John Allen Fraser Quotes

#1. A careful and sympathetic sense of humour can also be a great asset when there is need to get out of difficult situations gracefully.

John Allen Fraser

#2. Debates must take place in an atmosphere of courtesy.

John Allen Fraser

#3. Democracy is not a form of government. It is a political philosophy that can be embodied in various systems of government.

John Allen Fraser

#4. On a craggy bluff above the majestic Ottawa River stands the remarkable embodiment of our system of governance: Parliament.

John Allen Fraser

#5. The House Of Commons has never been a tea-party. It consists of strong-minded, often very idealistic people, who are trying to accomplish something for our country. We are inheritors of an adversarial system and that, in itself, fosters conflict.

John Allen Fraser

#6. If the institutions of parliamentary democracy are worth preserving, the duty to explain them to the people they are meant to serve becomes vitally important.

John Allen Fraser

#7. As I became Speaker in 1986, I made a point of setting up a public information office to respond to requests and provide information about Parliament and how it functions.

John Allen Fraser

#8. Question Period is not part of the legislative process,and has nothing to do with it. It is a means of monitoring the Executive that the Government cannot evade.

John Allen Fraser

#9. The purpose of privilege is not to place parliamentarians above the law, but rather to allow them to carry out their duties independently and effectively, in the national interest.

John Allen Fraser

#10. But while the American Constitution was the child of war, ours grew out of discussion, bargaining and negotiation.

John Allen Fraser

#11. In the long and dogged crusade that the human race has fought in favor of democracy, the ideal of liberty, of freedom, has always been the goal.

John Allen Fraser