Target three things you want to achieve for your riding, and three things you want to achieve for the country. And make sure all your work in committees and in Parliament is focused on moving to achieve those objectives.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on June 9, 2025.

OTTAWA—First day on the Hill. For most Members of Parliament, it is even more exciting than your first day at school.

But there are many parallels.

You are a newbie in a world that you don’t completely understand. You may even be in a new city for the first time.

Not all MPs have even stepped foot in Ottawa before being elected.

Your first visit brings shivers up the spine. I still remember my first day on the Hill.

I walked from an apartment I had sublet a few streets away from Centre Block.

When I arrived at the foot of the Hill, I stood in front of the Centennial Flame and looked up to the Peace Tower in awe.

I could see my Centre Block office from there and I spent a moment just marvelling that I would be working in this place.

That first day for me was followed by 21 years. But the first day was the most innocent, the most frightening, and also the most uplifting.

Fright and hope seem to be contradictory.

Every Member of Parliament starts off wanting to do good for their riding and their country. They are also a little scared about whether they will fit in to this huge institution, with thousands of employees in the bureaucracy and literally more than 300 other colleagues in the House of Commons.

These days, members are onboarded, with information and a few hours of guidance about what to expect as an MP.

But none of what is in the documents or briefings can prepare you for how to use your time wisely. In most instances, you are coming to Parliament with no previous experience and very little direction.

In the current Parliament, because the same party was re-elected to government, there is an opportunity for mentorship among the members.

It is even tougher for new ministers, because even though former ministers may still be in caucus, they might be fairly upset about being dropped from cabinet. So they are not the most likely to step in and help new colleagues.

Other caucus members are hoping that if someone in cabinet does not perform well, they will be in line as a replacement. So they are not necessarily rooting for ministers either.

I had lunch in the Parliamentary Dining Room with an MP last week.

It was my first time in the new venue, even though it opened in 2019.

It was great to see some of the same staff still serving more than 20 years since I left Parliament. They came over to say hello, and it felt like “old home week.”

The food was much better than I remember, but the site was smaller, as it is only designed to house parliamentarians while Centre Block is under renovation.

I saw some senior members, former ministers meeting with staff and colleagues. And I also observed some young new members, their brand new shiny parliamentary pins giving away their brief tenure as elected members.

All were smiling, and enjoying this first real week of work as the business of the House of Commons began in earnest.

Some will make their mark, and others will fade into the background. At one point, the average shelf life of a Member of Parliament was six years, so they have to work quickly to achieve their goals in politics.

If I were to offer some free advice, it is a political mantra that has passed the test of time. KISS, or keep it simple, stupid. That is not to say voters are stupid, but the message of politics must be understood by people.

Target three things you want to achieve for your riding, and three things you want to achieve for the country.

And make sure all your work in committees and in Parliament is focused on moving to achieve those objectives.

Enlist allies, and not just in your own party. Be good to the bureaucracy. They can help you achieve your objectives or they can make your life miserable.

Work your committees. Committees are one place where you can make your mark on policy, and make an impression on your team. It is also the best place to get local issues brought to the forefront.

As for Question Period, that is full-throttle theatre. And you should treat it accordingly. Practice your questions in front of the mirror and, for heaven’s sake, do not read from a printed answer.

Much to learn. And the work starts now.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on October 23, 2023.

OTTAWA—I was wrong.

In a previous column, I predicted civility in the House of Commons would last two weeks.

That prediction was predicated on a break week in the parliamentary calendar.

I figured the Members of Parliament could last at least five sitting days without allowing the place to run amok.

Instead, newly-minted speaker Greg Fergus spent two days in a civil chair.

On the third, the place erupted.

It all started out rather calmly. On Oct .18, Fergus was rising from his place to announce a new series of “reflective guidelines” that he would be using in his attempt to replace chaos with order.

He chose to introduce the guidelines just before the most-watched Question Period of the week.

On Wednesdays, all questions are devoted to the prime minister, which makes him a prime target on multiple issues and pretty much guarantees that the opposition will succeed in getting their messages on the news.

Normally, the House Speaker delivers orders, decisions, reflections, introductions, and announcements in the moments following Question Period.

This time, Fergus decided to break with convention, and deliver a lengthy reflection on protocol before questions began. He was obviously trying to make the point that everyone needs to know there is a new level of decorum that has arrived with the election of a new Speaker.

That desire ran smack into the wishes of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to lead off with his own questions.

When Poilievre refused to cede his spot to the Speaker, all hell broke loose.

Poilievre claimed, “The Speaker has a plethora of occasions to stand on his feet and make any point he wants or any declaration he likes. He does not need to do it in the middle of the sacred period during which we hold the government to account.” Poilievre went on to accuse Fergus of breaking the rules, and then former House Speaker Andrew Scheer backed up his leader’s right to proceed immediately with questions.

Fergus continued with his message about excessive heckling, which fell on deaf ears as Conservative MPs continued to interrupt with heckling.

While Fergus pleaded that “excessive, disruptive and loud heckling must be toned down,” his message simply engendered more disruption in the Chamber.

In the end, Poilievre got to deliver his question after a 20-minute speech from the House Speaker.

People quickly forgot the contents of the question. What came out of Wednesday’s Question Period is that, again, the call for parliamentary civility has simply fallen on deaf ears.

That may surprise the general public, as there was much focus on a kinder, gentler place when Government House Leader Karina Gould took over at the helm back in September.

But it was no surprise to those of us who have been involved in parliamentary matters for decades.

After all, the instrument that gives voice to Parliament is a mace. Ceremonial, of course, it was initially designed to kill people by clubbing them to death. When armour was introduced, it became less useful as a military weapon, but continued in ceremonial form.

Canada’s current mace was fashioned in after the original one was destroyed in the 1916 parliamentary fire that killed seven people.

Its design includes the Arms of Canada, the rose of England, the harp of Ireland and the thistle of Scotland. The staff incorporates the rose, shamrock, thistle, and the fleur-de-lys.

No words can be spoken without the presence of the mace, reminding us that Parliament is a verbal battlefield, and it isn’t always pretty.

The temperature tends to go up toward the end of a Parliament, particularly when there is election fever in the air.

With the Conservatives running so high in the polls, they have the wind in their sails, and it shows in their Question Period vigour.

Vigour includes testosterone, and the closer political parties get to voting day, the more emotions can run wild.

In a minority Parliament, the tension can be even more evident as at any moment the place could be shut down.

The New Democrats are facing some internal pressure from their supply-and-confidence agreement with the Liberals.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh felt the sting of that pressure in a reduced confidence motion at the party’s national convention in Hamilton last weekend.

However, he has his heart set on completing pharmacare, part of the triad of the supply agreement policy initiatives along with childcare and dental care. Without that, he won’t pull the plug.

If last Wednesday’s Question Period is any indication, Conservatives are raring to go.

From where they sit, an election couldn’t happen soon enough.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.