Discussion · Oral Questions
Christine Normandin Bloc Québécois
“I want the Speaker to rethink how he handles question period. The government used an answer today just to make an announcement. If the Speaker allows that, the government could turn every answer into a statement instead of answering our questions.”
“Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I will be brief, because I can already guess what your answer to my question will be. Mr. Speaker, you have previously stated that you can determine whether a question in the House is relevant, but you cannot do the same with the answer. In response to a question from the member for Barrie South—Innisfil today, the government responded by sharing the news of Anne Carson winning the Nobel Prize in Literature, which is entirely legitimate. That said, I would suggest that the appropriate time to do that would have been during Statements by Members. If you accept that it is possible to answer a question with that response, then logically, you should also accept that it is possible to do so for 39 questions, which would give the government 39 more statements. I would ask you to reflect on that.”
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I will be brief, because I can already guess what your answer to my question will be. Mr. Speaker, you have previously stated that you can determine whether a question in the House is relevant, but you cannot do the same with the answer. In response to a question from the member for Barrie South—Innisfil today, the government responded by sharing the news of Anne Carson winning the Nobel Prize in Literature, which is entirely legitimate. That said, I would suggest that the appropriate time to do that would have been during Statements by Members. If you accept that it is possible to answer a question with that response, then logically, you should also accept that it is possible to do so for 39 questions, which would give the government 39 more statements. I would ask you to reflect on that.