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Two years ago, a mutinous Conservative MP lamented the iron rod being used by the Prime Minister’s Office to control caucus members.

The basic rights of individual MPs were under assault, he said, and backbenchers were on the verge of revolt.

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The same MP told me Tuesday the mood in the governing caucus “is as good as it has ever been.”

So what changed? A bounce-back in the polls, a less heavy hand by the Whip and the departure of Eve Adams have all contributed to this outbreak of congeniality. But that doesn’t explain the dissipation of almost existential angst that gripped the Tory backbench.

A ruling by Speaker Andrew Scheer in April 2013 went some way toward reassuring MPs that their independence was not in danger of being subsumed by party discipline.

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After Conservative MP Mark Warawa was denied the chance to speak to the House on sex-selective abortion by the party Whip, he alleged a prima facie breach of privilege. Mr. Scheer adeptly addressed the issue by saying he was happy to refer to the list of speakers supplied by the Whips but said members are free to seek the floor at any time.