Parliamentary facts from 1950s Canada

In 1953, in Moncton, then-external affairs minister Lester Pearson and Conservative MP John Diefenbaker each spoke at election rallies on the same night that a circus was performing. The Moncton Transcript rated their performances: 'Circus first, Diefenbaker second, Pearson third.' Nelson Wiseman digs into some highlights and lowlights in 1950s' federal politics.

John Diefenbaker, seen here at the opening of Toronto's Hockey Hall of Fame in 1961, never acted without his cabinet. Asked how many cabinet meetings had been held, a deputy minister replied, 'Just one. It started on June 22, 1957, and it’s still going on—with occasional brief adjournments,' writes Nelson Wiseman. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Opinion

BY NELSON WISEMAN

February 23, 2023

TORONTO—In 1950, the leader of the opposition, Conservative George Drew, uttered, “Mr. Speaker, I spy strangers,” an archaic phrase used to order the Commons gallery cleared to hold a secret session. Dating to the time of King Charles I, the device had never been ...

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