Political word count: MPs range from windy to nearly mute in House of Commons

OTTAWA New Democrat MPs wont shut up. Many Tories hardly talk at all. And the Green Partys Elizabeth May talks more than the three other party leaders combined.

Those are some of the findings of a unique analysis that sliced and diced nearly eight million words spoken last year in the House of Commons by members of Parliament.

The analysis by Samara, a charitable think tank that works to improve political participation in Canada, uncovered an astonishing variation in MPs loquaciousness in the House.

New Democrat Peter Julian was an unstoppable verbal force, emitting 226,027 words in 2012 to narrowly edge Liberal Kevin Lamoureux for the title of most talkative MP.

At the other end of the spectrum, Conservatives Keith Ashfield, Rob Anders and Peter Penashue barely cleared their throats, each managing fewer than 1,000 words in the House of Commons during all of 2012.

Samara gathered the data while researching the alignment between what MPs talk about in the House and the declared interests of Canadians.

How does your MP stack up?

Alison Loat, Samaras co-founder and executive director, said she hoped the analysis would shine a light on how MPs use their powerful public platform in the House of Commons.

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Political word count: MPs range from windy to nearly mute in House of Commons

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