Liberal MP Francis Scarpaleggia elected as House of Commons Speaker

Canadian members of Parliament elected Liberal MP Francis Scarpaleggia as the Speaker of the House of Commons as their first order of business following the return of Parliament.

Scarpaleggia was dragged to the front of the House of Commons by Prime Minister Mark Carney and interim Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer as part of the tradition when a new Speaker is named.

Scarpaleggia was up against five other Liberal colleagues, after Conservative MPs John Nater and Chris d’Entremont, the latter who served as former deputy Speaker in the last Parliament, withdrew their names from consideration. 

“I would remind members that we are at the beginning of a mandate in the selfish hope that you will afford me a little grace period,” Scarpaleggia, an MP from the Montreal area, said. “I have few words because well, we all have things we want to accomplish and we’ve been away.”

Liberal MPs Sean Casey, Alexandra Mendes, Rob Oliphant, Sherry Romanado and former Speaker Greg Fergus also put their names forward.

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Green Party Leader Elizabeth May also backed out of the running as she’s the only party MP and being Speaker would limit her ability to weigh in on issues.

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In his first official act as Speaker, Scarpaleggia asked MPs to observe a moment of silence for the victims of the Lapu Lapu Day festival tragedy in Vancouver, where 11 people were killed and dozens of others injured in April.

A moment of silence did not happen at the time in the House as the federal election was underway.

Scarpaleggia has served as MP for the Quebec riding of Lac-Saint-Louis since 2004 and was re-elected in every subsequent election.

The 67-year-old has served on a number of committees in previous parliaments, including as chair of the standing committee on environment and sustainable development in the previous Parliament.

Scarpaleggia also served as the chair of the National Liberal Caucus from 2011 until 2021.

That long-standing time in office was noted by Carney in his first remarks in French in the House of Commons, saying his election showed the respect members had in Scarpaleggia.

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Scheer also remarked on Scarpaleggia’s election to the role, extending his party’s best wishes in his speakership.

The Speaker plays an important role in keeping the chamber functioning smoothly – especially in minority parliaments, which can become raucous and upend the government’s agenda.

The role is expected to be non-partisan and is tasked with overseeing the proceedings of the day, ruling on complaints of breaches of procedure or of MP privileges, and generally enforcing decorum and conduct.

A Liberal MP as Speaker means the party will drop to 168 seats, though it does little to change the need of the government to get support from other parties to pass legislation and survive confidence votes.

The job also comes with a diplomatic component and some significant perks — including a $309,000 annual salary, a driver, a sizable hospitality budget and an official residence on a rustic country estate in Gatineau Park.

—with files from The Canadian Press