Decorum is defined by the Canadian Oxford Dictionary as 鈥渂ehaviour required by politeness or decency鈥� or 鈥渢he accepted customs or behaviours of polite society鈥�. One might even go so far as to note Canadians have the reputation far and wide as a 鈥減olite society鈥�, and somewhat apt to say 鈥淚鈥檓 sorry鈥� rather than step on anyone鈥檚 toes or to cause offence.
Thus it might seem strange to see a news item from the seat of Canada鈥檚 federal government, the House of Commons in Parliament, that seemed to resemble news footage from other countries where legislators gather to yell and fight and generally be quite disruptive.
What happened to Canada鈥檚 鈥減olite society鈥�? The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, who was heard to promote 鈥渟unny ways鈥� and a 鈥渞eal change鈥� in how government is run in this country, was at the very centre of the brouhaha, as he rushed over to guide the Conservative party whip through a crowd of NDP MPs, and ended up elbowing an MP in the chest, upsetting her and making her miss a vote.
The whole incident had the aura of a hockey game to it, complete with endless repetitions of the replay of the incident. The only thing missing was the Speaker blowing a whistle and awarding a penalty to Trudeau for elbowing.
The incident didn鈥檛 end there, of course, as Parliament鈥檚 鈥渄ecorum鈥� suffered further setbacks when Trudeau came back over, presumably to try and apologize to the offended and/or wounded MP, only to have NDP leader Thomas Mulcair yelling at Trudeau a number of things, including that he was 鈥減athetic鈥�.
The PM did profusely apologize in the House, numerous times, as he should have, particularly as he鈥檚 not only the party leader but the elected leader of Canada, and as such should be held to a higher standard.
Coincidentally, there were reports from other seats of governments around the world where actual punches were thrown 鈥� but this assuredly was not something one would ever expect to see in Canada.
Decorum isn鈥檛 simply a matter of meeting society鈥檚 expectations of politeness. For our government, it ought to be a matter of course. We expect better from our elected politicians as they conduct the business of the nation, no matter what the issue is that the MPs are disagreeing about.
It is sad that Legislative Assemblies and the Commons are often scenes of squabbling and name-calling, but this is a step in the wrong direction. 鈥� Greg Nikkel
