Ontario MPPs at this time of year traditionally inflict some of the world’s worst poetry on the legislature, but they now have added a way to help rescue this neglected literary form.

MPPs who feel touched by the muse and season of goodwill typically write and recite poems such as that by Progressive Conservative Jerry Ouellette, after a session that was particularly rowdy:

“ ’Twas just before Christmas and all through the House, the members were scurrying for the rise of the House. The Speaker said ‘I know you are restless and posturing about, but it’s order we’ll have or I’ll toss you all out’”

The poem never climbs to greater heights as it goes on about “the chamber you see, influencing generations to be,” but is well-meant and no one expects it to provide the beauty or inspiration of Byron or Shelley.

Monte Kwinter, a long-time Liberal, earlier moved that the legislature create the position of Ontario Poet Laureate to promote art and literacy in the province, and all three parties enthusiastically supported it.

This may seem an unlikely initiative for Kwinter, because he was a successful businessman and held such heavyweight economic posts as minister of industry, trade and financial institutions, but he has a fine arts degree and was vice-president of the Ontario College of Art.

The MPP says he was motivated first by a love of poetry, from which he receives stimulation.

He remembers word-for-word the first poem he read as a child, the drama of Sir Patrick Spens sitting in Dunfermline town, drinking the blood red wine and answering his king’s call to sail on a stormy sea in which he drowned, which is moving enough to bring a tear to many who recall it.

Kwinter believes many young people grow up communicating in high-tech, using forms of shorthand and missing a lot if they do not appreciate the written word.

He says government places high priority on building a stronger, more competitive economy and its cultural sector plays a key part and has created more jobs recently than the economy generally.

It provides some funds, although not nearly enough, for writers and has annual awards for poetry.

Kwinter said a poet laureate could write poems commemorating important events, sponsor readings of his or her own poetry, speak in schools and other venues of the power of words and encourage creativity in using them.

He points out that legislators take a lot of pride in using words well and have a responsibility to encourage this among others.

The federal parliament appointed its first poet laureate, George Bowering, in 2002, and now has Pierre DesRuisseaux. They are not known much to the average Canadian, which may reflect reduced interest in Canadian poetry.

Several provinces have poet laureates, and Britain has had one under a variety of titles for six centuries, including Chaucer, Spenser, Dryden, Wordsworth and Tennyson, whose names are household words to many Canadians.

The United States Library of Congress has appointed poet laureates, again under various titles, since 1937 and they included Robert Frost.

Mike Harris, Ontario’s Conservative premier from 1995 to 2002, was considered hard-nosed and preoccupied with saving money, and not versed in the arts, but knew enough to say somewhat aptly he had chosen Frost’s “road less traveled by.”

Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty has said he writes poems to his wife saying he misses her when he is away from home on politics, but has not made examples public.

A social services minister under Harris, David Tsubouchi, wrote poems, in one of which he described shooting and killing a mime with his finger, which worried some who interpreted it as meaning he had less respect for those on the fringes of society.

Kwinter says also that his aims do not include trying to raise the standard of the poetry MPPs contribute to the legislature. But anything he does to encourage people to read real poetry has to be on the right track.