Participation of the Honourable René Cormier, Senator, Speaker Pro Tempore of the Senate, on behalf of the Honourable Raymonde Gagné, C.M., O.M., Speaker of the Senate, and Tom Kmiec, M.P., Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, on behalf of the Honourable Francis Scarpaleggia, M.P., Speaker of the House of Commons, to the 42nd Canadian Presiding Officers' Conference (CPOC), Edmonton, Alberta

From January 28 to 31, 2026, the Speaker Pro Tempore of the Senate, the honourable René Cormier, and Tom Kmiec, M.P., Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, participated in the 42nd Canadian Presiding Officers' Conference (CPOC) in Edmonton, Alberta. They were accompanied by Eric Janse, Clerk of the House of Commons and Marie-Eve Belzile, Deputy Clerk of the Senate.

The conference was also attended by Speakers, or their designates, from each of the ten provinces and the three territories of Canada. This event afforded the Canadian speakers the opportunity to engage in frank dialogue on important issues facing each of their legislatures, including Chamber modernization, security considerations at Legislatures, and a roundtable discussion between experienced and new Speakers on the demands of the role. The Speaker Pro Tempore, the Honourable René Cormier and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, Tom Kmiec also gave a joint presentation on the modernization of both the Senate and House of Commons Chambers.