Poilievre and Singh nearly come to blows in Parliament

There were some heated words exchanged during Question Period in Canada's Parliament yesterday. You might think that is not unusual, but in this case the words were between the two main opposition parties, and Question Period is quite specifically designated as a time for the opposition parties to put questions to the government of the day.

In the thick of it was - you might have guessed! - attack dog Pierre Poilievre, leader of the official opposition Conservative Party. This time, Poilievre went well beyond his brief, repeatedly needling NDP leader Jagmeet Singh - disregarding warnings from the Speaker of the House - for, as Poilievre sees it, going back on his word to cut loose from the NDP's de facto coalition arrangement with the Liberals.

In fact, Singh has always said that he was tearing up the semi-official arrangement, but that he reserved the right to vote whichever way he thought best on individual matters. Poilievre, however, desperately wants an election while his party is doing well in the polls, and is livid that the NDP (and the Bloc Quebecois, for whom Poilievre also had words) are not playing his game in supporting a vote of no-confidince in the government.

As we know, both Poilievre and Singh are combative individuals with some anger issues, and when Poilievre referred to the NDP leader as "sell-out Singh" and called him "a fake, a phony, and a fraud" - which amounts to pretty unparliamentary language in Canada - Singh was on his feet and challenging Poilievre. He may actually have been calling Poilievre out for a fight, although it's hard to know because the Speaker quickly switched off the microphones. Phrases like "I'm right here, bro!" and "Say it to my face!" and "Do it!" were apparently overheard.

Anyway, the episode gradually played itself out, with the Speaker acting as referee (or adult) while the boys yelled at each other. The Liberals were probably quite happy to be spectators rather than participants.

But Pierre Poilievre is getting increasingly out of hand with his name calling and his insults. The man needs to be taken down a peg or two. He is probably taking his cues from ex-President Donald Trump, whom he increasingly resembles, not least in his hubris. But Trump is not a role model that is appropriate to Canada's parliamentary democracy. 

I get it that Poilievre is an "angry young man" and passionate about his politics, but he need to temper his temper, and have some respect for the parliamentary model and for his political opponents.