Neil Ellis and other MPs sworn in

By Bevan Hamilton, Nikolai Karpinski, Mo Cranker and Mark Hodgins

BELLEVILLE – Neil Ellis is officially the Member of Parliament for Bay of Quinte.

Ellis was sworn in on Monday afternoon, along with a number of other new MPs. Two buses of Ellis’s supporters from Belleville also made the trip to Ottawa.

It’s felt like a long wait for this day, Ellis said.

“I feel like the race horse tied in the stable, kicking the ground trying to get going.”

Ellis said he’s most looking forward to rolling out the Liberal platform.

“It seems the way we’re going is going to be full speed ahead. And full speed ahead is my speed,” the new MP said.

He added that he’s thankful for the turnout in Ottawa.

“When I looked out during the swearing-in, we had well over 100 people who came up…took time out of their day and witness it. These are the people that got me here.”

It’s the end of a long process, Ellis said, and he plans to celebrate with his family when he gets home tonight.

Liberal supporter John Platt is especially excited to be in Ottawa today. He hasn’t been to Parliament Hill since 1991. Platt, a friend of Ellis’s, took the day off work and decided to go.

“I’m excited for the ceremony. I’m especially excited for Neil,” he told QNet News while waiting in a lineup to go through security.

Ross Rae said he expected he would be attending a swearing-in ceremony for Ellis one day. Rae – who is a municipal government worker for the County of Hastings – went to Carleton University with Ellis over 30 years ago and has worked closely on all his campaigns.

“Neil is very focused with the campaign and what he was doing so he had a very clear vision of what he had to do. And he did it,” Rae said.

Rae said he is very happy to attend the ceremony.

The swearing-in of the MPs who will sit in Canada’s 42nd Parliament is taking place over the next couple of weeks. Mike Bossio, the Liberal MP-elect for Hastings-Lennox and Addington, will be sworn in on Nov. 25, while Kim Rudd, the Liberal MP-elect for Northumberland-Peterborough South, will be sworn in on Tuesday.

According to Robert Dorey, an assistant to Bossio, the new MPs were given a range of dates through November to choose for their swearing-in.

The Liberals’ victory in all three local ridings in last month’s federal election was a surprise to some. The previous MPs throughout the region were all Conservatives.