Heckling the hecklers

Kate Heartfield considers civility.

If you really want your MP to be an amateur off-colour comic, a lack of heckling doesn’t have to get in the way of that. A ban on heckling doesn’t mean a ban on humour, snappy comebacks and sharp critiques. I have no doubt that NDP MPs such as Charlie Angus, Pat Martin and even Jack Layton will continue to include highly partisan zingers in their questions in the House of Commons. They’ll just do it when they’ve got the floor. That is what grown-ups do.