Ex-Speaker: Party Leaders Hurt Democracy

Peter Milliken reflects on a weakened Parliament after retiring from his decade-long tenure as Speaker of the House.

Former speaker of the House Peter Milliken, one of the most respected members of Parliament, criticized the party system – and its leaders, in particular – for obstructing democracy. Milliken, a Liberal from Kingston, Ont., chose not to run for re-election this year after a decade of presiding over the House of Commons as speaker. In an interview, he said the party discipline that MPs must abide by prevents them from representing their ridings' interests over fears of getting booted from caucus. While that might change with the new majority government, as there's no longer a fear of an election looming over every vote, Milliken said he still expects pettiness to dominate debates and question period.