MPs are set to vote for a new Speaker of the House of Commons on Tuesday, after MP Anthony Rota stepped down from the post.
The House must have a Speaker in order to proceed with its daily business. An agreement among MPs has allowed the House to continue sitting under the watch of an interim Speaker and a number of deputies.
Here’s a breakdown of what the Speaker does, who is looking to take on the job and how the election will unfold on Tuesday.
What does the Speaker do?
The Speaker is an MP chosen by MPs to preside over the business of the House of Commons, act as an impartial arbiter of House proceedings and maintain order during debates. A Speaker has the authority to demand that MPs apologize if they use unparliamentary language — and can even order an MP removed from the chamber.
While the Speaker is elected as a member of a party, the role is considered nonpartisan — no Speaker sits in a party caucus.
Traditionally, the Speaker is supposed to act like they don’t want the job when they first take the chair — but the job comes with some perks.
Speakers get a boost to the typical MP salary; they earn $274,500 annually. They also get an official country residence in Quebec’s Gatineau Hills called The Farm and have access to a small personal apartment on Parliament Hill.
When a new Speaker is elected, they are “dragged” to the chair by the prime minister and Official Opposition leader. The tradition honours the historical dangers of the role, which dates back to 1377 in the British system.
Back then, Speakers had to deliver news from Parliament to the King — and could find themselves in mortal peril if the message wasn’t what the monarch wanted to hear. According to the British Parliament, seven Speakers were executed by beheading between 1394 and 1535.
Who is eyeing the job?
All MPs who are not a leader of a recognized party or a minister are automatically considered candidates for Speaker unless they notify the House clerk in writing by 6 p.m. on Monday.
Anyone who wants the job is allowed to rise in the House and speak for five minutes ahead of the election. But MPs can start pitching themselves as candidates ahead of time.
Conservative Chris D’Entremont was one of the first to put his name forward after Rota stepped down.
The Nova Scotian MP was first elected in 2019 and was picked to be Deputy Speaker when the House returned following the 2021 election.
The Deputy Speaker serves as a “back-up,” replacing the Speaker when they’re absent from the House.
D’Entremont has filled in for Rota on several occasions in the past few years and is familiar with the role.
“I think there has to be some more decorum in the House, more respect for one another,” D’Entremont said Wednesday. “But ultimately you have to have a personal relationship with all of the members of the House of Commons, have an understanding of what their needs and wants are, because the Speaker is serving the members.”
There are also two Assistant Deputy Speakers who can take the chair if neither the Speaker nor the deputy is available. Both current assistants have put their names in the ring to replace Rota.
The NDP’s Carol Hughes has been an Assistant Deputy Speaker since 2015.
In a letter sent to MPs, Hughes cited her experience as an assistant to pitch herself for the top job.
“I have placed the rules and regulations of our House of Commons above partisanship throughout my tenure and I have continued to work to ensure that each member of Parliament, and by extension their constituents, have a voice in our cherished institution,” she wrote.
Hughes, an Ontario MP, was first elected to the House in 2008 and has held her seat ever since.
Quebec Liberal MP Alexandra Mendès, the second Assistant Deputy Speaker, has also put her name forward.
Mendès has been an MP since 2008 and has served on a number of parliamentary committees, including as a vice-chair.
She has been an Assistant Deputy Speaker since 2021.
Liberal Greg Fergus also has suggested he intends to let his name stand for the role.
The Quebec MP said he would encourage “frank and impassioned debate” within the House rules if he were to take the Speaker’s chair.
“Each one of the 338 members of Parliament have a right to be in the House, to express themselves and not to be intimidated,” he told reporters Wednesday.
Fergus has been an MP since 2015. He is currently the parliamentary secretary to both Treasury Board President Anita Anand and Health Minister Mark Holland. He would need to leave that role should he be elected Speaker.
Fergus previously served as parliamentary secretary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a role in which he found himself running afoul of House ethics rules.
Charlottetown MP Sean Casey says he wants to be the first Speaker from Prince Edward Island.
“It would be historic. There’s never been a Speaker of the House of Commons from Prince Edward Island,” the Liberal MP told CBC P.E.I. on Thursday.
Casey was first elected in 2011 and has served as a parliamentary secretary to the minister of justice.
Green Party Co-Leader Elizabeth May says she is putting herself forward for the Speaker role, after pitching herself for the job in 2019. But it wasn’t clear at time of publication if she’s eligible.
In the past, a candidate had to be present in the House to be considered a candidate. Due to health reasons, May has said she won’t be in attendance.
MPs will still be required to show up in the House to vote for Speaker. But it’s unclear if changes to House rules that allow for hybrid sittings would allow a candidate to be elected if they’re absent. CBC News has asked the Speaker’s office for clarification.
While May is technically a leader of her party, the Greens are not officially recognized in the House because they only have two seats; a party must have at least 12 to gain official status. Therefore, May would still be eligible as a candidate.
Peter Schiefke is another Quebec Liberal putting himself forward for the Speaker role.
Schiefke has been an MP since 2015 and has held a few parliamentary secretary positions, including parliamentary secretary to the prime minister.
He is currently chair of the House transport committee. Chairs play a role similar to that of a Speaker during committee meetings, acting as impartial arbiters of proceedings.
How does the Speaker election work?
The Constitution states that electing a Speaker should be the first order of business when Parliament returns after an election. Technically, the House cannot sit until a Speaker is chosen.
The House has been carrying out its business under an agreement that was struck Tuesday after Rota announced he would step aside.
Rota officially left the role on Wednesday, but MPs agreed Tuesday that the House can continue sitting with Bloc Québécois MP Louis Plamondon acting as interim Speaker.
Plamondon is what’s known as the “Dean of the House” — the MP with the longest unbroken sitting record who isn’t a minister or party leader.
One of the Dean’s roles is to oversee the election of the Speaker. Plamondon — who was first elected in 1984 — will do so for the sixth time when a new Speaker is chosen on Tuesday.
The Speaker is elected by a secret ranked-ballot, meaning MPs list the candidates in order of preference. If nobody wins on the first ballot, the last-place candidate is dropped and their votes are redistributed until someone claims a majority.
Electing a Speaker by secret ballot is a relatively new process. Up until the mid-1980s, the Speaker was nominated by the prime minister and MPs simply gave a rubber-stamp approval.
The first election by secret ballot took place on Sept. 30, 1986 — almost exactly 37 years before the day that MPs will elect a new Speaker to replace Rota. Ironically, the Speaker who was replaced on that occasion was also the last before Rota to step down mid-session.
Progressive Conservative MP John Bosley had been the Speaker following the 1984 election, but decided not to put his name forward for the secret ballot election “in the spirit of reform.” Bosley stepped down and Progressive Conservative MP John Fraser was elected Speaker.
In 1986, Progressive Conservative MP John Fraser was elected Speaker of the House. It was the first time MPs chose a Speaker via secret ballot.