Privilege  He did not retract, though.

Privilege  Madam Speaker, the member refers to our House leader and other members, but 150 members of this place raised the concern with this individual. It is not just one Conservative member or one Bloc member. It is members who represent every region in Canada. Canadians are watching. They are very disturbed by what has been going on in this place and to find out that it appears the head referee is in the tank for one side.

Privilege  Madam Speaker, I have been honoured to serve under six Speakers, this one being the sixth, and I have to say that he is the most partisan Speaker I have ever served under. It is such a disappointment to have to bring this up, as we had such great hopes for this individual, hopes of restoring respect and improving decorum.

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, I listened intently to this motion and the last one, and it appears that we are going to be heading towards a meeting at PROC to discuss this. We have heard from two parties that represent almost 150 members of Parliament, which is almost the majority, calling for the resignation of the Speaker.

Speaker of the House of Commons  Mr. Speaker, one of the greatest honours of my careers was when my colleagues trusted me to be the 25th Speaker of the Saskatchewan legislature. The role of Speaker of the House is one of the most important roles in Westminster democracy. Without the Speaker, this place could not function, and without the trust and support of his colleagues on both sides of the chamber, the Speaker cannot perform his duties.

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, for clarification, I was rushed by the NDP-Liberal coalition cover-up guys on my last statement about—

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, when I resigned as Speaker, that was before taking part in a partisan meeting, not after. It was not that I got caught being on the video screen at a national event for a partisan party; it was to take part in a federal nomination to be here. I could not take part in that partisan activity with that hat on—

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, this is the context my colleagues were talking about. I was the 25th Speaker of the Saskatchewan legislature and I resigned. Why did I resign? It was to take part in a partisan event, a partisan meeting I could not attend because I was Speaker. That is the point. We should all be asking ourselves why the Speaker, knowing the rules, being the referee and being the subject expert on the rules, did not see the conflict in attending a partisan event.

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, I will make my remarks as short as possible, but they are important, because they boil down to what the issue is here today. When we explain what we do here and how Westminster democracy is supposed to work, we say it is through vigorous debate that we arrive at a conclusion and answer questions that face our country.

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, December 4, 2023, is a date that will be quoted in future rulings and references to the House, unfortunately. I do not enter this point of privilege debate willingly, but obviously, for all members of the House, this is a significant shot to our democracy. I will not go over the other points members have raised about the ethics violation and the conflict of interest decisions that have been ruled against this individual, but I will talk about my experience.

Fall Economic Statement  Mr. Speaker, my point is order is that there is no question in this long, rambling, pointless speech.

Questions on the Order Paper  With regard to government support for Romanian nuclear development: (a) what have been the historical costs for the government related to export development support for Romanian nuclear development, including, for each cost, the (i) year, (ii) type of support, (iii) financial cost; (b) has the government received all or a portion of the money that was invested into Romanian nuclear development back, and, if not, how much is still outstanding; and (c) were the terms of the 1977 agreement between Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd and the Socialist Republic of Romania adhered to by all parties, and, if not, what are the details of any violations of the agreement, including, for each, the date and a description of the violation?

Conservative Party of Canada  Mr. Speaker, everything feels broken in Canada. The costly coalition of the NDP-Liberals has shattered the Canadian dream. Unaffordable, unsafe, divided: everything feels broken after eight long years because, increasingly, everything is broken. We can put the pieces back together.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to the government's use of the term "rapporteur": (a) what is the government's definition of rapporteur; and (b) what is the difference between an advisor and a rapporteur?

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to expenditures associated with David Johnston's role as a "special rapporteur": (a) what is the budget for the special rapporteur; (b) was the special rapporteur required to obtain sign-off from the Office of the Prime Minister or the Privy Council Office (PCO) prior to retaining services from Navigator Ltd. and, if so, who approved the contract; (c) what is the value of the contract with Navigator Ltd.; (d) why was communication support from current government employees not provided to the special rapporteur by the PCO; (e) why did the special rapporteur determine there was a need to hire a crisis communications firm; (f) at what point did the special rapporteur determine that his communications were in crisis; and (g) why did the Prime Minister put David Johnston in a position where he would require crisis communications support?