44th Parl. 1st Sess.

September 15, 2022 10:00AM

Mr. Gérard Deltell (Louis-Saint-Laurent, CPC)

Sep/15/22 12:24:45 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, a woman, a mother, a grandmother, and a great-grandmother, who was also a Queen, has passed away. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was a woman who embodied, in all her dignity and splendour, the durability of the state and duty done right. For 70 years, she inspired millions of people around the world, her subjects and people who were not British royalty, but who respected her greatly. She represented stability in a troubled world. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was not born a queen, however. It was a blip in history that elevated Elizabeth II to the highest throne of the British Empire, resulting in extraordinary ramifications for the whole of humanity. Even those with little knowledge of the hierarchy of the monarchy know that there were others in line for the throne before Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Her uncle, Edward VIII, acceded to the throne in 1936, but he abdicated less than a year later. In the end, it was good that he did, because this sovereign, unfortunately, was drawn in by the swastika. Once he stepped down, he was seen being welcomed into Nazi territory and was even received by the Führer in 1937. Fortunately, that man, who believed in the politics of appeasement, abdicated and was no longer the sovereign when World War II swept over humanity. Fortunately, it was George VI, his brother and Elizabeth II's father, who was ruler then, with Winston Churchill's full support. As a result, despite the thunder of war and the horrors of the blitzkrieg, the whole of humanity resisted the Nazi order. Let us talk about World War II because that is when Elizabeth II became the princess and, above all, a source of inspiration for her people. When war was declared, Elizabeth II, like millions of adults and millions of children, left her home and went to live in a rural area away from cities. Of course, they were not just ordinary people. They lived in a castle. Still, teenaged Elizabeth II remained in England, despite the Luftwaffe's relentless assaults and non-stop bombing campaign. She could have left the country, but she stayed along with her parents. When she was 18 years old, she enlisted in the British army, like 200,000 of her compatriots. She could have stayed in her manor, in her palace, but she put on a uniform. She learned to be a mechanic, which is surprising, perhaps, but true. She served her country as soon as she was able, at the age of 18. Members will recall the wonderful photographs depicting her father, mother, sister and her, in her uniform, when humanity triumphed on May 8, 1945. What many people do not know, however, is that right after this joyful announcement for all people, Elizabeth II put on her hat, pulled it down over her eyes, and went and joined the people. She wanted to experience this historic moment with the people she wished to represent and whose queen she would become just a few years later. That is what is called connecting with the people, despite the hierarchy and majesty that obviously bring with them privileges that very few people on this earth ever get to experience. She became queen 70 years ago. I knew that she had visited Canada 22 times, but this morning I learned that Canada was the country that Elizabeth II visited the most. I was delighted to hear that. There is a reason why Canadians, whether we are monarchists or not, or whether we are pro-English or know no English, respected the woman that she was. All of my colleagues here are talking about when she visited their riding or province, how she visited the 10 provinces and three territories and how she took time to listen to people. That is to her credit. That is why people loved her so much. She knew 12 prime ministers, from the current Prime Minister to the Right Hon. Louis St. Laurent, my riding's namesake. I would actually like to acknowledge the people of Louis‑Saint‑Laurent, thanks to whom I am still here today. To my knowledge, the only time a sovereign delivered the Speech from the Throne was in 1957. Generally her representative here takes care of that. It could not have worked out better, because the prime minister in office at the time, the Right Hon. John George Diefenbaker, may have been the biggest monarchist of any prime minister of Canada. I did not know Mr. Diefenbaker. When he took his last breath, in 1979, he was a member of Parliament. Everyone tells me that he felt immense joy at the idea of welcoming Her Majesty to Canada's Parliament to read his government's Speech from the Throne. I will give voice to some prime ministers because there are 12 who knew her and who saw Queen Elizabeth II's qualities first-hand. I chose three at random and the three have the same political stripe. It is a coincidence. The Right Hon. Stephen Harper, who was the prime minister of Canada for nine years, said: Over the decades Her Majesty travelled to every part of our blessed land. She loved Canada with all her heart and was truly one of us. Canadians returned her feelings with pride and very real affection. While Canada matured and prospered throughout the decades of her reign, the Queen was a vibrant symbol of continuity, stability and progress. The Right Hon. Stephen Harper, former prime minister of Canada, made this statement about the death of Her Majesty. I also listened closely to the statement that the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney made on TVA and LCN on two major issues, apartheid and the French fact in Canada, that were important to Her Majesty. Former prime minister Mulroney said, “Time and again she showed her respect for the history of bilingualism in Canada...she spoke impeccable French, supported enhancing the vitality and strength of the French language and of Quebec's role on the world stage.... She had tremendous respect for the unique role of Quebeckers.” Former prime minister Mulroney's contribution to the fight against apartheid is one of his longest-lasting and most effective achievements, and he acknowledged the Queen's involvement. He said, “I was leading the Commonwealth at that time and therefore saw her often. There was no doubt in my mind that she shared our goal of securing Nelson Mandela's release and the end of the apartheid regime, which we achieved after imposing brutal sanctions on South Africa. That's what she wanted....” I also enjoyed watching a very nice interview he gave on CBC's Power & Politics. The interview was with the honourable Charles Joseph Clark, the former prime minister of Canada, and his daughter Catherine. Mr. Clark said she was “a remarkable human being”, had “natural” skills for diplomacy and was the heart of the institution. I will summarize some of what he said. Her position, by nature, was isolating, and yet Her Majesty Elizabeth II never isolated herself. On the contrary, she went out to meet the people. She treated everyone as her equal; everyone had the right to speak their mind and be heard. She was always well briefed. She had to learn a lot about complex global issues spanning such a long period of time, and she took that duty seriously. Furthermore, during this wonderful interview, his daughter Catherine Clark said that “she was the ultimate boss lady”. These three prime ministers, who knew Her Majesty the Queen personally, gave us a good idea of who she was. In closing, the Queen loved Canadians and, as René Lévesque said, you cannot love the people if you do not love what the people love. Her Majesty the Queen was drawn to hockey and wanted to understand the sport. She did not always understand it, especially at her first game, but she was curious about it. It was a wonderful sight to behold when she dropped the puck alongside the Great One, Wayne Gretzky, in Vancouver in 2002. We had the Queen and the king of the hockey world on the ice at the same time. Let us also recall that she was in attendance when the Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Rangers. It was October 29, 1951, and Her Majesty was then a princess, not yet Queen. The Montreal Gazette wrote an article called “Couple Watches Game, Crowd Watches Couple”. That is how people received her. Today, as we commemorate the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, let us remember the sense of duty she embodied and demonstrated so masterfully. King Charles III has been to Canada 19 times. I invite his Majesty to visit us a 20th time.

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