Ready to rumble: Liberal ministers brace for critics' grilling in the House of Commons

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Canada's political parties are preparing to start a new session of Parliament and run the daily gauntlet of question period, when opposition MPs fire out questions and hold the government to account.

Each opposition party leader has enlisted a team of critics to shadow the Liberal cabinet ministers, scrutinize their policies and keep them on their toes in the House of Commons.

Here's a look at some of the personalities Canadians will see battling over key ministerial files.

(For the purpose of these comparisons, CBC News looked mostly at the three main national political parties. While the Bloc Québécois will have more time than the NDP to grill ministers because it has a higher seat count, the BQ runs candidates only in Quebec and its MPs tend to ask questions solely on issues related to Quebec.)

It will be a different dynamic in the House this time for the re-elected Liberals, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau returns to Parliament with a minority government and Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer works to throw his toughest political punches while dealing with internal party critics and a push for a new leader.

After a nasty election campaign, many observers will be watching to see if that tone carries over to the House of Commons, or if the daily duels are more civil. After losing 15 seats, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is now relegated to fourth spot behind BQ Leader Yves-François Blanchet, who will take his seat in the Commons for the first time. That means Singh will have lower priority when it comes to asking questions in question period, and less speaking time in the House of Commons.