MP not impressed with first virtual session of Parliament

Apr 29, 2020 | 5:10 AM

It may have been historic, but the local Member of Parliament says it was not effective.

Mel Arnold took part in Tuesday`s first ever virtual meeting of Parliament with 297 MP`s conferencing on Zoom.

Mel Arnold (submitted photo)

The North Okanagan-Shuswap Conservative MP described it as “challenging,” saying it gave the opposition members limited opportunity to question the Liberal government about their programs.

“And when we do question what they’re doing, we don’t get answers. The ministers, or responders, dance around the tough questions and continue with their talking points. That’s the biggest challenge to it,” Arnold told Vernon Matters from his home in Salmon Arm.

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Arnold said the session lasted about 2 hours and 15 minutes.

“So that works out to about 24 seconds per MP if we were all able to participate. They are allotting five minute questioning slots to specific individuals, MP’s, to question the top cabinet ministers now because this is the first one we’ve had.”

Next week, there will be two virtual sessions of Parliament.

“But it’s still very limited time per week that we get to question the government on their actions,” said Arnold.

There is also one in-person sitting per week on Wednesdays for 90 minutes which Arnold won’t be attending.

“Only about 30 will attend,” he said.

Arnold and the Conservatives are pushing for more in-person meetings, which they feel can be done safely and in respect of provincial health orders.

“If the members are having to be there for one day, for most of them, it’s not a problem for them to do multiple days, and that’s what we were asking for.”

There was a few of the inevitable “glitches.”

Some MPs couldn’t figure out how to unmute themselves, others accidentally began to comment when they didn’t mean to unmute. The biggest problem appeared to be with the translation, a glitch that continually had some MPs complaining they couldn’t hear or that the translation was being played at the same volume as the actual speaker.

(With files from The Canadian Press)

by Pete McIntyre

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