Don Martin: Greg Fergus risks becoming the shortest serving Speaker in our history
It takes considerable effort to botch the job of Speaker in the House of Commons.
For an hour a day they preside over question period to scold MPs when they can’t hear answers over the heckling. If that fails, they simply stand at their chair to silence the microphones until the hubbub subsides. And it almost goes without saying that keeping the Speaker job means avoiding the introduction of a Nazi seated in the viewing gallery.
For performing these less-than-onerous duties, the lucky MP gets a Parliament Hill suite, a historic farm residence a short drive away, a car allowance, a lavish hospitality budget, fawning support staff, a $93,000 pay boost and a special Speaker-labelled Scotch.
It’s a dream job on so many levels.
Yet for reasons not easily deciphered, current Speaker Greg Fergus seems not to want the job after only two months, the shortest length of service for any Speaker in our history.
He could face a parliamentary committee inquisition next week with his fate hanging on a few supportive NDP votes, party support which might be shaky given how one possible replacement is assistant deputy speaker and NDP MP Carol Hughes, who could become the first Dipper to take the chair.
NDP MP Carol Hughes rises during Statements in the House of Commons Wednesday April 14, 2021 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
What caused the Speaker’s latest rendezvous with controversy is a lapse in judgement so serious it has created the odd coupling of Conservatives and the Bloc Quebecois to declare lost confidence in Fergus continuing in the role.
By posing in Speaker regalia while recording a tribute video to the outgoing interim leader of the Ontario Liberal Party for its leadership convention last weekend, Fergus painted a partisan stripe on the neutral robes of the office.
He then compounded his misstep by jetting off to Washington D.C. for a highly questionable junket on the same day his conduct was being sullied and shamed on the Commons floor, leaving his deputy to handle the awkward fallout.
Now, let us pause here for a moment to question why any Speaker is given the VIP travel treatment to the U.S. capital at any time.
It’s hard to imagine any MP contributing less to high-level international discussions on trade, economic or cultural cross-border enhancements than the one MP elected to impartiality and cut off from any political decision-making.
The justification for Fergus to attend an embassy Christmas tree lighting, deliver a nostalgic speech about his young Liberal days and hobnob with U.S. counterparts who, unlike him, have actual political power is a mystery that has even the NDP raising their eyebrows.
He compounded the lousy optics by defiantly declaring he had no intention of resigning and vowing to “demonstrate fairness and impartiality in getting the job done,” a pledge he had used after an earlier political mistake.
Look, there’s no doubt Greg Fergus is a class-act Liberal MP.
But right from the starting gate he’s been self-sabotaging his stellar reputation.
Days after being elected the first Black Canadian as Speaker, his honeymoon hit a speedbump.
Fergus was poised to rule on the misleading answer given to MPs on the actual cost of a holiday for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but he had personally approved the questionable response as Trudeau’s parliamentary secretary prior to becoming Speaker.
Only under pressure did he quietly recuse himself, but reputational damage was done.
Then Fergus needlessly intruded on question period’s allotted hour with a long statement outlining his intentions to enforce House decorum. It was a procedural quibble to be sure, but one which infuriated the Conservatives.
All this suggests Fergus is suddenly at risk of becoming a fire spreading to a dumpster.
It’s politically difficult for a Speaker to rule with impartial credibility when two of the three major parties believe his neutrality has been compromised.
And for the fourth-place NDP, a golden opportunity presents itself as MPs consider voting whether to probe into the Speaker's conduct.
By voting out Fergus to put one of their own MPs in the chair, if indeed Hughes is the likely replacement, it would represent a much-needed declaration of independence from their toxic tagalong pact with Trudeau, who backs Fergus unconditionally.
As the abrupt ouster of former Speaker Anthony Rota shows, coming just days after he unknowingly sponsored the introduction of a Nazi to parliamentary applause, MPs can react quickly and without mercy to dump a Speaker displaying poor judgement.
In a cranky Parliament anxious to adjourn for its six-week holiday break, his overt partisanship and arrogant defiance beamed in from a Christmas party south of the border could trigger enough MP backlash to cost Fergus his cushy Speaker title and all those perks.
That’s the bottom line.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Ontario to ban use of cellphones in school classrooms starting in September
Ontario is introducing a suite of measures that will crack down on cellphone use and vaping in schools.
'Do not consume': Gift Chocolate recalled due to undeclared milk, soy
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has issued a recall for a specific chocolate brand sold in Ontario and Quebec.
Zendaya tennis movie ‘Challengers’ scores at weekend box office
Zendaya and castmates Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor have been on a globetrotting press tour to get the word out about Italian director Luca Guadagnino's original film, which opened in 3,477 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
BREAKING Quebec to invest $603 million to protect the French language
Quebec will invest $603 million over five years to counter the decline of French in the province, French Language Minister Jean-Francois Roberge announced Sunday.
Kitchener family says their 10-year-old needs life-saving drug that cost $600,000
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Key mediator Qatar urges Israel and Hamas to do more to reach a cease-fire deal
A senior Qatari official has urged Israel and Hamas to show "more commitment and more seriousness" in ceasefire negotiations in interviews with Israeli media, as pressure builds to reach a deal that would free some Israeli hostages and bring a ceasefire in the nearly seven-month-long war in Gaza.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Murder charge laid after man falls to death from Toronto apartment balcony
One person has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of a man who fell from a balcony following an altercation inside a Toronto apartment building.
Local Spotlight
DonAir force takes over at Oilers playoff games
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan skips haircuts for 10 years waiting for Stanley Cup win
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”