Mr. Speaker, during question period the hon. member for Kootenay West-Revelstoke rose and put a question.
I am informed, although I did not see it as I could not see it from my seat, that on the television cameras it was quite obvious that he was holding a prop. The prop was in the nature of a sign posted on the back of the document or portfolio that he was holding. The document was clearly visible on television and contained a slogan that related to recent meetings on taxes in Canada.
The person who told me this saw it on television in the lobby. I was not in the lobby, I was in the House and could not see it from where I was sitting.
I refer to Beauchesne's sixth edition, citation 501:
Speakers have consistently ruled that it is improper to produce exhibits of any sort in the Chamber. Thus during the flag debate of 1964, the display of competing designs was prohibited. At other times boxes of cereal, detergent and milk powder have been ruled out of order.
Citation 502 states:
When a member produced samples of grain in the House, the Speaker deprecated the practice, saying, `If we allowed hon. members to produce such exhibits, we would get ourselves involved in a position where perhaps all too often hon. members would want to table dead fish, herrings, or red herrings, damp grain or wild oats'.
This quotation from previous Speakers indicates the grave nature of this offence against the rules of the House and I ask the Chair to apply the proper discipline to the hon. member for Kootenay West-Revelstoke.