Mr. Speaker, I am rising on a point of order. I would like to quickly come back to what the member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes said earlier this morning, mainly because his comments coincide with the tabling of a report in Quebec that looked at the reasons why women leave politics.
We already know that there are obstacles that prevent more women from going into politics, but we are also seeing that they are more likely to leave politics faster than men. Some of the obstacles listed in the report include cyberstalking, threats and safety risks, which are more likely to affect women. However, the report also mentioned that women are more likely to be attacked for their physical appearance and dress. There seems to be a double standard there.
The comments that we heard this morning were not directed at a woman, However, what concerns me is that, because these sorts of comments may seem harmless as a one-off, we may tend to not follow up. However, such comments may indirectly give the public the idea that it is okay to make similar comments, which could discourage people in general, but particularly women, from going into politics.
Mr. Speaker, I would to make the following request of you. The next time such comments are made, I would like you to not only remind the House of the importance of using parliamentary language, but also ask the member to apologize and withdraw the comments.
