Parliament is subject to the law of the land, rule of law

Parliamentary inviolability does serious damage to the constitutional notions of the separation of powers, the rule of equality before the law, prosecutorial discretion, and the independence of the judiciary. Does not the notion of the legislative branch of the Western world’s parliaments deciding who may be prosecuted smack of elitism, of the old political class?

When Parliamentarians are elected, they acquire the universally accepted immunity or privilege of freedom of speech, which is designed to protect the interests of the institution. Beyond the walls of Parliament, like every other citizen, they are subject to the law of the land: the rule of law, writes Joseph Maingot. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY JOSEPH MAINGOT

August 15, 2022

OTTAWA—When Parliamentarians are elected, they acquire the universally accepted immunity or privilege of freedom of speech, which is designed to protect the interests of the institution. They are thus protected while performing their constitutional role in Parliament. Beyond the walls of Parliamen...

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