Politician apologises after logging into parliamentary session from the toilet

A Canadian politician has apologised after being found to have logged into a virtual parliamentary session from the toilet.

Shafqat Ali, who is a member of the liberal party, apologised ‘sincerely and unreservedly’ after colleagues recognised the bathroom in the background of his video feed.

As The Guardian reports, his feed was visible to members of parliament and MPs reported their suspicions soon after.

The conservative MP Laila Goodridge was the one to voice her concerns and suggest that Ali may be "participating in a wash room".

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She spotted a coat hook and door hinges in the background, and Ali later apologised after being found out.

But it wasn’t before Conservative house leader, John Brassard, said that Ali had put the camera “on the ledge or ridge on the wall just above the back of the toilet.”

He added: “The member of parliament was literally using the washroom while participating in a sitting of the House of Commons, the cathedral of Canadian democracy.

The MP was caught out calling from the bathroomCreative Commons

"I can’t believe I actually just said those words, Madame Speaker,” he went on to say.

Ali then apologised by saying: "I want to take this opportunity to apologize sincerely and unreservedly to all members of Parliament for the unfortunate event that transpired last Friday.”

“I take this matter extremely seriously, and I promise never to repeat this error again."

Bizarrely, it’s not the first time something like this has happened in Canadian politics.

A Canadian lawmaker previously announced that he will be taking time away from committee duties and his position as a Parliamentary Secretary back in 2021, after he was spotted urinating during a video call.

Two journalists claimed at the time that William Amos, a member of prime minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party, peed into a coffee cup while attending House of Commons proceedings online.

“In a non-public setting, I urinated without realising I was on camera. I am deeply embarrassed by my actions and the distress they may have caused anybody who witnessed them,” he said.

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