(MENAFN) In a tense exchange within the Canadian House of Commons, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre found himself suspended from parliamentary proceedings for a day after directing a contentious remark at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. During a heated debate on Tuesday, Poilievre criticized Trudeau's decision to permit British Columbia to implement a three-year experimental program decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of hard drugs like fentanyl and heroin, aimed at reducing overdose deaths.
Poilievre's sharp condemnation of the program culminated in him referring to Trudeau as a "wacko," eliciting both applause from his party and immediate intervention from Speaker Greg Fergus. Fergus deemed Poilievre's choice of words as "unacceptable" and repeatedly requested him to retract the statement, which was considered unparliamentary language.
Despite Fergus's insistence, Poilievre remained steadfast, offering to substitute the term "wacko" with "extremist" or "radical" instead of retracting the comment outright. The continued defiance led to Fergus ruling that Poilievre was "disregarding the authority of the chair" and subsequently instructed him to leave the chamber for the remainder of the session.
Poilievre later took to social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, to criticize Fergus's decision, asserting that he was censored for characterizing Trudeau's drug policy as "wacko."
The incident underscores the heightened tensions and confrontations within the Canadian parliament, particularly between opposing party members. Poilievre's suspension highlights the delicate balance between freedom of expression and maintaining decorum within parliamentary proceedings, prompting renewed discussions on the boundaries of acceptable discourse in political debates.
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