
★ Deputy Government Whip:
Guy Lauzon
★ Official Opposition Whip: Hon.
Karen Redman
★ BQ Whip:
Michel Guimond
★ NDP Whip:
Yvon Godin
References
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
★
Footnote references
1.
2.
3.
4. Quebec nationalism, a long history Robert Sheppard
5.
6. House motion passes supporting Kyoto
7.
8. MPs vote against extending anti-terrorism measures
9.
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