Analysis · Question Period answer · beta

Steven MacKinnon

Liberal on Democratic Institutions 2026-06-16

78 words · 4 sentences · 6 clauses

Replying to Yves Perron (Bloc Québécois)

“Mr. Speaker, bad projects do not deserve support. The Prime Minister has a majority. He spends the majority of his time travelling, but he also has a majority in the House. All of his bills are guaranteed to pass. All he is doing with these repeated time allocation motions is preventing MPs from doing their job. All he is doing is trying to push things through so quickly that civil society does not realize what is happening. The reason the Prime Minister is rushing so much is to keep people from noticing the deregulation and abuse of power hidden within his laws. Why is the Prime Minister incapable of respecting Parliament and democracy?”

Statement grade

30 / 100, held down by Relevance

A score under 50 is red. Choose a measurement to see where it lost points and why; choose it again to clear.

Claims 92%The question 8%

This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.

Mr. Speaker, Claims · 43 wordswe make no apology for working tirelessly on Canadians’ priorities, on affordability, on delivering major projects and, yes, on major, unifying projects of national interest such as high-speed rail, Vague promisewhich the Bloc MPs oppose, despite having supported it prior to the last election.¹ The question · 6 wordsWhat are they telling their constituents? Claims · 29 wordsThe Bloc members made a solemn promise to support high-speed rail, ²but after receiving instructions from Mr. Plamondon, they are now against it.³ They need to explain their about-face.Off point

At a glance

Lost points for
Didn't answerNone of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

Switch Claims on to list the checkable claims here.

What the tags mean

Signal · 100

0 of 7 deductions are Signal

Signal checks whether every part makes a point, gives a reason, or asks for action. A low score means the speaker filled time with fluff, pleasantries, or attacks.

Nothing lost points.

Relevance · 0

6 of 7 deductions are Relevance

Relevance checks whether the speaker stays on topic and answers the question asked. A low score means the speaker dodged the issue. Measured against the question asked.

Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “we make no apology for working tirelessly on Canadians’ priorities, on affordability, on delivering major projects and, yes, on major, unifying projects of national interest such as high-speed rail,”About the government’s work on its own priorities, not the time allocation question asked.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “which the Bloc MPs oppose, despite having supported it prior to the last election.”About the Bloc’s position on high-speed rail, not the Prime Minister’s use of time allocation.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “What are they telling their constituents?”A rhetorical question to the Bloc about their constituents, not the subject of the question.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “The Bloc members made a solemn promise to support high-speed rail,”About the Bloc’s promise on high-speed rail, not the question on respecting Parliament.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “but after receiving instructions from Mr. Plamondon, they are now against it.”About alleged instructions from a Bloc figure on high-speed rail, not the use of time allocation.
Talking about something other than the matter at hand: the question asked, or the bill, motion or speech under debate.What the tags mean “They need to explain their about-face.”A demand that the Bloc explain its position, not the question on Parliament and democracy asked.

Respect · 100

0 of 7 deductions are Respect

Respect checks whether the speaker argued with people’s positions and records rather than attacking the people: insults, mockery, or bad motives assigned to them. Criticism of what someone did, however strong, is not marked.

Nothing lost points.

Clarity · 57

1 of 7 deductions are Clarity

Clarity checks for plain speaking, clear ownership of actions, and honest limits on certainty. A low score means vague promises or evasive language.

A promise with no date, no measure and no one responsible.What the tags mean “working tirelessly on Canadians’ priorities”A self-crediting commitment with no actor-specific measure, date or success condition to hold anyone to.

Claims · 3

This list shows the factual statements you can check for yourself: the words as said, and the claim restated to stand on its own.

1“the Bloc MPs oppose, despite having supported it prior to the last election”The Bloc Québécois MPs oppose the high-speed rail project (Alto), having supported it prior to the last election.search
2“The Bloc members made a solemn promise to support high-speed rail”The Bloc Québécois made a promise during the election campaign to support the high-speed rail project.search
3“after receiving instructions from Mr. Plamondon, they are now against it”The Bloc Québécois MPs reversed their support for high-speed rail after receiving instructions from Mr. Plamondon.search

Analysed on 2026-10-20