Standing ovation for ceremonial official who shot parliament gunman

The Sergeant-at-Arms who was hailed as a national hero after shooting dead a gunman at the Canadian parliament yesterday was given a two-minute standing ovation by the country's House of Commons today.

Former Mountie Kevin Vickers, whose role is largely ceremonial, shot armed intruder Michael Zehaf-Bibeau who had earlier killed a soldier at a war memorial outside parliament and put the country's capital Ottawa into a state of lockdown.

Mr Vickers was seen calmly walking through parliament with his sidearm drawn moments after taking down the gunman yesterday.

(Picture: CBC)

Video: Gunshots ring out in dramatic footage from inside Canada's parliament