44th Parl. 1st Sess.

September 15, 2022 10:00AM

Hon. Robert Oliphant (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lib.)

Sep/15/22 12:00:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is a great honour today to stand, on both my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Don Valley West, to remember, honour and pay tribute to Her late Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada. All of us were caught by surprise at the events of last week. We knew in our heads that this day would come, but in our hearts I think we all hoped it never would. My first thoughts are to those who mourn this loss most deeply and most personally. We knew her as a beloved monarch, but condolences must first be expressed to those who knew her as mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. May they cherish in their hearts their richest and most intimate memories, even as they shared her so generously with the people of the United Kingdom, the realm, the Commonwealth and the world. My second task is to honour her legacy. She certainly kept the promise she made at the death of her father, King George VI. More than anyone could ever have imagined at that time, she faithfully lived up to the pledge she made when she said, “I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.” However, her life, including 70 incredible years on the throne, was not only long. It was incredibly rich, gracious and profound. Third, I take this moment to wish a long life, good service and a rich legacy to King Charles III, to whom now, as a member of this Parliament, I do pledge my allegiance, with historic words, that I do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles III. Queen Elizabeth set a very high bar for any head of state of any country to match. Her selfless devotion to duty was an inspiration and an example to us all. She was not only respected, which comes with the Crown, but I would say she was deeply loved by Canadians. That love, respect and admiration was born not out of her position, but because of the person she was: a woman of compassion and warmth, of grace and dignity, of mischief and joy, of wisdom and experience, and of a deep understanding of her people in Canada and throughout her realm. I, like most members of this House, have never known another monarch. She was a constant in our lives, reigning by example, with hard work, calm under great stress and difficulty, persistence and the honouring of tradition, but always willing to adapt to a changing world. My earliest and most persistent memories of the Queen were from Christmas day, year after year, when, for as long as I can remember, I would hear the voice of my mother ringing out throughout our house, “The Queen, the Queen,” as we were all called to stop whatever it was we were doing, gather around the television and watch Her Majesty deliver her annual message. This is a tradition I keep: even with the Internet, I watch it on television. She had the ability to reach into our home with a message that not only acknowledged the year that she and we had faced, but also with confidence for the coming year that those challenges would be met and that all in our world would be right and well. We saw Her Majesty mostly from a distance, even with her many visits to Canada, but I had a few opportunities to meet her in person. The first was in 1977, as we celebrated her first 25 years on the throne. The then prime minister, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, invited young Canadians who had excelled in the arts and sciences to a state dinner in Ottawa. Luckily for me, he also included some young Liberals, so we got in under the bar. They sent us a protocol sheet on how to meet the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, and it even had a note on how to eat our asparagus. We learned that we should not use a knife and fork, but pick it up with our fingers, because that is what Her Majesty does. Who knew? We were nervous, but as the Queen entered the room our shoulders dropped, her smile welcomed us, and each one of us had a chance to tell her our story. She listened, and she cared. To be in the presence of royalty is humbling; to be in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth was overwhelming, but in the sense that the kind of humility she brought made us at ease. There is a story told of the Queen, which may or may not be true, but if it is not, it should be. Apparently she had a habit of occasionally escaping from her favourite home, Balmoral in Scotland. She would take her own car to visit shops in neighbouring communities. One day she went into a shop and made a purchase, and the clerk at the store said that she looked very much like the Queen. The Queen simply responded, “How very reassuring.” She might have been reassured that day, but she spent her life reassuring us, and we have been the richer for it. This is indeed a sad day. It is also a day for celebration. It is a day for celebrating a life well spent in service to others. This House and parliaments around the realm will be filled with words of tribute and admiration, superlatives used to describe Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. They are entirely justified. She was our longest-serving monarch. She was respected around the world. She joined in our most important moments of joy, and often, with a mischievous smile, engaged with us. She gave us an example and made an example of her life for all of us on how to live a life of service, duty, dignity and decency. She was remarkable. May she rest in peace and rise in glory, even as we say, “Long live the King.”

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