Opposition parties agree on question period timeshare
NDP, Liberals also want time for questions extended; requests gone to Speaker for decision
CBC News
Posted: Feb 13, 2012 2:56 PM NT
Last Updated: Feb 13, 2012 4:57 PM NT
NDP Leader Lorraine Michael and Liberal Leader Dwight Ball have reached an agreement on how to divvy up time in question period. (CBC)
Related
Related Stories
Newfoundland and Labrador's Liberals and New Democrats have reached an agreement on how to share time when the house of assembly reopens.
Both opposition parties have sent a letter to the Speaker outlining their proposals for a revamped question period.
The Liberals now hold six seats with the NDP close behind at five.
Liberal Leader Dwight Ball said he knew those new numbers meant question period would have to change.
"Our discussion is a 60-40 split in question period, which would mean 18 minutes for the official Opposition and 12 minutes for the NDP in this case," Ball said.
That 12 minutes would be triple the amount of time the NDP got when the party held just one seat.
And the united front doesn't stop there.
NDP Leader Lorraine Michael said the opposition parties have sent a joint letter to the Speaker asking that question period be extended from the usual 30 minutes to 45 minutes — something that could mean even more changes.
"If we get an extended period of question period, which we are going to continue to look for — we've already started that process — then we would want to renegotiate how it happens," Michael said.
The Liberal and NDP leaders revealed the agreements on this week's episode of On Point with David Cochrane.
But the final decision rests with Speaker Ross Wiseman.
Share Tools
Latest Nfld. & Labrador News Headlines
- St. John's, old supermarkets and economic black holes
- Deserted supermarkets are annoying neighbours, confounding would-be retailers and posing new questions for city council, writes John Gushue. more »
- Arts workers criticize E.I. changes
- A long-time theatre director in Newfoundland and Labrador says changes to the federal employment insurance system will be bad for the province's seasonal theatre and tourism industries. more »
- On Point | Peter Penashue on strained relations with Ottawa
- Newfoundland and Labrador's representative in the federal government, Peter Penashue, predicts relations with the province will improve. more »
- St. John's trying to attract women firefighters
- The St. John's regional fire department says it's trying to convince more young women to consider careers in firefighting. more »
Top News Headlines
- Lisa Raitt closer to ending CP Rail strike
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Rail strike if necessary, after both CP Rail and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt tells CBC News she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria, B.C., native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
- St. John's, old supermarkets and economic black holes
- Crews still fighting central Labrador fire
- Arts workers criticize E.I. changes
- Man dies in crash near Bay Roberts
- 700-hectare Labrador fire has moved off CF base
- RNC investigating Corner Brook death
- St. John's trying to attract women firefighters
- On Point | Peter Penashue on strained relations with Ottawa
- DND allowed IceCaps to use jet image, says document

