A Focus On Inclusive Parliaments
Parliamentarians represent people. But are parliaments reflective of the people they represent?
It’s impossible to look at the composition of people in photos from past parliaments without seeing noticeable changes in the parliamentarians depicted. But the growing diversity evident in recent decades is also a stark reminder of both explicit exclusionary practices, and implicit barriers to actively participating in parliamentary politics – some of which continue to exist.
In this issue, the Canadian Parliamentary Review, we collect a series of articles exploring themes relating to “Inclusive Parliaments.” These articles not only examine the challenges members of certain diverse groups experience while seeking office, but also unique factors they encounter once elected.
Taking inspiration from a 2025 Canadian Study of Parliament Group conference, articles include:
- A summary of conference proceedings (Alexie Labelle)
- A revised version of the keynote address (Manon Tremblay)
- A review of accessibility measures at the Manitoba Legislature (Rick Yarish)
- An examination of harassment policies across four westminster parliamentary workplaces (Tracey Raney)
- An exploration of racial diversity among candidates and elected MPs in the 2025 federal election (Jerome H. Black and Andrew Griffith)
- An interview with the founding chairperson of the Commonwealth Parliamentarians With Disabilities group (Kevin Murphy)
Additional planned articles that could not be included due to production delays will appear in forthcoming issues. This content includes:
- A roundtable discussion with women Speakers
- A roundtable discussion with Quebec MNAs who are parents of young children
- A roundtable discussion with LGBTQ+ parliamentarians
The Canadian Parliamentary Review endeavours to produce one to two theme issues per year on topics that may be of interest to our readership – particularly Canada’s federal, provincial and territorial parliamentarians. If you have an idea for a future topic, please contact me at wstos@ola.org.
Will Stos
Editor, Canadian Parliamentary Review