All Members of Parliament representing officially recognized parties are eligible to host a Parliamentary Intern except for cabinet ministers, party leaders, and the Speaker.
The Speakers of the House of Commons have served as Patrons of the Programme since it was established with all-party support in 1969. To show the Programme’s commitment to non-partisanship, each intern must work for one MP in government and one MP in opposition during two separate allocation periods. Parliamentary Interns are allocated among opposition parties based on their representation in the House. In the current Parliament, there will be six interns with Liberal MPs, four with Conservative MPs, one with an NDP MP, and one with a BQ MP during each allocation period.
Interns work closely with their MPs and their staff. They often assist with committee work – reviewing reports, meeting with advocates, drafting questions, and assisting in pre-committee and committee meetings. They also prepare questions and speeches for House debates, write editorials and press releases, and help draft Private Members Bills. MPs regularly invite interns to visit their constituencies, where they are called on assist with casework, public consultations and community meetings.
The interns interview all interested MPs who apply to host an intern (typically 60 – 70 per year). The interns then select their government and opposition placements as a group based on their own policy interests.
MP placements 2024-25
The Parliamentary Interns, the Parliamentary Internship Programme, and its stakeholders thank all the MPs who applied for interns this year and, most especially, those hosting interns in their offices.
During their first period (October 3, 2024 – February 7, 2025), the allocations are:
- Stéphane Bergeron (BQ), Montarville, QC – Intern Noah Fon
- James Bezan (CPC), Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB – Intern Justin Myers
- Kody Blois (LIB), Kings—Hants, NS – Intern Abinash Kaur Dhaliwal
- Larry Brock (CPC), Brantford—Brant, ON – Intern Maya Mohammed
- Ben Carr (LIB), Winnipeg South Centre, MB – Intern Emily Wheaton
- Terry Duguid (LIB), Winnipeg South, MB – Intern Anjana Balachandran
- Helena Jaczek (LIB), Markham—Stouffville, ON – Intern Jesse Lafontaine
- Emmanuella Lambropoulos (LIB), Saint Laurent, QC – Intern Quinlan Cho
- Heather McPherson (NDP), Edmonton Strathcona, AB – Intern Christina Koikaran
- Michelle Rempel Garner (CPC), Calgary Nose Hill, AB – Intern Michelle Lewis
- Patrick Weiler (LIB), West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC – Intern Justin Langan
Their second allocation period (February 10 – June 17, 2025), the allocations are:
- Jenica Atwin (LIB), Fredericton, NB – Intern Christina Koikaran
- Julie Dabrusin (LIB), Toronto—Danforth, ON – Intern Noah Fon
- Raquel Dancho (CPC), Kildonan—St. Paul, MB – Intern Anjana Balachandran
- Lori Idlout (NDP), Nunavut – Intern Justin Langan
- Melissa Lantsman (CPC), Thornhill, ON – Intern Abinash Kaur Dhaliwal
- Andréanne Larouche (BQ), Shefford, QC – Intern Emily Wheaton
- Dan Mazier (CPC), Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB – Intern Jesse Lafontaine
- Greg McLean (CPC), Calgary Centre, AB – Intern Quinlan Cho
- Yasir Naqvi (LIB), Ottawa Centre, ON – Intern Maya Mohammed
- Adam van Koeverden (LIB), Milton, ON – Intern Michelle Lewis
- Sameer Zuberi (LIB), Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC – Intern Justin Myers
“The Parliamentary Internship Programme is an exceptional program that offers a work-study experience for university graduates while at the same time providing Members of Parliament with the highest qualified assistants. These non-partisan interns participate fully in the parliamentary process and contribute to our Canadian democracy. I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to work with many of the interns during my time as a Member of Parliament and cannot stress how valuable an asset this program is to Members’ offices.”
“As a former Parliamentary Internship Programme intern from the class of 1994-95, I am personally familiar with the benefits and opportunities that this program gives young Canadians while working for Members of Parliament here in Ottawa. I have long been a supporter of PIP and since being elected in 2015, I’ve had the benefit of having 2 PIP interns work in my office. Both interns provided me with invaluable, professional and unmatched non-partisan research, writing and office support. The quality of the candidates who become PIP interns, selected through a highly competitive national process, means that only the “cream of the crop” are selected. This is evidenced by the work I’ve seen them perform in my office but also in the research projects they undertake and that I have been happy to support and promote. PIP was essential to my education and training, and allowing me to get where I am today and I would encourage all MPs to participate in this program and would encourage all young Canadians with an interest in Government to apply.”