The liberal MP couple Marwa Rizqy and Gregory Kelley are the first parents to sit in the chamber with their baby. On Tuesday they took part in question time with the almost 2-month-old Gabriel.
Gregory Kelley is also the first father to stand up in the room with his baby in a carrier to ask a question.
“A former colleague and now Jousterin, Émilise, was a bit of an inspiration for Marwa and for me, when she walked into the room with her baby, we said ‘it’s possible,'” says the Jacques Cartier MP.
“It’s possible to have a baby and stay in politics, but it’s true that our case is a bit special because we are [tous] both MPs,” he said.
Parental leave is not currently granted to politicians in Quebec.
“When the laws were being made in Parliament, it really was a different time. Things have changed in Quebec. Things have changed in Canada and I think we’re able to adjust our national assembly,” Kelley said.
The MEP believes that there will one day be a need to define parental leave for elected officials, although he underlines the efforts already made in terms of flexibility.