23rd Canadian Parliament

23rd Canadian Parliament
Minority parliament
Oct. 14, 1957 – Feb. 1, 1958
Parliament leaders
Prime minister	John Diefenbaker Jun. 21, 1957 – Apr. 22, 1963
Cabinet	18th Canadian Ministry
Leader of the Opposition	Louis St. Laurent June 21, 1957 – January 16, 1958
	Lester B. Pearson January 16, 1958 – April 22, 1963
Party caucuses
Government	Progressive Conservative Party
Opposition	Liberal Party
Crossbench	Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
	Social Credit Party
House of Commons
Seating arrangements of the House of Commons
Speaker of the Commons	Roland Michener October 14, 1957 – September 26, 1962
Government House leader	Howard Charles Green October 14, 1957 – July 18, 1959
Opposition House leader	Lionel Chevrier October 14, 1957 – February 5, 1963
Members	265 MP seats List of members
Senate
Speaker of the Senate	Mark Robert Drouin October 4, 1957 – September 23, 1962
Government Senate leader	John Thomas Haig October 9, 1957 − May 11, 1958
Opposition Senate leader	William Ross Macdonald June 21, 1957 – April 22, 1963
Senators	102 senator seats List of senators
Sovereign
Monarch	Elizabeth II February 6, 1952 – September 8, 2022
Governor general	Vincent Massey 28 February 1952 – 15 September 1959
Sessions
1st session October 14, 1957 – February 1, 1958
←  22nd →  24th

John Diefenbaker was Prime Minister during the 23rd Canadian Parliament.

The 23rd Canadian Parliament was in session from October 14, 1957, until February 1, 1958. The membership was set by the 1957 federal election on June 10, 1957, and it changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections until it was dissolved prior to the 1958 election.

It was the first parliament opened by the Monarch of Canada, and the only parliament formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II herself, rather than her formal representative, the governor general. In 2025, King Charles III opened the 45th Canadian Parliament, marking the second time any monarch has opened parliament. ^[1]

It was controlled by a Progressive Conservative Party minority under Prime Minister John Diefenbaker and the 18th Canadian Ministry. The Official Opposition was the Liberal Party, led first by Louis St. Laurent, and then by Lester B. Pearson.

It was the second shortest parliament in Canadian history.

The Speaker was Roland Michener. See also List of Canadian electoral districts 1952–1966 for a list of the ridings in this parliament.

There was only one session of the 23rd Parliament.

List of members

Following is a full list of members of the twenty-third Parliament listed first by province or territory, then by electoral district.

Key:

• Party leaders are italicized.
• Parliamentary assistants is indicated by "‡".
• Cabinet ministers are in boldface.
• The Prime Minister is both.
• The Speaker is indicated by "(†)".

Electoral districts denoted by an asterisk (*) indicates that district was represented by two members.

Alberta

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Acadia		Victor Quelch	Social Credit	1935
Athabaska		Joseph Miville Dechene	Liberal	1940
Battle River—Camrose		James Alexander Smith	Social Credit	1955
Bow River		Charles Edward Johnston	Social Credit	1935
Calgary North		Douglas Harkness	Progressive Conservative	1945
Calgary South		Arthur Ryan Smith	Progressive Conservative	1957
Edmonton East		Ambrose Holowach	Social Credit	1953
Edmonton—Strathcona		Sydney Herbert Thompson	Social Credit	1957
Edmonton West		Marcel Lambert ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Jasper—Edson		Charles Yuill	Social Credit	1953
Lethbridge		John Horne Blackmore	Social Credit	1935
Macleod		Ernest George Hansell	Social Credit	1935
Medicine Hat		Bud Olson	Social Credit	1957
Peace River		Solon Earl Low	Social Credit	1945
Red Deer		Frederick Davis Shaw	Social Credit	1940
Vegreville		Peter Stefura	Social Credit	1957
Wetaskiwin		Ray Thomas	Social Credit	1949

British Columbia

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Burnaby—Coquitlam		Erhart Regier	C.C.F.	1953
Burnaby—Richmond		Thomas Irwin	Social Credit	1957
Cariboo		Bert Leboe	Social Credit	1953
Coast—Capilano		James Sinclair	Liberal	1940
Comox—Alberni		Thomas Speakman Barnett	C.C.F.	1953
Esquimalt—Saanich		George Pearkes	Progressive Conservative	1945
Fraser Valley		Alexander Bell Patterson	Social Credit	1953
Kamloops		Davie Fulton	Progressive Conservative	1945
Kootenay East		Jim Byrne	Liberal	1949
Kootenay West		Herbert Wilfred Herridge	C.C.F.	1945
Nanaimo		Colin Cameron	C.C.F.	1953
New Westminster		George Hahn	Social Credit	1953
Okanagan Boundary		Frank Christian	Social Credit	1957
Okanagan—Revelstoke		George McLeod	Social Credit	1953
Skeena		Frank Howard	C.C.F.	1957
Vancouver—Burrard		John Russell Taylor	Progressive Conservative	1957
Vancouver Centre		Douglas Jung	Progressive Conservative	1957
Vancouver East		Harold Winch	C.C.F.	1953
Vancouver Kingsway		Alexander Macdonald	C.C.F.	1957
Vancouver Quadra		Howard Charles Green	Progressive Conservative	1935
Vancouver South		Ernest James Broome	Progressive Conservative	1957
Victoria		Albert McPhillips	Progressive Conservative	1957

Manitoba

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Brandon—Souris		Walter Dinsdale ‡	Progressive Conservative	1951
Churchill		Robert Simpson	Progressive Conservative	1957
Dauphin		Fred Zaplitny	C.C.F.	1945, 1953
Lisgar		George Muir	Progressive Conservative	1957
Marquette		Nick Mandziuk	Progressive Conservative	1957
Portage—Neepawa		George Fairfield	Progressive Conservative	1957
Provencher		Warner Jorgenson	Progressive Conservative	1957
Selkirk		William Bryce	C.C.F.	1954
Springfield		Jacob Schulz	C.C.F.	1957
St. Boniface		Louis Deniset	Liberal	1957
Winnipeg North		Alistair Stewart	C.C.F.	1940
Winnipeg North Centre		Stanley Knowles	C.C.F.	1942
Winnipeg South		Gordon Chown	Progressive Conservative	1957
Winnipeg South Centre		Gordon Churchill	Progressive Conservative	1951

New Brunswick

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Charlotte		A. Wesley Stuart	Liberal	1945
Gloucester		Hédard Robichaud	Liberal	1953
Kent		Hervé Michaud	Liberal	1953
Northumberland—Miramichi		George Roy McWilliam	Liberal	1949
Restigouche—Madawaska		Charles Van Horne	Progressive Conservative	1955
Royal		Alfred Johnson Brooks	Progressive Conservative	1935
St. John—Albert		Thomas Miller Bell ‡	Progressive Conservative	1953
Victoria—Carleton		Gage Montgomery	Progressive Conservative	1952
Westmorland		Henry Murphy	Liberal	1949
York—Sunbury		John Chester MacRae	Progressive Conservative	1957

Newfoundland

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Bonavista—Twillingate		Jack Pickersgill	Liberal	1953
Burin—Burgeo		Chesley William Carter	Liberal	1949
Grand Falls—White Bay—Labrador		Thomas G. W. Ashbourne	Liberal	1949
Humber—St. George's		Herman Maxwell Batten	Liberal	1953
St. John's East		James McGrath	Progressive Conservative	1957
St. John's West		William Joseph Browne	Progressive Conservative	1949, 1957
Trinity—Conception		Leonard Stick	Liberal	1949

Northwest Territories

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Mackenzie River		Merv Hardie	Liberal	1953

Nova Scotia

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Antigonish—Guysborough		Angus Ronald Macdonald ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Cape Breton North and Victoria		Robert Muir	Progressive Conservative	1957
Cape Breton South		Donald MacInnis	Progressive Conservative	1957
Colchester—Hants		Cyril Kennedy	Progressive Conservative	1957
Cumberland		Robert Coates	Progressive Conservative	1957
Digby—Annapolis—Kings		George Nowlan	Progressive Conservative	1948, 1950
Halifax*		Robert McCleave	Progressive Conservative	1957
		Edmund L. Morris	Progressive Conservative	1957
Inverness—Richmond		Allan MacEachen	Liberal	1953
Pictou		Russell MacEwan	Progressive Conservative	1957
Queens—Lunenburg		Lloyd Crouse	Progressive Conservative	1957
Shelburne—Yarmouth—Clare		Thomas Kirk	Liberal	1949

Ontario

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Algoma East		Lester B. Pearson	Liberal	1948
Algoma West		George E. Nixon	Liberal	1940
Brantford		Jack Wratten	Progressive Conservative	1957
Brant—Haldimand		John A. Charlton ‡	Progressive Conservative	1945
Broadview		George Hees	Progressive Conservative	1950
Bruce		Andrew E. Robinson	Progressive Conservative	1945, 1953
Carleton		Dick Bell ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Cochrane		Joseph-Anaclet Habel	Liberal	1953
Danforth		Robert Small	Progressive Conservative	1953
Davenport		Douglas Morton	Progressive Conservative	1957
Dufferin—Simcoe		William Earl Rowe	Progressive Conservative	1925
Durham		Percy Vivian	Progressive Conservative	1957
Eglinton		Donald Fleming	Progressive Conservative	1945
Elgin		James Alexander McBain	Progressive Conservative	1954
Essex East		Paul Martin Sr.	Liberal	1935
Essex South		Richard Thrasher	Progressive Conservative	1957
Essex West		Donald Ferguson Brown	Liberal	1945
Fort William		Daniel McIvor	Liberal	1935
Glengarry—Prescott		Osie Villeneuve	Progressive Conservative	1957
Greenwood		James Macdonnell	Progressive Conservative	1945, [a] 1949
Grenville—Dundas		Arza Clair Casselman	Progressive Conservative	1921, 1925
Grey—Bruce		Eric Winkler	Progressive Conservative	1957
Grey North		Percy Verner Noble	Progressive Conservative	1957
Halton		Charles Best	Progressive Conservative	1957
Hamilton East		Quinto Martini	Progressive Conservative	1957
Hamilton South		Bob McDonald	Progressive Conservative	1957
Hamilton West		Ellen Fairclough	Progressive Conservative	1950
Hastings—Frontenac		George Stanley White (until 20 August 1957 Senate appointment)	Progressive Conservative	1940
		Sidney Smith (by-election of 1957-11-04)	Progressive Conservative	1957
Hastings South		Lee Grills	Progressive Conservative	1957
High Park		John Kucherepa	Progressive Conservative	1957
Huron		Elston Cardiff	Progressive Conservative	1940
Kenora—Rainy River		William Moore Benidickson	Liberal-Labour	1945
Kent		Blake Huffman	Liberal	1949
Kingston		William James Henderson	Liberal	1949
Lambton—Kent		Ernest Campbell	Progressive Conservative	1957
Lambton West		Joseph Warner Murphy	Progressive Conservative	1945
Lanark		William Gourlay Blair (died 16 June 1957)	Progressive Conservative	1945
		George Doucett (by-election of 1957-08-26)	Progressive Conservative	1957
Leeds		Hayden Stanton	Progressive Conservative	1953
Lincoln		John Smith	Progressive Conservative	1957
London		Ernest Halpenny ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Middlesex East		Harry Oliver White	Progressive Conservative	1945
Middlesex West		William Howell Arthur Thomas	Progressive Conservative	1957
Niagara Falls		William Houck	Liberal	1953
Nickel Belt		Léo Gauthier	Liberal	1945
Nipissing		Jack Garland	Liberal	1949
Norfolk		Evans Knowles	Progressive Conservative	1957
Northumberland		Ben Thompson	Progressive Conservative	1957
Ontario		Michael Starr	Progressive Conservative	1952
Ottawa East		Jean-Thomas Richard	Liberal	1945
Ottawa West		George McIlraith	Liberal	1940
Oxford		Wally Nesbitt ‡	Progressive Conservative	1953
Parkdale		Arthur Maloney ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Parry Sound-Muskoka		Gordon Aiken	Progressive Conservative	1957
Peel		John Pallett	Progressive Conservative	1954
Perth		J. Waldo Monteith	Progressive Conservative	1953
Peterborough		Gordon Fraser	Progressive Conservative	1940
Port Arthur		Doug Fisher	C.C.F.	1957
Prince Edward—Lennox		Clarence Milligan	Progressive Conservative	1957
Renfrew North		James Forgie	Liberal	1953
Renfrew South		James William Baskin	Progressive Conservative	1957
Rosedale		David James Walker ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Russell		Joseph-Omer Gour	Liberal	1945
St. Paul's		Roland Michener (†)	Progressive Conservative	1953
Simcoe East		Philip Bernard Rynard	Progressive Conservative	1957
Simcoe North		Heber Smith	Progressive Conservative	1957
Spadina		Charles Edward Rea	Progressive Conservative	1955
Stormont		Albert Lavigne	Liberal	1954
Sudbury		Rodger Mitchell	Liberal	1953
Timiskaming		Arnold Peters	C.C.F.	1957
Timmins		Murdo Martin	C.C.F.	1957
Trinity		Stanley Haidasz	Liberal	1957
Victoria		Clayton Hodgson ‡	Progressive Conservative	1945
Waterloo North		Norman Schneider	Liberal	1952
Waterloo South		William Anderson	Progressive Conservative	1957
Welland		William Hector McMillan	Liberal	1950
Wellington—Huron		Marvin Howe	Progressive Conservative	1953
Wellington South		Alfred Hales	Progressive Conservative	1957
Wentworth		Frank Lennard	Progressive Conservative	1935, 1945
York Centre		Fred C. Stinson	Progressive Conservative	1957
York East		Robert Henry McGregor	Progressive Conservative	1926
York—Humber		Margaret Aitken	Progressive Conservative	1953
York North		Cecil Cathers	Progressive Conservative	1957
York—Scarborough		Frank Charles McGee	Progressive Conservative	1957
York South		William George Beech	Progressive Conservative	1957
York West		John Borden Hamilton ‡	Progressive Conservative	1954

Prince Edward Island

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
King's		John Augustine Macdonald	Progressive Conservative	1957
Prince		Orville Howard Phillips	Progressive Conservative	1957
Queen's*		Angus MacLean	Progressive Conservative	1951
		Heath MacQuarrie	Progressive Conservative	1957

Quebec

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Argenteuil—Deux-Montagnes		Philippe Valois	Liberal	1949
Beauce		Raoul Poulin	Independent	1949
Beauharnois—Salaberry		Robert Cauchon	Liberal	1949
Bellechasse		Ovide Laflamme	Liberal	1955
Berthier—Maskinongé—Delanaudière		Joseph Langlois	Liberal	1949
Bonaventure		Nérée Arsenault	Progressive Conservative	1957
Brome—Missisquoi		Joseph-Léon Deslières	Liberal	1952
Cartier		Leon Crestohl	Liberal	1950
Chambly—Rouville		Yvon L'Heureux	Liberal	1957
Champlain		Joseph Irenée Rochefort	Liberal	1949
Chapleau		Charles-Noël Barbès	Liberal	1957
Charlevoix		Auguste Maltais	Liberal	1949
Châteauguay—Huntingdon—Laprairie		Jean Boucher	Liberal	1953
Chicoutimi		Rosaire Gauthier	Liberal	1957
Compton—Frontenac		Joseph-Adéodat Blanchette	Liberal	1935
Dollard		Guy Rouleau	Liberal	1953
Dorchester		Joseph-Armand Landry	Liberal	1957
Drummond—Arthabaska		Samuel Boulanger	Independent Liberal	1957
Gaspé		Roland English	Progressive Conservative	1957
Gatineau		Rodolphe Leduc	Liberal	1936, 1954
Hochelaga		Raymond Eudes	Liberal	1940
Hull		Alexis Caron	Liberal	1953
Îles-de-la-Madeleine		Charles Cannon	Liberal	1949
Jacques-Cartier—Lasalle		Robert John Pratt	Progressive Conservative	1957
Joliette—l'Assomption—Montcalm		Maurice Breton	Liberal	1950
Kamouraska		Benoît Chabot	Independent	1957
Labelle		Henri Courtemanche	Independent Progressive Conservative	1949, 1957
Lac-Saint-Jean		André Gauthier	Liberal	1949
Lafontaine		J.-Georges Ratelle	Liberal	1949
Lapointe		Augustin Brassard	Liberal	1957
Laurier		Lionel Chevrier	Liberal	1935, [b] 1957
Laval		Léopold Demers	Liberal	1948
Lévis		Maurice Bourget	Liberal	1940
Longueuil		Auguste Vincent	Liberal	1953
Lotbinière		Raymond O'Hurley ‡	Progressive Conservative	1957
Maisonneuve—Rosemont		Jean-Paul Deschatelets	Liberal	1953
Matapédia—Matane		Léandre Thibault	Liberal	1953
Mégantic		Joseph Lafontaine	Liberal	1940
Mercier		Marcel Monette	Liberal	1949
Montmagny—L'Islet		Jean Lesage	Liberal	1945
Mount Royal		Alan Macnaughton	Liberal	1949
Nicolet—Yamaska		Paul Comtois	Progressive Conservative	1957
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce		William McLean Hamilton	Progressive Conservative	1953
Outremont—St-Jean		Romuald Bourque	Liberal	1952
Papineau		Adrien Meunier	Liberal	1953
Pontiac—Témiscamingue		John Hugh Proudfoot	Liberal	1949
Portneuf		Pierre Gauthier	Liberal	1936
Québec—Montmorency		Wilfrid Lacroix	Liberal	1935
Quebec East		Louis St. Laurent	Liberal	1942
Quebec South		Francis (Frank) Gavan Power	Liberal	1955
Quebec West		René Bégin	Liberal	1957
Richelieu—Verchères		Lucien Cardin	Liberal	1952
Richmond—Wolfe		Ernest-Omer Gingras	Liberal	1949
Rimouski		Gérard Légaré	Liberal	1953
Roberval		Georges Villeneuve	Liberal	1953
Saguenay		Lomer Brisson	Liberal	1949
St. Ann		Gérard Loiselle	Independent Liberal	1957
Saint-Antoine—Westmount		George Carlyle Marler	Liberal	1954
Saint-Denis		Azellus Denis	Liberal	1935
Saint-Henri		Joseph-Arsène Bonnier	Liberal	1938
Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot		Théogène Ricard	Progressive Conservative	1957
Saint-Jacques		Roland Beaudry	Liberal	1945
Saint-Jean—Iberville—Napierville		J.-Armand Ménard	Liberal	1955
St. Lawrence—St. George		Claude Richardson	Liberal	1954
Sainte-Marie		Hector Dupuis	Liberal	1953
Saint-Maurice—Laflèche		Joseph-Adolphe Richard	Liberal	1949
Shefford		Marcel Boivin	Liberal	1945
Sherbrooke		Maurice Gingues	Liberal	1940
Stanstead		Louis-Édouard Roberge	Liberal	1949
Témiscouata		Jean-Paul St. Laurent	Liberal	1955
Terrebonne		Raymond Raymond	Liberal	1957
Trois-Rivières		Léon Balcer	Progressive Conservative	1949
Vaudreuil—Soulanges		Louis-René Beaudoin	Liberal	1945
Verdun		Yves Leduc	Liberal	1954
Villeneuve		Armand Dumas	Liberal	1949

Saskatchewan

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Assiniboia		Hazen Argue	C.C.F.	1945
Humboldt—Melfort		Hugh Alexander Bryson	C.C.F.	1953
Kindersley		Merv Johnson	C.C.F.	1953
Mackenzie		Alexander Malcolm Nicholson	C.C.F.	1940, 1953
Meadow Lake		John Harrison	Liberal	1949
Melville		James Garfield Gardiner	Liberal	1936
Moose Jaw—Lake Centre		Scoop Lewry	C.C.F.	1957
Moose Mountain		Edward McCullough	C.C.F.	1945, [c] 1953
Prince Albert		John Diefenbaker	Progressive Conservative	1940
Qu'Appelle		Alvin Hamilton	Progressive Conservative	1957
Regina City		Claude Ellis	C.C.F.	1953
Rosetown—Biggar		Major James Coldwell	C.C.F.	1935
Rosthern		Walter Tucker	Liberal	1935, 1953
Saskatoon		Henry Frank Jones	Progressive Conservative	1957
Swift Current—Maple Creek		Irvin Studer	Liberal	1949
The Battlefords		Max Campbell	C.C.F.	1945, 1953
Yorkton		George Hugh Castleden	C.C.F.	1940, 1953

Yukon

Electoral district		Name	Party	First elected/previously elected
Yukon		James Aubrey Simmons	Liberal	1949
		Erik Nielsen (by-election of 1957-12-16)	Progressive Conservative	1957

By-elections

Main article: By-elections to the 23rd Canadian Parliament

By-election	Date	Incumbent	Party		Winner	Party		Cause	Retained
Yukon	December 16, 1957	James Aubrey Simmons		Liberal	Erik Nielsen		Progressive Conservative	Election declared void	No
Hastings—Frontenac	November 4, 1957	George Stanley White		Progressive Conservative	Sidney Earle Smith		Progressive Conservative	Called to the Senate	Yes
Lanark	August 26, 1957	William G. Blair		Progressive Conservative	George Doucett		Progressive Conservative	Death	Yes

Notes

1. Muskoka—Ontario
2. Stormont (Ontario)
3. Assiniboia

References

1. Burack, Emily (May 27, 2025). "King Charles Makes History as He Delivers Throne Speech in Canada". Yahoo News. Retrieved May 27, 2025.

External links

• Government of Canada. "18th Ministry". Guide to Canadian Ministries since Confederation. Privy Council Office. Retrieved November 9, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "23rd Parliament". Members of the House of Commons: 1867 to Date: By Parliament. Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on December 20, 2006. Retrieved November 30, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "Duration of Sessions". Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on November 14, 2007. Retrieved May 12, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "General Elections". Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on May 4, 2006. Retrieved May 12, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "Key Dates for each Parliament". Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on September 14, 2005. Retrieved May 12, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "Leaders of the Opposition in the House of Commons". Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on March 11, 2007. Retrieved May 12, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "Prime Ministers of Canada". Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on April 27, 2006. Retrieved May 12, 2006.
• Government of Canada. "Speakers". Library of Parliament. Archived from the original on September 17, 2006. Retrieved May 12, 2006.