Deputy House Speaker asks Conservative riding association to remove a Facebook post after concerns raised by NDP MP

The Deputy House Speaker says he has asked a Conservative riding association to remove a Facebook post for an event that featured him wearing his Commons uniform, and that he had no involvement in its publication.

Chris d’Entremont, who is also a Conservative MP, issued the statement on Thursday evening after NDP MP Lindsay Mathyssen raised a point of privilege in the House of Commons detailing her concerns about the post. She said wearing the robe in a political advertisement could compromise his impartiality as Deputy Speaker.

The social-media posting from the Dartmouth-Cole Harbour Conservative Association was for an event held last November that was to be open to “all Conservatives in Dartmouth-Cole Harbour and surrounding area.”

The post said the association was “hosting a Meet and Greet with two very special guests,” in reference to Mr. d’Entremont, MP for the Nova Scotia riding of West Nova, and a Conservative national councillor for the province.

The question raised about Mr. d’Entremont follows similar concerns levelled against Speaker Greg Fergus. On Monday, the Conservatives put forward a motion in the House of Commons to remove Mr. Fergus as Speaker, though it was defeated in a vote the following day. The Conservatives and the Bloc Québécois say he lacks impartiality in the role.

The speaker’s role is to essentially be a referee, and their actions must be impartial to preserve the trust of the House. The deputy speaker fills in for the role when the speaker is absent.

Ms. Mathyssen said in a statement Thursday that the role of deputy speaker comes with great trust from MPs and Canadians to be “impartial, fair and to ensure that the resources from the House of Commons remain separate from partisan and electoral-related events.

“To have the Deputy Speaker purposefully participate in a partisan ad, in his robes, would show a blatant disregard for the Office of the Speaker,” she said. “I’ve urged the Deputy Speaker to clarify how this happened, and I am prepared to take appropriate steps to ensure accountability.”

In response to Ms. Mathyssen’s concerns, Mr. d’Entremont, who was appointed Deputy Speaker in November, 2021, said he has reviewed the posting on Facebook. He said that it was made by a volunteer at an electoral district association other than his own and one in which he has no involvement.

“It was posted to the electoral district association’s own Facebook page for a free-admission meet-and-greet event which I had agreed to attend,” Mr. d’Entremont said. “The choice of photograph and wording of this social-media post was neither my own nor was it approved by me.”

He also said the photo of him appears to be “simply one plucked from the House of Commons website and certainly was not a photo which was specially taken for this purpose.”

Conservative MP Chris Warkentin has similarly criticized Mr. Fergus for language about Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre contained in an advertisement for a political event to be held with the Quebec MP in early June. An advertisement for “A Summer Evening with the Honourable Greg Fergus” included that “Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives propose reckless policies that would risk our health, safety and pocketbooks.”

The Liberal Party’s national director issued a statement apologizing directly to Mr. Fergus. Azam Ishmael said language posted on the event page of liberal.ca was “auto-populated, standard language” used for events on the party’s website and it was posted without Mr. Fergus’ knowledge and as a result of a miscommunication between the party and the riding association.

Last December, he was criticized for participating in a congratulatory video for John Fraser, the former interim leader of the Ontario Liberals, who is a long-time personal friend. In the video screened at the party meeting where Bonnie Crombie was named Ontario Liberal Leader, Mr. Fergus wore his Commons uniform.

Sebastian Skamski, the director of media relations for the Opposition Leader’s Office, said Thursday evening that the Deputy Speaker’s behaviour is unlike that of Mr. Fergus who has “acted in a blatantly partisan way” on several occasions.

Mr. Skamski said the singular social-media post in question with Mr. D’Entremont used absolutely no partisan language, did not attack any political leader and was drafted by a volunteer of a riding association entirely unrelated to Mr. d’Entremont, who never saw or approved the post.