Precedent

From the proceedings of the Bow-Wow Parliament, May 3, 2005:

MR. GRIMES: [...] He is betraying his own people in his own District in Port Rexton who thought he was seriously coming out to help them get a couple of teachers, to maybe get our teachers back. They thought that was what the meeting was about.

MR. E. BYRNE: (Inaudible) point out to the Leader of the Opposition and to the House, and to ask you to rule on it. It is fine that the Leader of the Opposition can say that government has betrayed people on policy matters and we can debate that all day but he cannot impute motives on another member in this House and say that a particular member betrayed somebody, his own people or anyone else in this House. That is not parliamentary. It is unparliamentary. It imputes motives on a member and it causes disruption in the House. Clearly, Mr. Speaker, that language is unparliamentary and I ask you to rule on it or ask, before you do it, the Leader of the Opposition to do the right thing and withdraw.

MR. SPEAKER: The word betrayal, as the Government House Leader points out, when you direct it towards an individual is clearly unparliamentary, and taking into consideration the tone that the Leader of the Opposition put forward, the Chair rules that it is out of order and I ask the hon. Leader of the Opposition if he would kindly withdraw that remark.