Recognition to Speak

With few exceptions, a Member may speak to any debatable motion that has been proposed to the House.3 In managing the debate on a motion, the Speaker is responsible for deciding the order in which Members are recognized to speak and for applying the rules of debate governing such matters as speaking once to a motion, the right of reply4 and unwarranted interventions.

Usual Order of Speaking

There is no official order for the recognition of speakers laid down in the Standing Orders; the Chair relies on the practice and precedents of the House in this regard. The Standing Orders simply authorize the Speaker to recognize for debate any Member who seeks the floor by rising in his or her place.5 The Member who is “seen” first is accorded the right to speak. This is commonly referred to as “catching the Speaker’s eye”, an expression dating back to the early days of English parliamentary procedure.6 Although the Whips of the various parties each provide the Chair with a list of Members wishing to speak, the Chair is not bound by these.7 By tradition, some Members of the House such as party leaders, Ministers when appropriate, and often opposition critics or spokespersons are given some priority to speak.8 A limited number of Members, including the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, have special rights accorded to them in the Standing Orders, but these rights relate only to the length of their speeches.9 While the Speaker has complete discretion in recognizing Members,10 the Chair may follow such informal arrangements as may be made11 or the Chair may be bound by an order of the House setting down a specific speaking order.12 In certain circumstances, a Member recognized to speak may divide his or her speaking time with another Member.13

In the ordinary course of events, after a motion has been proposed to the House, the Speaker recognizes the mover of the motion as the first to speak in debate. If the mover chooses not to speak, he or she is nonetheless deemed to have spoken: simply by nodding, the Member is considered to have said “I move” and this is taken as equivalent to a speech.14 The Member who seconds a motion is not required to speak to it at this point, but may choose to do so later in the debate.15

The Speaker subsequently “sees” Members from opposite sides of the House in a reasonable rotation, bearing in mind the membership of the various recognized parties in the House,16 the right of reply,17 and the nature of the proceedings. For example, during the first round of debate on Government Orders, a representative from the government and from each of the recognized opposition parties are recognized by the Speaker if they rise to seek the floor in debate. For subsequent rounds, the Speaker alternates between Members from the government and opposition benches. The Speaker has given the floor to independent Members and Members of unrecognized parties only after Members of recognized parties have participated in debate in proportion to their membership in the House.18 During Private Members’ Business, the Speaker exercises greater discretion in recognizing Members, ensuring that all parties and groups in the House are heard. On supply days, the Chair may recognize Members from the party sponsoring the opposition motion more frequently.19

During the period for questions and comments following most speeches,20 Members may direct questions to the Member who has just completed his or her speech, or may make brief comments on that speech. When recognizing Members, the Chair gives preference to Members of parties other than that of the original speaker, but not to the exclusion of Members from the speaker’s party, as well as to Members who have been present for and attentive to the debate.21 If the questions and comments period is interrupted by another proceeding, when debate resumes on the motion, the questions and comments period will continue only if the Member who made the initial speech is present.22 Since there is no precise time set aside for the length of each individual question or comment, the Chair will sometimes determine how many Members are interested in participating and then apportion the time for each intervention accordingly. Members recognized during the questions and comments period may not move dilatory motions,23 propose amendments,24 or move motions to extend the hours of sitting.25

Motion that a Member Be Now Heard

The Speaker’s decision as to who may speak during debate is superseded if a motion that another Member “be now heard” is adopted. A decision on this motion settles the order of debate immediately.

When two Members rise simultaneously to “catch the Speaker’s eye”, the Speaker will recognize one of them to speak. By rising on a point of order, another Member may move that the Member who had not been recognized be given the floor instead.26 The motion that a Member “be now heard” is an exception to the rule that a motion cannot be moved on a point of order. The motion may not be moved if the Member first recognized by the Speaker has already begun to speak.27 If the motion is ruled in order by the Speaker, the question on the motion is put forthwith without debate. A recorded division may take place. If the motion is carried, the Member named in it may speak.28 If it is defeated, the Member originally recognized before the motion was moved retains the right to speak.29 In either case, a further motion that a Member “be now heard” may be moved only after the Member ultimately recognized has completed his or her speech.30 Thus, it is impossible to move a series of such motions in order to prevent one particular Member from speaking.31 In addition, the motion cannot be moved:

  • if no debatable motion is before the House;32
  • if no one has yet been given the floor;33
  • if the Member named in the motion did not originally rise to be recognized;34
  • to give the floor to a Member whose speech would close the debate;35
  • during the period for questions and comments following a speech;36 or
  • if the House has adopted an order specifying the speaking order to be followed during debate.37

Recognition to Speak when Order Next Called

A Member whose speech is interrupted pursuant to a Standing Order, a special order,38 or by the adoption of a motion to adjourn the debate may continue speaking to the full extent of his or her allotted time when debate on the motion resumes. If a Member moves a motion to adjourn the debate during his or her own speech and it is negatived, the Member loses the right to resume speaking.39 Should the proceedings be suspended, the Member who had the floor at that time retains the right to speak when the proceedings resume.40 Should this Member not be present in the Chamber when the House resumes debate, he or she is considered to have yielded the floor and to have finished speaking.41 This principle also applies to the questions and comments period: if the Member who made the speech is not present upon resumption of debate, the questions and comments period ends and another Member is recognized on debate.42

Retention of Right to Speak After a Royal Assent Ceremony

If the Usher of the Black Rod arrives at the door of the House with a message from the Governor General summoning the House to the Senate for a Royal Assent ceremony, the business of the House is interrupted.43 No Member will be recognized to speak on a point of order or a question of privilege.44 The business before the House continues only when the House returns from the Senate and the sitting resumes; the Member whose speech was interrupted upon the arrival of the Usher of the Black Rod is recognized to continue his or her speech.45

Recognition to Speak Before and After Divisions

Once the Speaker has put a question to the House, there may be no further debate, points of order or questions of privilege.46 Members must remain seated until the result of the vote is announced, whereupon Members have sometimes risen on points of order to explain or simply to note their abstention from voting (thereby ensuring that their words are recorded in the Debates);47 to explain how they would have voted had they been present in the Chamber to hear the question put; to seek consent to have their vote(s) recorded after the fact;48 or to inform the Chair how they wish to have their votes recorded for subsequent divisions to which the results are to be applied.49 On occasion, Members have risen on points of order after recorded divisions to seek unanimous consent to change their votes.50 However, no Member should raise a point of order to comment on how another Member voted.51

Speaking Once to a Motion

In order to expedite the transaction of House business, the Standing Orders provide that Members may speak only once during debate on a particular motion.52 If a Member inadvertently rises to speak a second time, the Speaker will interrupt and recognize another to speak.53

Since motions, amendments and subamendments are separate questions, a Member may speak once to each.54 However, a Member who moves an amendment is deemed to have spoken to both the proposed amendment and the main motion, and cannot speak again on either question.55 Similarly, a Member who moves a subamendment is deemed to have spoken also to the amendment and cannot do so again, although this does not affect the Member’s right to speak to the main motion.56 After an amendment (or subamendment) has been moved, seconded and proposed to the House, any Member rising to speak addresses the amendment (or subamendment), rather than the main motion (or amendment). When an amendment (or subamendment) has been disposed of either in the affirmative or in the negative, any Member who has not yet spoken to the main motion (or amendment) may speak to it. An amended main motion is not considered a new question; only those Members who have not yet spoken to the main motion may speak to the amended motion.57

Any Member who rises to move a debatable motion must indicate the name of a second Member who formally supports the motion. A government order must be moved by a Minister, but it may be seconded by any Member of the House.58 If a mover chooses not to speak immediately after the motion has been proposed to the House, he or she loses the right to speak to the motion except in reply.59 The seconder may be recognized to speak to the motion later in the debate.

If a Member moves a motion during his or her speech (e.g., an amendment or a motion to adjourn debate), the act of moving the motion will normally terminate the Member’s speech. A Member who has already spoken to a question may not rise again to propose or second an amendment or move a motion to adjourn the debate or the House, although the Member may speak to an amendment if it has been moved by another Member.60 If a motion to adjourn the debate should be moved and negatived, the mover of the motion will be deemed to have exhausted his or her right to speak to the main question, although the questions and comments period may take place.61 However, if the motion is adopted, the mover may speak first the next time the Order is called. If the Member does not then rise, he or she forfeits the opportunity to speak.62

The House will occasionally grant a Member unanimous consent to speak a second time to a motion.63 The Standing Orders also provide for an exception to the rule of speaking only once to a question. This provision, rarely invoked since the implementation in 1982 of the 10-minute questions and comments period,64 allows a Member to speak a second time in order to explain a material part of his or her speech which may have been misquoted or misunderstood.65 In doing so, the Member must rise on a point of order, must limit the intervention to an explanation of the alleged misquotation or misunderstanding and may not introduce any new matter.66

The Right of Reply

Any Member who has moved a substantive motion may speak a second time to conclude the debate.67 This right has also been extended to the mover of a motion for second reading of a bill, but it does not pertain to movers of amendments, the previous question, an instruction to a committee, or third reading of a bill.68 The right of reply allows for the rebuttal of criticisms and arguments directed against a substantive motion, and its effect is to close the debate. To ensure that no Member wishing to participate in a debate is prevented from doing so by a sudden or unannounced exercise of the right of reply, the Speaker must inform the House before the mover of the original motion begins his or her reply that the reply will close the debate.69

If a Member moves a motion on behalf of another Member, a later speech by either will close the debate.70 However, during the debate on the second reading motion of a government bill, a Parliamentary Secretary may close the debate on behalf of the Minister who moved the motion only with the unanimous consent of the House.71

Although Ministers may exercise the right of reply,72 it is typically private Members who now make use of it, and it is entrenched in two of the Standing Orders regulating Private Members’ Business. The mover of an item of Private Members’ Business is entitled to speak in reply for not more than five minutes at the conclusion of debate.73 When debate on a motion for the production of papers under “Notices of Motions (Papers)” has taken place for a total of one hour and 50 minutes, a Minister (or a Parliamentary Secretary speaking on behalf of the Minister) may speak for not more than five minutes, whether or not he or she has previously spoken, and the mover may then close the debate by speaking for not more than five minutes.74

Interventions

When a Member is addressing the House, no other Member may interrupt except on an unanticipated question of privilege or point of order.75 Prior to 1982 and the advent of the questions and comments period following most speeches,76 a Member wishing to ask a question during debate had first to obtain the consent of the Member who was speaking.77 The Member allowing the interruption was under no obligation to reply and was often reluctant to do so as the time taken up in this way was subtracted from his or her speaking time.

While Chair Occupants generally ignore such minor interruptions as applause or mild heckling, they are quick to intervene when unable to hear the Member speaking or when the latter is unable to continue speaking.78