OTTAWA, Ontario (PA) – A member of the Canadian Parliament was caught completely naked in a virtual House of Commons meeting.
William Amos, who has represented the Quebec district of Pontiac since 2015, appeared on the screens of his parliamentary colleagues completely naked on Wednesday. The pandemic has meant that many Canadian lawmakers attend video conferencing sessions, not in person.
A screenshot obtained by The Canadian Press shows Amos sitting behind a desk between the flags of Quebec and Canada, his private parts hidden by what appears to be a mobile phone in one hand.
“It was an unfortunate mistake,” Amos said in an email. “My video was accidentally turned on while I was changing into work clothes after jogging. I sincerely apologize to my colleagues in the House of Commons for this unintentional distraction. Obviously, it was a sincere mistake and will not be repeated. ”
Claude DeBellefeuille, a Bloc Quebecois opposition lawmaker, raised the issue by a court order after question period, suggesting that the parliamentary decoration requires male deputies to wear a jacket and tie – and a shirt, underwear and pants. .
Speaker Anthony Rota later thanked DeBellefeuille for his “observations” and clarified that, although he saw nothing, he checked with technicians and confirmed that they had seen something. He reminded parliamentarians to always be vigilant when they are next to a camera and a microphone.
Amos, the parliamentary secretary to Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, was only visible to members of parliament and staff on an internal video conference stream. Because he did not speak, his image did not appear in the public flow.
Liberal Party colleague Mark Holland said Amos had been “completely mortified”. Holland said he was pleased with his colleague’s explanation.
“I do not think there was any malicious intent. It is certainly an unfortunate circumstance, “said Holland.
“This is a warning to everyone,” Holland added. “You should always assume that the camera is on and be very careful whenever you walk anywhere near the room that you are properly dressed.”
Asked if he would issue a warning to all Liberal MPs, Holland said: “Oh, big time.”