Nova Scotia.

• Author: Boucher, Annette M.
• Position: Legislative Reports

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Election of Deputy Speaker

The Spring 2016 sitting began on April 14, 2016. That day a new Deputy Speaker was elected as the former Deputy Speaker Margaret Miller had been appointed as Minister of the Environment in January. Both the Premier and the Leader of the Official Opposition put forward candidates for the position. Following a secret ballot election, Liberal MLA Gordon Wilson, member for Clare-Digby, was elected as Deputy Speaker.

The Government House leader then presented Resolution 3128, a resolution that in part proposed that Mr. Wilson and Keith Irving, the member for Kings South, both be Deputy Speakers and that the annual salary be divided equally between these two Liberal MLAs. This resolution was called for debate on April 19, 2016. The House Leader for the Official Opposition proposed an amendment to the resolution that added a third Deputy Speaker, an MLA of the Official Opposition. Nine members spoke on the amendment and a recorded vote was taken on the amendment. The amendment was defeated. At the end of a short period of debate, the Speaker advised that in order to comply with Rule 85, two-thirds of the members present had to vote in favour of the resolution for it to pass. Rule 85 states that any vote to suspend or change a Rule requires two-thirds of Members present. A recorded vote was taken and 47 of the 51 members were present, thus...