Category: House of Commons

Chinese Agent ‘Active’ in UK Parliament, MI5 Warns

Britain’s MI5 security agency has warned that an agent of the Chinese regime has been active in the UK Parliament. An alert issued by the agency said an individual named Christine Ching Kui Lee has been “knowingly engaged in political interference activities on behalf of the United Front Work Department (UFWD) of the Chinese Communist…


Chinese Spy Infiltrated UK Parliament, Britain’s MI5 Spy Service Warns

Britain’s MI5 security agency has warned that an agent of the Chinese regime has been active in the UK Parliament. An alert issued by the agency said an individual named Christine Ching Kui Lee has been “knowingly engaged in political interference activities on behalf of the United Front Work Department (UFWD) of the Chinese Communist…


MPs Call for Commons Committee to Launch Emergency Probe of Use of Mobile Data

OTTAWA—Opposition MPs want the House of Commons ethics committee to investigate the Public Health Agency of Canada’s decision to collect data from millions of mobile phones to understand travel patterns during the COVID-pandemic. Conservative and Bloc Quebecois MPs want the committee to hold emergency meetings this month while the House of Commons is still on…


UK Needs Bigger Navy in ‘Increasingly Hostile’ World: Lawmakers

Britain must build a bigger and more advanced navy to protect the country in an “increasingly hostile and unpredictable international environment,” a cross-party group of lawmakers has warned. On Tuesday, the Defence Committee of the House of Commons published its latest report entitled “We’re going to need a bigger Navy.” The report finds that the…


Conservatives Push for All Party Committee to Examine Canada’s Afghanistan Response

OTTAWA—Conservatives will push for a vote on a new all-party House of Commons committee to look back at Canada’s plan for the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban and the response to the humanitarian crisis that followed. Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole says the committee will help Canadians understand why Canada failed to act when the…


Board Exceeded Its Authority in Imposing Vaccine Mandate for Commons, Speaker Says

OTTAWA—House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota says the chamber’s governing body overstepped its authority when it required anyone entering the Commons precinct to be fully vaccinated. Rota sided Thursday with the Conservatives in concluding that the all-party board of internal economy did not have the authority to impose a vaccine mandate. He said only the House itself…


Review Ordered After UK Lawmaker Told Not to Bring Baby to Parliamentary Chamber

The UK House of Commons will review a parliamentary rule forbidding lawmakers to bring babies into the chamber, after a female MP complained she had been told not to take her 3-month-old son with her during debates. After Labour MP Stella Creasy brought her son Pip into a Westminster Hall debate on Tuesday, she received…


Conservatives Say Virtual Commons Proceedings Allow Government to Dodge Scrutiny

OTTAWA—Conservative MPs will oppose a government proposal today to return to a hybrid format in the House of Commons, which has allowed MPs to participate virtually in proceedings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conservative deputy leader Candice Bergen says her party fears hybrid sittings “let the government off the hook” and give ministers an excuse not…


Seat Redistribution Plan Prompting Blanchet’s ‘Fires of Hell’ Rhetoric Has Popular Support

A national survey shows wide approval for proposed changes to Canada’s electoral districts that would take a House of Commons seat from Quebec and give additional seats to three other provinces. The plan, which drew derision from Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet, has implications for national unity and Liberal fortunes in Quebec. The proposal by Elections…


Liberal MP Anthony Rota Re-Elected as Speaker of the House

The first order of business for the 44th Parliament was the election of a House Speaker, and Liberal MP Anthony Rota was re-elected for that job, which he also held in the last Parliament, beating out six other candidates. “I am very honoured to be up here, both politically and personally,” Rota said after being…