MPs Return Monday: Speaker Showdown and King Charles Throne Speech Kick-Start New Session

After nearly half a year of silence, the House of Commons roars back to life on Monday ­– but not before MPs pick a referee. The Speaker’s chair is suddenly the hottest seat in Ottawa: incumbent Greg Fergus wants it back, Conservatives are pushing deputy Chris d’Entremont, and several Liberals are circling. With the government just three votes short of a majority, installing an opposition Speaker could tip the math in Mark Carney’s favour, so the ranked-ballot contest will be watched like a playoff shoot-out.

Twenty-four hours later, pomp replaces politics when King Charles arrives by state landau to read his throne speech – only the third time a reigning monarch has done so since Confederation. Parade horses, a 21-gun salute and the Usher of the Black Rod’s triple knock will summon MPs to the Senate, where the King will outline the Carney agenda before retreating behind the brass bar that guards Commons independence.

Once the speech is done, routine business resumes: symbolic C-1 and S-1 bills to assert parliamentary autonomy, committee appointments, then a multi-day debate on the throne speech itself. Expect fireworks over cost-of-living fixes, tougher climate targets and fresh defence spending – all delivered under the watchful eye of whichever Speaker survives Monday’s ballot.