'Are they going to put Ron Taverner in?': Speaker rollback raises eyebrows

Also: PCs haze Stiles, race for OLP prez heats up, #onpoli alumni landings, deck the halls II

ABOVE THE FOLD

The Ford government’s move to strip the Speaker of certain powers is raising some eyebrows, MARIT STILES is already dealing with leadership drama before officially taking the helm of the NDP, and the race for Liberal Party president is heating up.

Let’s dig in.

Speaker stands alone. Photo: Getty

First in Queen’s Park Observer — SPEAKER SPAT — The Ford government’s latest shakeup to the Standing Orders is ruffling some feathers at Queen’s Park — and the criticism isn’t just coming from the usual suspects in Opposition.

I spoke with top non-partisan Leg staffers about Legislative Affairs Minister PAUL CALANDRA’s Bill 51, which, among other things, strips Speaker TED ARNOTT of certain powers, including the hiring of a new Sergeant-at-Arms to replace JACKIE GORDON, who’s retiring at the end of the year.

Their verdict: Keep it non-partisan.

Word on the street is that MIKE CIVIL — Gordon’s second-in-command and director of the Legislative Protective Service — was in line to tak…