Hon Peter Milliken Canadian Speaker of The House

The Speaker of the House of Commons is the representative of the House in its powers and proceedings, and my functions fall into three categories. First, I preside over the debates of the House of Commons and ensure the observance of all rules for preserving order in its proceedings. Second, I am the Chair of the Board of Internal Economy (BOIE), which manages the budget and administration of the House of Commons, and those areas of Parliament Hill which are under the jurisdiction of the House. Third, I am the spokesperson or representative of the House in its relations with the Crown, the Senate and other authorities and persons outside Parliament.In terms of ranking, the Official Order of Precedence lists the Speaker of the House of Commons as being in 7th place, immediately after the Governor General, the Prime Minister of Canada, the Chief Justice of Canada, former Governors General and Prime Ministers and the Speaker of the Senate. Distilled to its essence, the main function of the Speaker is as the servant of the House.

The Presiding Officer is, however, entitled on all occasions to be treated with the greatest attention and respect by the individual members because the office embodies the power, dignity and honour of the House itself.The office of Speaker of the House of Commons is the personification of authority and impartiality. The Mace, symbol of the authority of the House, is carried in front of the Speaker by the Sergeant-at-Arms and is placed upon the table when the Speaker is in the Chair. The Speaker calls upon Members to speak; when they do, their words must be directed to the Speaker. When she or he rises to preserve (or restore) order or to give a ruling the Speaker must be heard in silence.

Dr. Peter MacCleod- Northern Armageddon: The Battle of the Plains of Abraham

The Battle of the Plains of Abraham is one of the pivotal events in North American and global history. This clash between British general James Wolfe and French general Louis-Joseph de Montcalm on September 13, 1759, led to the British victory in the Seven Years’ War in North America, which in turn led to the creation of Canada and the United States as we know them today.Rooted in original research, featuring quotations and images that have never appeared before, Northern Armageddon immerses the reader in the campaign, battle and siege through the eyes of dozens of participants, such as British sailor William Hunter, four Quebec residents enduring the bombing of their city and a teenage Huron warrior.

Shifting from perspective to perspective, we move from the bombardment of Quebec to the field of combat, where Montcalm and Wolfe gave their orders but thousands of individual soldiers determined the outcome of the battle. In the final chapters, MacLeod traces the battle’s impact on Canada, the United States, both countries’ Aboriginals and the world, from 1759 into the twenty-first century.

Podcast:
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