44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 19, 2024 10:00AM
- Mar/19/24 6:44:54 p.m.
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moved:
That this committee pay tribute to the late Right Honourable Brian Mulroney.
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- Mar/19/24 6:44:54 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is hard to know where to begin to properly honour the extraordinary legacy of the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. He was the member of Parliament for Central Nova, the community that I now represent, when I was born, having filled in during a by-election after he became leader, before ascending to the Prime Minister's Office. We both attended StFX University, something that he remained very proud of up until the very end.
There is no shortage of accomplishments during Mr. Mulroney's tenure as Prime Minister of Canada, and they have been well canvassed over the past number of days. He was never one to shy away from celebrating them himself, having said, “You cannot name a Canadian prime minister who has done as many significant things as I did, because there are none.”
When one canvasses the many accomplishments, it is hard to argue with the extraordinary record. Of course, his leadership on the environment is well known and simply of another time, when great things never seemed to escape his ability to get them done.
I think about the work that he did to literally save the ozone layer, the negotiations to finalize the acid rain treaty and, of course, taking a principled stand against the racism and discrimination against the majority population of South Africa, having helped advance the end of the apartheid regime and free Nelson Mandela from Robben Island.
Of course, he is well known to have helped secure a growing economy, with the free trade agreement—
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- Mar/19/24 6:51:53 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is a real honour to rise in the House to honour Brian Mulroney, who in every interaction I ever had with him, was a compassionate, intelligent and caring human being.
I first met Mr. Mulroney when I had just graduated from law school and I went to Florida with my friend Jonathan Cohen. We were in Palm Beach, and Brian Mulroney was taking a walk down the path. The two of us saw the former prime minister, went up to him and told him that we were from Montreal. He looked at me and said, “Anthony Housefather, how are things going at Alliance Québec?” I was the president of this volunteer organization, and he knew who I was from having read about me once in the newspaper. That was how incredible this man's mind was and how sharp he was. He stopped and took 20 minutes to talk to me and my friend on the path in Palm Beach. That was so meaningful to me as a young lawyer. He offered advice and mentorship.
Throughout his later career, when he went back to the practice of law at Ogilvy Renault, now Norton Rose, there were various times when we would get to speak to him. Each and every time, he offered such insight and compassion, and he was so interested in everything we were all doing. He would remember the things we would tell him about our lives, our families, what we were interested in and what our hopes were, and he would repeat them back to us the next time we saw him.
He so loved to talk about his family members. He was so proud of them, whether it was his wife Mila, who he loved so dearly; Mark, who I know better than the other Mulroneys and who I think is a great and incredible guy; Ben; Caroline; or Nicolas. He was so proud of his family, and he had the right to be because they all emerged to be exemplary citizens of Canada.
Brian Mulroney was such a good person. The reason I wanted to get up today is because so many Canadians are just in awe of a prime minister. Whether they love or hate him, he is different than an ordinary person. Of all of the things he accomplished in his life, including creating free trade with the United States, which he really was responsible for, as Ambassador David Cohen told us today at the observance to pay homage to Mr. Mulroney, the great relationship between Canada and the United States started with Brian Mulroney when he and Ronald Reagan held the Irish summit. Whether one did or did not agree with him, he always stood up for his principles. He always made a difference. He always cared.
I am an anglophone from Quebec too, and I have to say that Brian Mulroney was an exemplary anglophone from Quebec because he spoke both languages fluently. Not only was he proficient in French, but he was also well-versed in Quebec culture. At a time when the two cultures did not mix, he was seen as someone who could switch between the two effortlessly.
I want to finish by saying that, even in my last interaction with former Prime Minister Mulroney, he was such a compassionate human being. Last December, he saw me on television, and he could tell that I was upset about the government's vote at the UN on Israel. He took the time to call me on my cellphone to tell me how proud he was of me. That made all the difference. Right before Christmas, when I was feeling down, he brought me up.
Rest in peace, Prime Minister Mulroney. You did so much for Canada. The whole country is in your debt.
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- Mar/19/24 7:17:23 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I had the occasion to meet Brian Mulroney only once in my life, and it was just a few short years ago. I was attending the annual lunch of the St. Patrick's Society in Montreal around this time of year. It coincided with Brian Mulroney's 80th birthday, and he was the guest speaker that day at the luncheon. He regaled us with wonderful stories at the start of his speech for what seemed like a good half hour.
At the end of those stories, many of which had us roaring with laughter, I would have thought it normal that he would have said that was it and sat down, but that was just the beginning. He launched into an analysis of the global situation. He talked about the values that must guide us forward in this world if we are to make it a better place for humanity and for Canada.
I told him that day, when I got a chance to speak to him very briefly at the little reception before the lunch, that my wife's great uncle was Davie Fulton. I knew that Davie Fulton was a mentor to Brian Mulroney. Davie Fulton had been the minister of justice and had watched Brian Mulroney as a young, budding political activist. He watched him go through St. Francis Xavier University where he first got involved in Conservative politics. Obviously, he had great pride and pleasure in knowing that this young man aspired to hold the highest office in the land.
I remember the arc of Mr. Mulroney's career. I remember those two leadership campaigns and how dramatic they were. One was in 1976, and one, I think, was around 1982. The force of his personality just radiated across the television screen.
Brian Mulroney is an inspiration to political leaders and to politicians. He inspired leaders and politicians to be bold and ambitious, and to build relationships based on goodwill, generosity and kindness. This is not just an inspiration for political people or business people, but also an inspiration for all Canadians and all people.
The idea that relationships are at the core of a meaningful life, and it is that kindness and generosity. It was mentioned by the member who spoke a couple of members before me, who talked about certain principles that guided his relationships, and the idea that we have to reach out to people who are suffering at a particular moment and give them support, and about the belief in loyalty and so on.
Mr. Mulroney was a proud Quebecker from the north shore. I think it is worth pointing out that while Mr. Mulroney was certainly both urban and cosmopolitan, he grew up in an industrial town in rural Quebec. That town was a driver of the Quebec economy, and I would imagine certain jobs there involved workplace health and safety risks.
That experience shaped him and made him into what I would call a noble populist. When I use the term populist, I am not talking about modern populism, which seemingly tries to cultivate negative emotions with the aim of seizing power. I am talking about Diefenbaker-style populism, if I can put it that way. It is a kind of populism that keeps the best interests of the community and the greatest number of people in mind. It is about the so-called “ordinary” people. We know what that means.
It means people like those of us who are not necessarily part of society's elite, who face certain challenges and who sometimes need a helping hand. That was the kind of populism he embraced throughout his career.
This communitarian spirit is really at the root of why he was so ahead of his time on an issue that was mentioned by the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands yesterday, the environment. I do not think it was because he had done a market study and thought that this was a good political winner issue to advance his career or the fortunes of his government. I think he believed in the environment because he believed in community.
He knew that supporting the environment was a way of helping the world and helping the country. Those are values that guide and inspire us today.
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- Mar/19/24 7:23:37 p.m.
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Madam Chair, today, this honourable House is paying tribute to a great man who devoted many years of his life to our country. The Right Hon. Brian Mulroney has closed his eyes for his final voyage, but his name and his image will live on in the annals of Canadian history.
Beyond partisanship and political views, Brian Mulroney had a big-picture perspective on key aspects that are unquestionably essential for Canadians and for the growth of our country.
Brian Mulroney was a visionary and a staunch defender of climate action, free trade and social justice. What is more, his climate activism and his zeal for fighting climate change should make many people on the opposition benches blush and should serve as a lesson to his successors at the head of the Conservative Party.
“It starts at home,” former prime minister Brian Mulroney said at the signing of the Canada-United States air quality agreement 33 years ago. It started at home and must continue at home in his memory and in honour of the extraordinary work he accomplished on that front.
I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Mulroney last November at the EnviroLys Gala in my riding. Despite his fatigue, he smiled at everyone. When I introduced myself, he told me that politics is absorbing, but that I should always put my family first. I cherish Mr. Mulroney's advice, and I will always respect his unifying and moderate approach of not burning bridges and always listening to opposing opinions.
In stark contrast to the current Conservative Party's protectionism and fear of the other, Mr. Mulroney was a champion of free trade and openness to the world.
The free trade agreement signed with the United States revitalized Canada's economy and strengthened the position of our businesses.
Countries do better and grow faster when they are open to trade and business flows freely across borders. Our government continued in that vision of growth and collaboration, multiplying trade agreements to allow Canadian businesses to flourish and expand their horizons.
Brian Mulroney understood well that trade agreements help strengthen bilateral trade relations and boost the economies of partner countries. FTAs also help promote and protect foreign investment, improve diplomatic relations and create a level playing field for Canadian companies to compete in global markets.
I thank Mr. Mulroney for paving the way and succeeding in putting in place an essential asset to Canada. I will always admire the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney for his courage and profound belief in social justice.
Standing up to oppose apartheid in South Africa and calling for the liberation of Nelson Mandela despite the opposite views of our allies has put Canada on the right side of history. Canadians are grateful for Mr. Mulroney's honourable service to the nation and hope that his legacy will live on in our history.
On behalf of the residents of Alfred-Pellan, I extend my deepest sympathy to the Mulroney family. Canadians share his family's pain and remain grateful to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney for all his years of public service.
May Mr. Mulroney rest in peace. May the goodwill that his memory evokes in Canadians bring solace to his family as he embarks on his final voyage.
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- Mar/19/24 7:33:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the chief opposition whip and member for South Surrey—White Rock, for her excellent speech.
I, too, am pleased to rise today to pay tribute to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, the 18th Prime Minister of Canada.
Before I list some of his many achievements, I want to say how proud I am of the fact that he had roots in Sainte‑Catherine‑de‑la‑Jacques‑Cartier, one of the 28 municipalities in the beautiful riding of Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier. His ancestors and parents lived there. His time there was brief, since his mother and the entire family left the town when she was six months pregnant with Brian to move to Baie‑Comeau, hence his nickname, “the boy from Baie‑Comeau”.
Brian Mulroney left an indelible mark on the history of our nation, not only through his remarkable political achievements, but also through his vision, leadership and dedication to Canadians. Under this Progressive Conservative prime minister, Canada enjoyed a period of unprecedented prosperity and economic growth. His commitment to bold economic reforms, including the free trade agreement with the United States and Mexico, created new opportunities for our country internationally and strengthened our position in world trade.
I invite my colleagues to learn more about him by taking a look at an authorized biography written by Guy Gendron called Brian Mulroney: L'homme des beaux risques. In reading it, I learned a lot about his political life and the corridors of power.
Brian Mulroney played a decisive role in advocating for human rights and social justice. His leadership in the fight against apartheid in South Africa and his support for international efforts to promote peace and democracy earned Canada a reputation as a defender of fundamental humanitarian values.
He was also an ardent defender of the French language. It was under his government that the Official Languages Act was amended to include the obligation to promote both official languages, English and French, here in Canada. Then there was the privatization of several Crown corporations, such as Petro-Canada and Air Canada. I am not sure he would be happy about the use of French at Air Canada nowadays, but that is a topic for another time.
As prime minister, Brian Mulroney also demonstrated great diplomatic skill, strengthening Canada's ties with its international partners while preserving our national sovereignty and identity.
Beyond those political achievements, Brian Mulroney was a man of principle, integrity and compassion. His passion for public service and his commitment to the well-being of all Canadians will be remembered for generations to come. His respect, generosity and social skills were phenomenal.
For example, I was at the Montreal airport one day with my colleague and friend from Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook on a mission for the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie, and we happened to run into the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. It was really something to see him. He was the one who influenced me, motivated me and inspired me to get into politics. He cut an impressive figure because of his stature and his unique voice, but also because of his open and approachable nature and the interest he took in me and my colleague. There is a photo of us on my Facebook page. It was a privilege for me to meet and talk with him.
This may or may not be a coincidence, but Saturday, March 23, the day of this legendary Irishman's funeral, is the same day that Quebec City will host its St. Patrick's Day parade.
In closing, I would like to express my profound gratitude to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. He has left quite a legacy, and it will be a lasting one.
I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the great woman behind him, Mila; his children Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas; and the 16 Mulroney grandchildren.
Prime Minister, thank you and Godspeed.
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- Mar/19/24 7:43:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, a remarkable individual who served in the chamber for over a decade but who served this country his entire life.
In January 1984, I immigrated to Canada. It was later that year that I witnessed my first Canadian federal election, in which the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney was first elected as the 18th Prime Minister of Canada.
It was very coincidental that on September 17, 1984, I celebrated my birthday in Canada for the first time. That is the day Brian Mulroney took the office of Prime Minister. It was very inspiring to see a fellow born in a middle-class working family become the Prime Minister of Canada. That can happen only here in Canada. I was later recruited by the Right Hon. Paul Martin, in 1990, to support him in his leadership race.
From 1984 to 1993, Prime Minister Mulroney won two majority governments and steered Canada through several important policy decisions, including the end of the Cold War, the introduction of the GST and the free trade agreement with the United States. Prime Minister Mulroney was instrumental in establishing the North American Free Trade Agreement, which played a pivotal role in the economic strength of our entire nation. He will be remembered for his engaging personality, which was key to strengthening the important relationship between Canada and the United States at a time when there was a rising tide of American protectionism.
Long after he had formally retired from public life, Mr. Mulroney continued to apply his energy and efforts to protecting Canada’s economic and geopolitical interests. In 2017, I had the opportunity to sit as a member on the Standing Committee on International Trade, and we carefully studied the ongoing negotiations of a revised NAFTA agreement. When then president Donald Trump was preparing to rip up NAFTA and impose import restrictions that would have hampered Canadian manufacturing, it was Mr. Mulroney who stepped up to help.
He had thorough knowledge of the U.S. political scene and understood the movement that was transforming American politics. Mr. Mulroney knew many of the key players personally and applied both his knowledge and his contacts in ways that helped Canada. He was a former Progressive Conservative prime minister offering aid to a Liberal government. Mr. Mulroney simply did not care about the domestic political considerations, as he was all-in for our country.
Today, I had the privilege and opportunity to pay tribute to Mr. Mulroney at the official lying-in-state here in Ottawa. I am saddened by the loss of a man who cared deeply about Canadians. Mr. Mulroney’s principles helped shape this nation and the world for the better.
On behalf of my constituents in Surrey—Newton, I would like to convey my sincere, heartfelt condolences to Mr. Mulroney’s family, including his wife, Mila, and children, Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas. I also want to wish Mila good health and strength, and the very best to his children so they can continue to follow the trail he blazed for all of us to keep us proud.
May Prime Minister Mulroney rest in peace, and God bless his soul.
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- Mar/19/24 7:48:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Thornhill.
As the Conservative Party of Canada's political lieutenant for Quebec, it is a privilege for me to rise in the House this evening to pay tribute to an outstanding Canadian and a proud Quebecker. I am speaking, of course, about the former prime minister of Canada, the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. February 29, 2024, will go down in history as the day that an extraordinary man left this world.
The “boy from Baie‑Comeau” represented many of the groups that built this country. To start with, his family came from Irish Catholic stock, and they were also English-speaking. Nevertheless, the Mulroneys attended mass in French and lived in a predominantly francophone small town. Little wonder he had such a strong command of the language of Molière. That might also be why he got along so well with everyone. In hindsight, it is easy to remember him as a much-loved prime minister, though it might not have been so obvious toward the end of his time in office. I am sure that even his most vocal opponents would say the same thing today, and this is what we must and will remember most about him: He was a gentleman above all.
If the measure of a man is how he treats others, it is easy to see why we have lost a giant. It is also easy to see why his treatment of others was so remarkable. We have heard thousands of moving tributes from people of every political stripe, from coast to coast and around the world. We have heard about his kindness, freely given and expecting nothing in return. His was a profound, authentic, warm-hearted kindness rarely seen in this place, where the chill of political quarrels can hold sway. That is how he won Canadians over, securing the largest majority in our history. What his policies and the risks he took had in common was that they rallied people around shared values of justice and doing the right thing. He had the courage to stand up for what he believed in, even when it was not politically popular.
With all his heart, he wanted to include Quebeckers in the Canadian Constitution, with honour and enthusiasm. He wanted to stop the suffering and discrimination in South Africa. With all his heart, he wanted to do what was right and just. That is why we feel such an outpouring of emotion today. Canadians and Quebeckers have just lost someone who was truly good, someone who truly embodied the golden rule of treating others as we would want to be treated. This is in stark contrast to today's political environment. It is almost unbelievable to think that this way of being, this particular way of engaging in politics, would be possible today, let alone that it would be a winning strategy. For him, however, it was not an election strategy. It was simply who he was. That was Brian Mulroney.
I was lucky enough to meet Mr. Mulroney on several occasions, all of which I will never forget. I can personally attest to the fact that he was the kind, larger-than-life character we have heard so much about. I can also attest to the fact that his legacy of kindness will stand the test of time. It is a legacy of moral rectitude, a legacy of altruistic efforts to make things better not only for his fellow citizens, but for all of humanity. He certainly did not always live up to the high standards he set for himself, but history will retain little trace of his shortcomings. In fact, history will instead retain rich memories of the person he was.
On behalf of Quebec, the Conservative Party, all Canadians and, above all, on behalf of humanity, thank you, Prime Minister.
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- Mar/19/24 7:52:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, to rise and pay tribute today to a prime minister is one of the distinct honours here, but to rise and pay tribute to a prime minister who so enormously changed this nation, and one whom I knew, is the dream of a kid from a hard-working immigrant family, who in her earliest memories of politics understood that this country is one where success was ours to make.
I offer to Mila, Caroline and Andrew, Ben and Jess, Mark and Vanessa, and Nic and Katy, to their children and to the rest of their family, my sincerest condolences as they seek comfort in the memories this country shares with them.
Prime Minister Mulroney led a life that can only be described as extraordinary, one that saw him rise from the mills of northern Quebec to the halls of power here in Ottawa, a life characterized by his own devotion to family, community and country, and a life that will have a lasting impact on Canada and indeed the rest of the world.
During my time in politics, I was fortunate enough to hear his speeches, his stories, and much later, I would get to know the Prime Minister as someone who he had called, one day on an idle Thursday, to come back to a life in politics, which I had thought for a brief moment that I had left. He was warm, tough and full of colourful language when it was required and deserved.
He often quoted scripture, in particular, one passage from Acts; young men have visions, and old men dream dreams. He intended it. I believe it to be a reflection on the nature of things as he saw them and the world that we live in today, but in many ways, it describes his life too. He was a visionary of a continent brought together by commerce, where everyone would be uplifted by the blessings of trade and a free market. He was a visionary of a world united by common values like democracy, peace and justice.
The accolades that have poured in from allies and adversaries alike speak wonders about the esteem in which he was held by people from all backgrounds. The respect that he commanded and that he showed equally to others might be the among the best lessons that somebody could learn from this place. Many people, luminaries here at home and abroad, leaders in their fields, have spoken eloquently about that tenure and what it meant to Canada.
I cannot say much about what it was like to live in Canada when he was prime minister, but I can say what it is like to live in Canada after he was prime minister. For the economic prosperity that we saw through the 1990s and the 2000s, we can thank Brian Mulroney. For the foundation of fiscal stability that made it possible, we can thank Brian Mulroney. For the long-standing respect and admiration that Canada enjoyed throughout the world, we can certainly thank Brian Mulroney. The very fact that we are here today in Parliament, working on behalf of a united Canada, is a testament to the work he did to preserve our national unity at a time when many people thought it could not be done.
All those accomplishments were made possible by a deep and abiding faith to our country, to our people and to what we stand for here as a nation. This place perverts that, and its to his legacy that we should look when we fight for the preservation of values here: to doing what he knew was right, even when it was unpopular; to persevering, even in the face of intense and often visceral opposition; and to an always-resonant voice of moral clarity in these dangerous times.
We know one thing for sure. His legacy and success will live on through his four children, who are already leaders in their own fields of politics, broadcasting and business. They, in their own right, embody their father's character, ambition and decency, and I am lucky enough to call them friends.
I thank Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nic, for sharing their father with Canada. This is something that is fitting for them, just a few days after St. Patrick's Day, and especially so for Prime Minister Mulroney, whose Irish eyes were always smiling. “Death leaves a heartache no one can heal; Love leaves a memory no one can steal.” May those memories comfort you in your time of grief. May you treasure the love that he clearly felt for you and for this country, and may his memory always be a blessing. I know it will be in the hearts of millions of Canadians.
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- Mar/19/24 8:03:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on November 2, 2023, thanks to my friend François Vaqué, I was able to attend the penultimate public appearance of the Right Hon. Martin Brian Mulroney, whose passing on February 29 we are commemorating today.
It was Laval University that organized this event to pay tribute to the career of Mr. Mulroney who, as we know, earned a degree from Laval University. He was always proud to say that he was an alumnus of its law school.
When he spoke in response to the university's president, we got the sense that his mind was clear even though we all knew that he was in the deep winter of his life. He was as solid as an oak and he spoke easily, as only he knew how. When he finished his speech, the room was captivated and he closed with these famous words: not bad for a boy from Baie‑Comeau. Of course everyone, tears in their eyes, stood up and applauded him.
Martin Brian Mulroney, the greatest prime minister in Canada's history, was always proud of his humble roots in Baie-Comeau. He was born in a bilingual, bicultural city that shaped the man he became. He was the son of a tradesman, but, as a child, he was perfectly comfortable singing When Irish Eyes Are Smiling to the big boss of the Chicago Tribune. That was how Brian Mulroney was. He was destined early on for a career of national scope, and that is what he achieved.
Before entering politics, Mr. Mulroney was a lawyer, but not just any lawyer. For starters, he took care of his family. His father died very young, so he took care of his entire family and brought them to Montreal. He was literally the Mulroney family provider in Montreal.
He became a negotiating lawyer and was quickly recognized as a winner. One of his accomplishments as a young lawyer was settling a bitter strike at La Presse. He was always involved in tough conflicts, and, ever the masterful negotiator, he always sorted them out. He was also a member of the Cliche commission, where he brought down the villains who, unfortunately, corrupted Quebec's construction industry in the 1970s.
He also became the president of the Iron Ore Company, one of the big companies that was, unfortunately, affected by dozens and dozens of labour disputes. Thanks to Mr. Mulroney's leadership, the labour disputes were resolved and he even spent the holidays and Christmas with his workers, as our leader mentioned in the tribute he gave two days ago.
Brian Mulroney was made for politics. At the age of 17, when he was attending St. Francis Xavier University, he was getting phone calls from the Conservative prime minister, the Right Hon. John Diefenbaker. He had a talent for making friends with a lot of people. It was clear that he should go into politics. Mr. Mulroney was likely the greatest political leader Canada has ever known, but he began his political career with a defeat. On February 22, 1976, he lost the Conservative leadership race, placing third behind Claude Wagner and the Right Hon. Charles Joseph Clark, who surprised many people by becoming the Prime Minister of Canada.
He had a rematch in 1983. On June 11, he became leader of the Conservative Party. He was a very active and relevant politician, capable of stirring up crowds better than anyone. I was a young supporter at the time as well. I joined the Conservative Party in November 1981. I later met Mr. Mulroney in action for the first time on October 10, 1982. It was at the Hôtel Gouverneur on Laurier Boulevard in Sainte-Foy, at the invitation of our candidate in the riding of Louis-Hébert, Suzanne Duplessis. For the first time, I saw with my own eyes this great politician, Brian Mulroney. He was very impressive.
He led the greatest victory in Canadian political history when he was elected prime minister on September 4, 1984, with over 200 seats.
There are so many things I could say about this wonderful prime minister's great achievements. The first thing that springs to mind is apartheid. He was the one who led the global battle to put an end to the human horror that was apartheid. It may seem surprising, but just 40 years ago, in this great country, Black people did not have the same rights as white people. Fortunately, people like Brian Mulroney paved the way and led the fight. In fact, Nelson Mandela said that the first trip he wanted to take abroad was to Brian Mulroney's country, to Canada. When Mr. Mandela said that to Prime Minister Mulroney, the latter offered to send him a plane right away. Mr. Mandela eventually made it here.
He was also a leader on the environment, in the Mulroney way. He is the one who used his pragmatism to come up with a solution for acid rain. Mr. Mulroney was a pragmatic man. When President Reagan visited the House of Commons to deliver a speech, Mr. Mulroney brought him to his office to show him a globe. He explained how acid rain worked by showing him where it came from and where it went, as well as the problems it caused. He did such a good job of explaining the problem of acid rain to President Reagan that Mr. Reagan told his entourage that they needed to talk about it and to change some of the wording in his speech. That was unheard of in politics. Only Mr. Mulroney was capable of convincing the most powerful man on the planet that he needed to take action, and he did it in a pragmatic way.
He was also the architect of la francophonie and the gatherings that were held. He was also, of course, the architect of the Meech Lake accord, which was a success until some malcontents scuttled the deal. That is all I will say about that. Mr. Mulroney's premiership also left an indelible mark on the economy. Shortly after he was elected, he went to New York to say:
Canada is back in business.
In this particular case, it worked. He privatized 23 state-owned enterprises that were struggling and turned them around. Most importantly, he created free trade. At the time, Canada had a closed economy. We needed to open our borders, especially with the United States. As a result, nearly 40 years later, our country is a world leader in free trade. Among those who helped make that happen, I would like to recognize the outstanding contribution of the member for Abbotsford, who has helped Canada sign more than 40 free trade agreements.
Free trade also led to the creation of the GST. Why? Before free trade, Canada had a tax on production. However, it was hurting businesses to have to pay a tax on what they produced and then send their products abroad, so Mr. Mulroney did away with the tax on production and implemented a consumer tax. Obviously, everyone was against it at the time, except the Conservatives. It was such a bad idea that, 40 years later, that tax still exists and no one has done away with it. Perhaps that is a sign that it was the right thing to do.
Members have talked a lot about Mr. Mulroney's extraordinary style and friendships. He was the only one who could have such strong, meaningful relationship with leaders who had completely different views. Whether it be François Mitterrand or Ronald Reagan, only Mr. Mulroney was able to bridge the gap. Then, he became a great elder statesman.
This is the kind of man that we need more than ever. He was a man who, after serving the country so well, was ready to help the country, whatever the colour of the government. That is what Mr. Mulroney did. It was so impressive that he was the only prime minister who did this.
He is the only foreigner in the United States to have delivered a eulogy for two American presidents. Family was the most important aspect of his life. That can still be felt to this day. His wife Mila and his children were always with him. He was there for his children and his family. His family and his children were always there together. Yesterday, Nicolas, who was born the year after the election, in 1985, told me that his father called him regularly. He often asked his father for advice, and his father gave it to him. That was Mr. Mulroney's strength.
In closing, the National Post has published a poll. I want to read it, because it is pretty interesting. The poll was conducted just a few days ago and it says the following:
“Brian Mulroney did 'good job' as prime minister, according to 83 per cent of Canadians”.
Eighty-three per cent of people thought that Brian Mulroney did a good job as prime minister.
Brian, rest in peace.
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- Mar/19/24 8:13:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is truly an honour to pay tribute to a great Canadian, a great statesman, a great Conservative and a great man. He was someone who truly lived out his life in service to his fellow Canadians.
When I think of Brian Mulroney, I think of a man who led Canada out of a very difficult time. I cannot begin to enumerate the challenges that Brian Mulroney was facing when the Canadian people placed their trust in him at an unprecedented level. The massive majority that he won in 1984 was a testament to his leadership, his charisma, his ability to connect with people and his ability to show the people of Canada that he was genuinely on their side.
When we think about what he inherited, he inherited runaway inflation. My parents had to struggle with mortgage payments back in the early eighties. I remember the stories about it at the family table. My parents were stressing about how they were going to keep a roof over our heads as interest rates were well into the double digits for many years. That was a pain known by many Canadian families, all across the country.
He inherited a deficit that was out of control, with debt costs that were burdening the taxpayers and the state. He inherited an economy that, over the years, had become choked with government intervention. There were over 60 Crown corporations in 1984 when Brian Mulroney became Prime Minister. Canadians might not know this, but at one point the Government of Canada owned gas stations, Petro-Canada. The previous Liberal government had nationalized and created Crown corporations to manage all the different aspects of the oil and gas sector, including at the retail level. Let us imagine the Government of Canada running gas stations.
Crown corporations had so choked out the productive parts of our economy that Canada was in a very difficult economic situation with minimal growth, rampant deficits, runaway inflation and interest rates that followed. What did he do? He implemented a vision of free market economics, unleashing the power of hard-working Canadians that follows when government gets off their backs and out of their way. Brian Mulroney unleashed that on our country and freed our people to do what they do best.
We can look back and see how, at the end of his tenure, he had wrestled inflation to the ground and brought those interest rates down, and the dynamic private sector flourished and grew. Canadians rewarded him with a second term in 1988.
I truly believe that the mark of a leader who holds an office of power, whether it is a premier, prime minister or a mayor, is whether their political opponents undo the things that they have done. We all remember the debates at the time when Brian Mulroney was bringing in his vision of free trade. Free trade is such a great example of his leadership ability, his passion and his conviction. It was terribly unpopular for many months and years, but he saw the long-term benefits that would pay off for Canada. He saw that, once businesses and people would be able to freely trade back and forth with our largest ally, our largest economy and our largest trading partner, the gains would be massive.
In the 1988 election, every other political party fought him tooth and nail. This was not just a secondary or small issue that flared up a little. This was the seminal question of the 1988 election. Every single vested interest group that knew it had been benefiting from state protection went to war to confuse Canadians, undermine the arguments that were being presented, and try to scare people into voting against the free trade deal and against the Conservative Party. Many a politician would have taken a look at those polling numbers and said that they could not touch it, that it was not something that would fly.
It is campaigning 101 when we sit down with our team, look at our platform, look at the polls and say that we might like to do something one day, but the Canadian people are not there; we are not going to offer it and are not going to commit. Brian Mulroney said to forget the polls, that it was about what our country needed, what would make our country stronger and what would make our country more prosperous, and he fought through it all. With the power of his conviction, with his amazing communication style and with that smooth, silky baritone voice, he was able to convince Canadians to place their trust in him once again.
Of course, every single successive government has not only promised to keep that free trade deal, but now competes for better free trade deals. Political parties now have to show Canadians how they are going to find more markets for our exports and how they are going to sign new free trade deals with other countries. It is now remarkable to watch when we think back to that 1988 election and look at elections today.
He denationalized, as my colleague from Quebec just mentioned a few moments ago, over 20 Crown corporations that were cluttering up the economy. We all know what happens when governments run things. When governments run things, they do not provide great services at affordable costs. They are not responsive to consumer needs; they are responsive to what works best for government. We see this across the board. Imagine living in a country where there are 63 Crown corporations in everything from railways to airlines to retail gasoline. Brian Mulroney helped declutter the economy. He went to work weeding the garden.
That is how I evaluate a former prime minister's legacy. Despite all the opponents who were promising to fight tooth and nail over his vision and agenda, have any of them undone what he did? The answer is largely no, because he was right. It did make Canada a better place to have free trade deals. It did make Canada a better place to have a more dynamic free market where Canadians were free to do what they do best and be prosperous. The fact that so much of his legacy is intact today and that political parties compete over who will protect that legacy stronger is an amazing testament to Brian Mulroney as a statesman.
I want to share a couple of anecdotes to show what Brian Mulroney was as a human being.
To say that he was magnanimous would be an understatement, and he was not just charming. When we give praise, sometimes people think we are just engaging in flattery or trying to be nice so that someone reciprocates. With Brian Mulroney, it was genuine. People genuinely felt, whether it was in a phone call, when bumping into him at an event or when having the opportunity to sit down and really unpack something, that the entire time they were with Brian, they were the most important person in the world at that moment.
He was so quick to compliment and so slow to criticize. His criticism was always constructive, and he was such a booster, not just of the Conservative Party but of Canada. He wanted Canada to succeed. We saw this time and time again. When political parties of different stripes reached out to him for help on a file, he always said yes, because he always put his country first, and he always knew that his Conservative principles would make his country so much better.
He would often call me during my tenure as leader of the party. I was so thankful that I had the opportunity to tap into that wisdom and experience. Every single phone call I had with Brian Mulroney started off with the subject of what he wanted to talk about. He would say, “I want to talk to you about something”, and he would say what it was. However, he would also say, “Before we get there, how is that wonderful wife of yours? How is Jill doing? How are Thomas, Grace, Madeline, Mary and Henry?” He knew all their names, and he knew how old they were. He knew what I had told him the last time I was on the phone with him. If I mentioned that one of my children was playing sports, he would ask how that basketball team of theirs was going. He genuinely demonstrated that he cared about people on a human level, not just because of the office they happened to hold.
I could tell in everything he did that his guiding light was his family too. Mila was the rock, the person he credits with all his success, and his wonderful children have all gone on to be very successful themselves.
I just want to thank Brian Mulroney. I thank him for the service that he provided for our country. I thank Mila and their children. I thank them for putting up with the fact that they had to share their dad and husband for so many years with this wonderful country.
I sincerely wish that he rests in peace and that his friends and family are comforted in this difficult time and during the public state ceremonies and his funeral.
Thanks very much, Brian Mulroney. May you rest in peace.
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- Mar/19/24 8:32:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is hazardous stuff, I think, for any Canadian to attempt to pay tribute to a man who eulogized two U.S. presidents, particularly a Canadian of Irish descent. Brian Mulroney did big things. When we remember the scale and the stakes of what this man took on, I think of the poor advisers in each meeting whose job it was to remind him of the risks.
When we consider how deeply Mr. Mulroney loved this country, we cannot imagine he was fearless. The man had so much to lose with every decision that he made, but he was courageous. He took chances. He made gambles. He was confident in himself. He was confident in the people around him. He was confident in Canadians. He was confident in this country and, more often than not, he won big for this country.
When he was asked about the Hibernia oil platform off the coast of Newfoundland and the enormous amount of federal money he put behind it, Mr. Mulroney said, “If certainty of results and the elimination of risks had been required in advance, Sir John A. Macdonald would never have proceeded with the great endeavors which bound Canada together.”
People say he was born in Quebec, but that has never stopped those of us out east from claiming him as one of our own. He was a fellow ex-grad, a son of Nova Scotia and the founder of Newfoundland and Labrador's offshore.
It was in a crowded hotel ballroom in St. John's on February 11, 1985, that Mr. Mulroney signed the Atlantic accord with Premier Brian Peckford. It is hard to state what that accord means to people out my way. It recognized what we, as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, brought to this country, that the profits reaped from the resources off our shores should benefit the people of our province, first and foremost. It ended years of conflict between the federal and provincial governments over offshore rights and gave investors the stability that they needed to build a stellar energy industry.
Mr. Mulroney had his critics, but he refused to buckle. “I am not afraid to inflict prosperity on Newfoundland and Labrador”, he famously said. To this day, the accord, as we call it, is like the Charter of Rights and Freedoms but for prosperity, and we have prospered.
I was lucky enough to be in Premier Brian Tobin's office for first oil, and that was in 1997, a dozen years after the Atlantic accord was signed. That is the long-term vision that Brian Mulroney had, that John Crosbie had, that one needs to have in this job.
That was such an important moment in the history of my province, but that moment was never a certainty. It was a fight. It was a fight for our economic future. It was a fight for the rights of provinces in this Confederation and a fight against those who doubted us, who doubted that Newfoundland and Labrador was capable of such ambition and capable of fulfilling that ambition. He never doubted us.
Back in 1990, he put up $830 million in federal grants and over $1 billion more in loan guarantees to get that platform built. Then again, in 1993, with a partially built project at risk when Gulf Canada pulled out, Mulroney stepped in with an 8.5% share. Today that platform still stands as a testament to his faith, his faith in us.
Mr. Mulroney always believed in the workers of my province. During COVID, he called on the federal government and on me as natural resources minister at the time to support the industry when it was reeling from the impacts of a global shutdown. “Failure is not an option”, he said, and he was right. We delivered almost $400 million to the province to support workers and to lower emissions in the industry, and then we came through with another $5.2 billion for Muskrat Falls.
In the midst of everything he did for the people of our country, he still had so much time for this particular Newfoundlander. There are many of us who will tell stories in the coming days, weeks and months ahead of how this man touched individual lives because he understood people. That was the thread running through his greatness. I thank Mr. Mulroney for everything that he did for me on that day, for my province and for my country. I thank Mila, Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas for sharing such a wonderful husband, father and grandfather with all of us.
I admired him so much for his ambition, for his humanity, for his love of country. He had faith and he believed. He took to heart the words of the great Seamus Heaney, “Walk on air against your better judgement.”
May he rest in peace.
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- Mar/19/24 8:37:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues from all parties in the House in recognizing the role and contributions of Canada's 18th prime minister, the late Right Hon. Brian Mulroney.
I would like to begin by extending my condolences to Mila and to Mr. Mulroney's entire family. Losing a family member is difficult under ordinary circumstances, but Mr. Mulroney's family is mourning his loss under the grateful gaze of Canadians and Quebeckers and every other country around the world.
Mr. Mulroney's legacy is worthy of reflection.
He was elected with the largest majority in Canadian history in 1984.
His 1985 bilateral summit with President Ronald Reagan proved to be, as the Toronto Star noted, “foundational for a number of major bilateral agreements on shared security, the environment and cross-border trade, eventually culminating in the North American Free Trade Agreement.” I will come back to the free trade agreement momentarily.
With respect to the environment, the 1991 acid rain accord was critical to Canada, because the pollution that found its way into our rivers, lakes and forests came mostly from south of our border, namely the United States. In fact, a 2016 report by the International Joint Commission marking the 25-year anniversary of the acid rain accord found significant declines in the amount of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds, particularly in the U.S., from 1990 levels.
Brian Mulroney was the prime minister who created the Environmental Assessment Act and the Environmental Protection Act. He did it not because it was popular, but because he truly believed in protecting our environment for his future and for future generations.
I would also be remiss if I did not take a moment to express our gratitude for his unwavering efforts, against staggering international political odds, to end apartheid in South Africa. It is reported that, upon his release from prison, Nelson Mandela said, “We regard you as one of our great friends because of the solid support we have received from you and Canada over the years”. Upon learning of Mr. Mulroney's passing, the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, issued a statement on behalf of his nation, saying Mulroney was a “leader that holds a special place in South Africa's history.”
It proves that when Canada has the political will and leadership it can punch above its weight. It can lead the global community to make the right decisions. On behalf of New Democrats, we thank him and the Right Hon. Joe Clark for their collective efforts on this front.
Mr. Mulroney has been called one of the most consequential prime ministers in Canadian history. There is substantive evidence to support that claim, but some of these consequences are controversial, and in the minds of many historians, academics, political experts and partisans, these consequences impacted negatively on Canada and Quebec both economically and politically.
Let me begin with the free trade agreement. The agreement, which came into effect in 1987, codified one of the most important and lucrative trade relationships in the world, that of Canada and the United States, eliminating a range of trade barriers over the course of a 10-year period. However, opponents argued that Canadian manufacturers, which relied on tariff protection, would be decimated by free trade. Critics were concerned that American branch plants would move back to the United States and take advantage of cheaper, non-unionized labour. To some extent, this proved to be right.
Then there was the GST. Mr. Mulroney replaced the federal sales tax with a 7% goods and services tax. Many arguments were made regarding the pros and cons of this measure as well. No matter who someone is, be they prime minister, cabinet minister or parliamentarians such as us, there are always decisions that are made which may or may not be popular. We make them because we and our party believe they are the right ones, the right ones for Canada and at times for our global partners, and the right ones on so many other fronts, including human rights.
Mr. Mulroney also took a valiant risk attempting to bring Quebec into the constitutional fold, not once but twice.
Following an interview with The Globe and Mail on June 11, 1990, two days after he concluded a difficult round of negotiations with Canada's 10 premiers, Mr. Mulroney said, “It's like an election campaign. You've got to work backwards. You've got to pick your dates and you work backwards from it.... I said (to my aides) that's the day that I'm going to roll all the dice. It's the only way to handle it.” There were serious political consequences to that statement, resulting in a lack of resolution on our constitutional front.
In conclusion, it is not an understatement to say that Mr. Mulroney's legacy has been consequential. His contributions have been immense. He was able to work across party lines to get things done. His commitment to Canada was unquestionable. His dedication to advancing human rights was admirable and noteworthy. His family must be so proud of his contributions and I know colleagues in this chamber are truly grateful.
As we speak here today, Canadians are filing in to pay their tributes and express their gratitude. I know that many in Quebec and across Canada will attend and watch his state funeral on Saturday, as a grateful nation accords him the farewell he actually deserves.
To his family, his friends and his colleagues, I extend my deepest sympathy on behalf of the New Democratic Party.
May he rest in peace.
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- Mar/19/24 8:44:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what an honour it is for me to stand in this place, pay tribute to the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney and express my sincere condolences to his family: his wife, Mila; daughter, Caroline; and sons, Mark, Nicolas and Ben. I had the opportunity to meet with the family today, and I expressed my sincere condolences on behalf of the people of Barrie—Innisfil.
On my 18th birthday, I was a kid working the all-night shift at a country music radio station in Brandon, Manitoba. I think the member for Brandon—Souris thought I was going to tell that story. The reason I mention it is that it was around the time Brian Mulroney had entered the political scene. I had not really thought much about politics at that time, but there was just something about him. There was something about his magnetism and his communication skills.
Maybe it was the background in radio that I was pursuing, my fledgling radio career, but there was just something that drew me to him. At that moment, during that period, I became a Progressive Conservative. I was not as active in the political movement at that time. I later became very active, under former prime minister Stephen Harper. However, there was something that piqued my interest in politics, and it was Brian Mulroney, not just in the way he communicated but in his vision.
If I were to describe him in one way, in one word, it would be “bold”. I have sat here through most of the debate tonight, and I know there are a lot of ways to describe the former prime minister. He was bold. He was bold at a time when Canada needed to be bold, not just domestically but internationally as well.
I know several of my colleagues have recounted how we had come out of a period of great despair; interest rates were high. He made some bold decisions, and they were not very popular. That is really the sign of leadership, when we think about it: moving people in a direction they know they should be going in when they are not willing to do so. That is what Brian Mulroney did for this country. He led us into a period of economic prosperity, for which we ought to be grateful. In many cases, it was a long-lasting prosperity.
Brian Mulroney obviously won the largest majority in the history of this country. Not only did he draw in a young, impressionable 18-year-old radio DJ at that time, but he did the same for the rest of the nation, and there was a reason for that. He had the type of personality that drew people in. He had the capability to communicate effectively and share his vision for the nation. He did that very well.
We can think of his accomplishments, many positive, some controversial, and what he did around the world: He restored Canada's place as a well-respected global leader. Brian Mulroney was the epitome of a statesman in the way he carried himself and communicated with other leaders.
We can think of where he was in terms of the stature of other world leaders: He was their equal. He was not below or above. When he walked into a room and talked about the things that were important globally, such as fighting apartheid in South Africa and environmental issues, he had the respect of the room. Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Helmut Kohl, François Mitterrand and Mikhail Gorbachev were larger-than-life figures for their own reasons. Brian Mulroney could walk into a room and deal and talk with those people at a level that I do not think we have seen in this country for a long time. He garnered respect.
He was bold in his love of Canada. It was what this nation meant to him. He believed in Canada and our Confederation. He believed in the inclusion of all the provinces. We saw that evidenced by his work on the Meech Lake accord and the Charlottetown accord. He really worked to bring this country together at a time when it needed it the most.
He did this not only in the time that he was prime minister but also long after he was prime minister. We have heard stories tonight of him reaching out and influencing. Even earlier this week, when the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition spoke about Brian Mulroney, they spoke about receiving phone calls from him; based on his experience, he gave them his best advice. Whether it was the update to the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement or other things, he was always there to provide advice. He was always there to comfort people in their time of greatest need, whether he would make phone calls or simply write people notes.
I heard these stories long ago, and it is a practice that I have adopted as a member of Parliament to write notes to people in a way that Brian Mulroney would have done, or simply call people just to see how they are doing. He had the ability to draw one in, and when in the room with him, it did not matter whether there was one person or 1,000 people; he had a way of making a person feel special and that he could connect with them.
Later on, after the election in 2015, I got to know the prime minister. We shared a desire, he and I, on the Gulf War veterans. As members know, it was Brian Mulroney who cobbled together a coalition of like-minded countries that saw the need to deal with Saddam Hussein in Kuwait. Again, it was that principled foreign policy approach. Brian Mulroney brought this alliance together and caused Saddam to retreat out of Kuwait, which was the impetus for the war in the Persian Gulf. I know that Prime Minister Mulroney cared very deeply and was very passionate about sending Canadian troops over to the Persian Gulf.
Brian Mulroney could tell a story like nobody else, and in our shared desire to see the Gulf War veterans elevated to wartime status as opposed to UN mission status, I recall a story he told. He was talking about his concern over sending CF-18s to the Persian Gulf. He was on the phone with Hosni Mubarak, who was then the president of Egypt. Brian told this story at an event, and he said in that deep baritone voice, “Hosni, I'm very concerned about sending CF-18 pilots to fight in the Persian Gulf War.” Hosni Mubarak said to him, in his Egyptian accent, “Brian, you don't have to worry about that.” Brian goes “What do you mean, Hosni? How can I not worry about that? These are our pilots flying our planes.” Hosni said, “The reason you don't have to worry about it is that we trained the Iraqi pilots. We know they're bad pilots.” Prime Minister Mulroney said at the time that it gave him comfort in the fact that he was making the right decision at that point to send our troops over to the Persian Gulf.
As I said, we shared the desire to see the Persian Gulf War veterans elevated to wartime status. I say that in the past tense, unfortunately, with his passing. If we are going to pay tribute to the legacy of Brian Mulroney and the deep compassion, the empathy and the concern he had for so many others, I would call on the House as a matter of his legacy to see if we can come together as parties, as government, to ensure that the desire to have those Gulf War veterans elevated to wartime status is met. We have done that twice in our history, with the Korean War veterans and the merchant mariners. In honour of Prime Minister Mulroney, we should be doing that for our Persian Gulf War veterans.
As I conclude, I am fortunate that my riding of Barrie—Innisfil is adjacent to that of the president of the Treasury Board for the Province of Ontario, Caroline Mulroney. I get to spend a lot of time working with Caroline on joint issues and shared common things within our area of central Ontario.
On behalf of the people whom I represent in Barrie—Innisfil, I stand here tonight to express my sincere condolences to Mila, Caroline, Mark, Nicolas and Ben and to thank them for their contributions to our nation and for sharing who was, in my view, a very remarkable Canadian: Brian Mulroney.
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- Mar/19/24 9:03:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to remark on the life of the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, in the hope of looking at his life as a way for us to look toward the future.
I was a young, grade 11, student at Centre Wellington District High School in Wellington County in 1988 when I joined the Conservative Party. There was an election that would take place later that fall. That spring I joined the party to campaign for my local member of Parliament at the time, who has become a very good friend, the Hon. Perrin Beatty. That was my first step into the life of politics.
I clearly remember why I joined the party. I clearly remember why I helped campaign for Perrin Beatty in 1988 as a young high school student. It was because I believed in the vision that Brian Mulroney outlined for this country. It was the free trade election that many have referenced in the House. It was a big shift in Canadian policy, the free trade agreement between Canada and the United States. In fact it was arguably the biggest shift in foreign policy in Canada in a century, since the reciprocity election of, I believe, 1911, when then prime minister Laurier argued for free trade and the Conservatives of the day argued against it and in favour of what was called the national policy. Canadians at that time decided against free trade and decided to implement a series of tariff barriers to protect domestic industry and shield it from foreign competition.
Brian Mulroney, after listening to experts in 1986 and 1987, decided that it was time to spend some political capital and convince Canadians to do away with the over 100-year-old policy that Sir John A. Macdonald had implemented, the national policy, in order to ensure our future prosperity. That is exactly what he did. The 1988 free trade election was arguably one of our only recent modern elections that has been about foreign policy, because it essentially was about Canada's relationship with the United States. I joined the party at that time as a young teenager, a high school student, because I believed in his vision, in his confidence in what this country was and could be.
When we look at the track record of the Mulroney government, we see a remarkable record. It implemented the last series of big tax reforms that we have seen. We all know about the 1971 tax reforms that were the result of the Carter commission, but many of us have forgotten the reforms of 1987 and 1988 and, subsequently, of the early 1990s. The Mulroney government took 10 federal tax brackets and reduced them to three. It eliminated a punitive 13.5% manufacturers sales tax and replaced it with a value-added goods and services tax that expert economists had been arguing for since the early 1970s, all in an effort to unleash the productive capacity of the Canadian economy. It implemented monetary policy reform at the Bank of Canada under the leadership of then governor John Crow by implementing inflation targeting of 2%, which is with us to this day. It also privatized and deregulated many industries, unleashing productivity, growth and job creation in those industries.
On top of doing all of that, it actually, over its term in government, brought the budget to an operating surplus. The reason that is significant in today's context is that it was the Mulroney government that was the last government in this country to meet our NATO 2% defence spending commitment. It was also the last time we came close to meeting the overseas development assistance goal of spending 0.7% of gross national income on aid to the world's most vulnerable and poorest.
It was also the government that was ambitious in its foreign policy when it came to the environment. It was the government that helped put in place the Montreal Protocol, which banned substances that contained chlorine and bromine, that came into effect in 1989 and that effectively helped close off the ozone hole, which continues to be repaired to this day as a result of that protocol.
It was the government that implemented what we now call the acid rain treaty, which was known as the air quality agreement, that convinced Republican President Ronald Reagan to sign on to such an agreement, as well as his successor George Bush, in order to de-acidify the freshwater lakes in much of Canada, particularly throughout the Canadian Shield, many of which had become dead lakes because they had become so acidic they no longer could support the native flora and fauna as they once did.
It was the government that introduced the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, which is something near and dear to my heart as an Ontario MP, that touches on four of the five Great Lakes, Great Lakes that hold one-fifth of all the surface freshwater on the planet.
It was a government that accomplished those foreign policy goals in the environment, in defence and in overseas development assistance, all the while bringing the Government of Canada's operating budget to a surplus during the nine years it was in power.
On top of all that, the late Prime Minister Mulroney led the charge in the Commonwealth to stand up against an apartheid regime in South Africa. He was a leader in joining with allies on so many other initiatives.
Perhaps the greatest accomplishment of the late prime minister Brian Mulroney was to instill in this country a confidence about who we are and what we could be. He was the prime minister who said to Canadian businesses that they can compete with the best in the world and that they do not need a tariff wall to protect them from competition, because he knew Canada, Canadians and Canadian businesses, and he knew they were excellent. He knew they could compete with the best in the world.
He instilled in our academic researchers that same kind of confidence with the initiatives he undertook to fund post-secondary education and research. He instilled in all parts of the country this idea that Canada had boundless potential and that it was only limited by our own limited horizons about what we could be.
Perhaps his greatest accomplishment was to instill in a new generation of Canadians, who would later follow him to serve in the House and who hopefully will come to serve in subsequent Parliaments, the idea that we can be the best in the world, that we can compete with the best in the world and that we can strive for and can achieve excellence.
I want to thank Mr. Mulroney for his contributions to this country. I want to particularly thank his family, Mila, Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas, for the sacrifices they made over so many years and for allowing Mr. Mulroney, a father and a husband, to donate and to contribute so much to this country we call home.
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- Mar/19/24 9:12:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is not part of my notes, but 40 years ago this year, Brian Mulroney became the Prime Minister of Canada. Like my colleague from Barrie—Innisfil and many of my colleagues, it was around that time that I got more interested in politics and started years of serving in various farm leader and agriculture organizations. I had no ambition to ever be an elected member of Parliament, but here I am. Brian Mulroney did have that impact on a lot of us.
It is a real honour for me to rise in this place and pay tribute to Canada's 18th prime minister, the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney. On February 29, we all know that Canadians lost a remarkable statesman, a visionary, a leader and a powerful advocate for this country we love. More than that, those closest to him lost a husband, a father, a grandfather and a dear friend.
I extend my condolences to his wife, Mila, and their children, Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas, and their families. I had the opportunity to meet with them yesterday and again today as we honoured the procession across the street to where he lays in state. It was those folks, his family, who so generously shared Brian with all of us in Canada.
Born into a working-class family in Baie-Comeau, Quebec, Brian worked hard to become a successful lawyer and business executive before entering politics in the late seventies. He won a seat in the House of Commons in the 1983 federal election, and shortly thereafter was elected leader of the Progressive Conservative Party and became the leader of the official opposition.
The following year, in 1984, Brian led the Progressive Conservatives to a landslide election victory, becoming the Prime Minister of Canada. He received another convincing mandate when he was re-elected in 1988, the famous “free trade election” that so many of my colleagues from all parties have spoken about here in the House tonight. An historic opportunity to serve is what Mr. Mulroney called his 1984 election win during his victory speech to supporters, marking the beginning of a prime ministership that would run through to 1993.
During his leadership, Brian Mulroney propelled Canada onto the world stage with an unparalleled commitment to economic reform, national unity and international diplomacy. Among his most enduring achievements was his role in negotiating the historic Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, a pact that reshaped North American trade dynamics and bolstered Canada's economic prosperity.
Despite facing skepticism and opposition, Brian Mulroney remained resolute in his conviction that free trade would unlock Canada's full potential on the world stage. This agreement paved the way for the subsequent North American Free Trade Agreement, further solidifying Canada's position in the global marketplace.
On top of that, Brian Mulroney's leadership was characterized by a determined commitment to national unity. In the face of regional tensions, he championed the cause of federalism and worked to strengthen the bonds that held Canada together. He undertook to address constitutional issues and promote unity among our provinces and territories.
Brian's legacy is also defined by his role in shaping international relations, fostering partnerships and advancing global co-operation. Notably, he championed the fight against apartheid in South Africa. He was unwavering in his conviction and rallied countries against apartheid, going as far as imposing sanctions on South Africa, even as other key allies refused to speak out. His steadfast approach gave Canada a new sense of respect and presence on the international stage.
He is also widely considered, as some have mentioned today, Canada's greenest prime minister. That is not because of his Irish roots. This is a nod to his emphasis on environmental conservation through a variety of policies and initiatives. One was the signing of the acid rain treaty with the United States in 1991, which aimed to reduce acid rain pollution and mitigate its harmful effects on ecosystems and human health in North America. Another was his advocacy for the Montreal protocol, which aimed to phase out the production and use of ozone-depleting substances.
He expanded Canada's national parks system, further enhancing conservation efforts across the country, and funded habitat restoration projects, wildlife conservation programs and community-based environmental initiatives aimed at engaging citizens in environmental protection efforts. I also want to mention that he was the first world leader to recognize the independence of Ukraine, in early December 1991.
Something that has not really been highlighted yet was his contribution to agriculture. Speaking as a former farmer and farm leader, I know several of his agricultural policies stood out for the ways they improved the lives of Canadian farmers and farming communities. His government introduced various programs aimed at stabilizing farm incomes and supporting Canadian farmers during periods of economic uncertainty. This included the establishment of income stabilization programs to provide financial assistance to farmers affected by fluctuating commodity prices and adverse weather conditions. His government also prioritized the promotion of Canadian agriculture products in international markets and invested in agricultural research and innovation to enhance the productivity, competitiveness and sustainability of Canadian agriculture.
Brian Mulroney surrounded himself with good people to ensure that he delivered results for farmers. I am reminded, a little lightheartedly, of the three Ms of Brian Mulroney's cabinet. They were MPs from the west who held various cabinet portfolios in the Mulroney government.
There was the Hon. Don Mazankowski from Vegreville, Alberta, who was the deputy prime minister of Canada and the minister of transport at the time. There was the Hon. Bill McKnight from Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, the MP for Kindersley—Lloydminster, who was the minister of defence. We could add Jack Murta to that as well. Also, my friend and colleague, the Hon. Charles Mayer, the MP for Portage—Marquette, was the minister of the Canadian Wheat Board and agriculture throughout Prime Minister Mulroney's time in office. Mr. Murta would have been a fourth M, so to speak, but they were all diligent, hard-working parliamentarians who carried the voices of their constituents to Ottawa with dedication and who supported Mr. Mulroney in his public service. It says a lot about a man that he was able to build such an effective team.
These achievements, among others, highlight Brian Mulroney's significant contributions during his time in office and beyond. Even as we mourn his loss, we honour the memory of the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, a distinguished statesman and a remarkable leader. We will not soon forget his contributions to our nation and our world.
As the Manitoba Conservative caucus chair, I offer condolences to Mila and his family. May he rest in peace.
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- Mar/19/24 9:21:27 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is my sad honour to rise today in Canada's highest democratic institution to pay respects to a great man, the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney, Canada's 18th Prime Minister.
A great man has passed. Time waits for no one. We honour him and reflect on his life and all that he has done. For many of his great accomplishments, we, a generation of Canadians, are the beneficiaries.
First and foremost, in service to his country here and elsewhere, he helped build and strengthen our nation. Dividing us was not his path. He built us up.
I recall serving his government here over three decades ago, and I will recount to members on all sides of the House what Ottawa and eastern Ontario looked like before Brian Mulroney's time as our prime minister. Buildings had been boarded up. Architectural landmarks, like the Elgin Hotel, were closed and poised for demolition. Neighbouring towns in eastern Ontario were lobbying for government jobs, because the unemployment rate was so high and people had little hope. Opening a prison meant that at least some people would get jobs. The unemployment in the area reached 12.5%. Such was the economic malaise this region faced in 1984.
To paint a clearer picture of the country at that time, government spending was out of control. The latest budget posted a massive $37-billion deficit, which is about $98 billion in today's inflated dollars, a record at the time. Inflation had only recently fallen from 12.5% with the introduction of wage and price controls imposed primarily on employees by the federal government. The Canadian dollar had fallen in value by 25% over the previous decade. Our armed forces were underfunded and demoralized, and our international commitments went unmet. We were a nation desperately in need of leadership. Nature abhors a vacuum.
Just when this country most needed a leader, a determined man stepped forward. Martin Brian Mulroney, the son of a hard-working electrician in Baie-Comeau, in Quebec, a labour lawyer and well-known business leader in Montreal, had become the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada a year earlier. He showed that he had bold plans for the country, and Canadians rewarded him with the largest majority government in Canadian history in the 1984 election. He was ambitious, he did not shy away from complex problems, and he did not worry about doing too much, because he had a lot of work to do.
One of the people who worked for him at the start of his time in government told me that they worked hard because he worked hard, and they felt that, if they did not succeed, the country was at stake. His leadership saw successes, and it saw failures. No one likes to fail, least of all those who possess ambition to do great things. Failures feel personal, but in the end they are overwhelmed by the successes. This is one of the marks of true leadership.
“Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” That is a quote from Nelson Mandela, a man whose life Brian Mulroney would change.
I recall the 1988 election, when he was campaigning on free trade. His opponent, the Right Hon. John Turner, had landed a blow during the English-language debate, and polls suddenly shifted against our direction. Undaunted, Brian Mulroney took up the fight the next day and led the campaign across the nation. He said that the fight of John Turner's life was to tear up that document, but he fight of his life was to build a country. Canadians reward leadership.
Let us celebrate the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney's life by acknowledging his successes: restarting Canada's economy; privatizing Crown corporations; rebuilding Canada's armed forces; building trade alliances that once made North America the largest trading bloc in the world; reforming a broken tax system; healing divisions in Canada's federation; indigenous advancement with the forming of Nunavut as Canada's third territory; striking environmental treaties to address acid rain in North America and to end worldwide emissions associated with the world's thinning ozone layer; leading the world in confronting South Africa's apartheid system, resulting in the freedom of one of the world's great statesmen, Nelson Mandela; standing shoulder to shoulder with Canada's allies as the world changed; and earning Canada's position on the international stage and joining our peers in organizations like the G7. Take on no small tasks, so to say.
His ministers and his caucus followed him and emulated his ambition and his work ethic. Those of us who had the privilege of working for him and his ministers felt that compelling requirement to do our utmost to get it right. Leadership is about inspiration, and the generation of Canadians whom Brian Mulroney inspired watched and learned. For a while emulating that example led this country to greatness in many ways.
Most Canadians knew him as a politician, and politics is a team sport. Our team has to win in order for us to move forward. Nevertheless, his treatment of all those contributing to Canada's public life was magnanimous. His was an example from which we have much to learn.
Let us look at the legacy of political, economic and social leaders in Canada over the decades that followed the political leadership of Brian Mulroney. So many people had a connection with him. These relationships were special to him. His kindness was legendary.
I remember seeing him at the funeral of the Hon. Jean Corbeil, one of the ministers I served. I remember the people he brought with him. Brian Mulroney said they deserved to be there because he was the leader of a special team.
Two years ago I was talking with a friend, someone who has helped me on my political path. We were comparing the qualities of leaders in Canada, and I referred to the qualities of the former prime minister. My friend retorted, “Come on; that was Mulroney,” as if it was an example that illustrates itself, kind of like drafting Wayne Gretzky in a hockey pool. He was a man who came a long way from his roots in a Quebec mill town to lead a country, and lead us well, and to change the world in a very positive way.
Today, we lament with his family and friends, but we are lucky to have had him in our midst. Now, we wish him a safe final journey in eternal rest, from a very grateful nation.
Rest in peace, Martin Brian Mulroney.
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- Mar/19/24 9:29:22 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I have had the opportunity to listen to many colleagues from all sides of the House provide commentary on one who was no doubt a great Canadian, parliamentarian and statesman. There are many wonderful words one could use to describe Brian Mulroney.
In many ways I reflect not as someone who has a personal story, of which I have heard a great many, but I reflect on what I would perceive Canadians as a whole would see: an individual who contributed immensely. We have heard reference made to acid rain, apartheid, the independence of Ukraine and so much more. All of these things, I know, have had a significant impact.
I was first elected in 1988 when Brian Mulroney was the prime minister. I remember the discussions that had taken place in the Manitoba legislature, a lot of which were not necessarily positive with respect to him. What I do know and appreciate is that leadership is demonstrated by making difficult decisions and, in many ways, by advocating. We heard a great deal about free trade. I campaigned against free trade in 1988. I heard about the issue of the GST and campaigned against it when it was introduced. However, time has shown that these are policies that continue today and have been expanded upon. I am now an advocate of the benefits of the GST and a strong advocate of the benefits of trade. The five policies I have listed have had a profoundly positive impact on Canada as a nation.
A member made reference to polls, and I believe he said that at the time Brian Mulroney left politics, the government was at around 12% in the polls. If we look today at how Canadians feel about the prime minister, it is well above 80%. I think that the more people get to know about the different things a prime minister and their office can accomplish, the more they appreciate everything that has been done.
At the end of the day, Brian Mulroney has a wonderful legacy. I want to extend not only my personal condolences but also those on behalf of the residents of Winnipeg North to Mila, the children, the grandchildren and all whose lives have been touched by him over the years.
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- Mar/19/24 9:32:25 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I am both honoured and saddened to be standing in my place today as we pay our respects and send our condolences to the family of the late Right Honourable Martin Brian Mulroney, Canada's 18th prime minister.
I was recently asked by a local journalist what words I would use to describe our former prime minister, and it was these: statesman and leader. It was that leadership and dynamism of Brian Mulroney that drew me to the Progressive Conservative Party in 1983. How many young Canadians can say they were rivetted to their television screens, watching a political convention? I was in June 1983, so please do not hold that against me.
Learning more about our leader and his background, his story really resonated with me. Here was a successful businessman and lawyer who had come from modest means, yet family was the foundation upon which he would build his future life and career. He was so proud of his upbringing and his father, a hard-working electrician employed at the iron ore mine in the small town of Baie-Comeau.
This struck me because, as a first-generation Canadian, my family came here in the 1950s with nothing more than the hope of a better future for their family and future children, family as the foundation. After arriving in Niagara Falls in March 1951, my dad landed a job at Cyanamid Canada in May that year and went on to a successful 40-year career, working as a general labourer, and then he retired as the facility's maintenance supervisor.
Simply put, my dad loved his job, and his great wish was for both me and my brother to go to school and to get a great education. The great success of Canada is the fact that if one was prepared to work hard, one could accomplish anything one set their mind to. My dad personified that statement and went on to provide everything we could have ever asked for as children and young adults.
My dad knew nothing of the operations of our political system. However, when I decided to get involved after university, he was there to support me and my local Conservative candidate and member of Parliament for Niagara Falls, who I would later go on to work for. Why would my dad do this? He knew that it was my passion and that family was our foundation.
It really is an interesting path that all of us take, which allows us to become those individuals fortunate enough to have the extreme and rare privilege of sitting in this esteemed place to represent our communities and our constituents. That path for me was forged first in 1983 and then, following university, in 1988 when I came here to Ottawa to be a political staffer for the Hon. Rob Nicholson. When I came here, I had the good fortune of establishing great friendships with a number of people, including with the member for South Shore—St. Margarets and the member for Calgary Centre.
I became involved politically at that time because change was needed, and I believed the agent of that change was Brian Mulroney, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. What an incredible time it was to be in Ottawa, as the Conservative government under the leadership of Brian Mulroney tackled issues head-on, be it standing against racist policies like apartheid, advocating for the release of Nelson Mandela, achieving the acid rain agreement or establishing free trade with our largest trading partner, the United States.
Former Prime Minister Mulroney did what he always felt was right and was in the best interests of all Canadians. He did so because he built his success and his drive on the foundation of family: his loving wife Mila, and his children, Caroline, Ben, Mark and Nicolas.
Recently, in a CTV interview, the late Prime Minister Mulroney's official photographer, Bill McCarthy, relayed the story of how family was incredibly important to him, and he told the photographer, “Billy, I'm going to tell you something right now: there's nothing more important in your life than your family.”
I want to end on a quote from the former prime minister when asked what leadership was and what it entailed. In 2004, he said, “Leadership is the process, not only of foreseeing the need for change, but of making the case for change. Leadership does not consist of imposing unpopular ideas on the public, but of making unpopular ideas acceptable to the nation.”
Brian Mulroney was a leader, and he will be greatly missed. My deepest condolences to his wife Mila, and to his beloved children and family.
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- Mar/19/24 9:37:31 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is a privilege to rise to pay tribute to the life and legacy of Canada's 18th Prime Minister, the Right Hon. Brian Mulroney.
At the outset, I would like to extend my condolences to his wife, Mila, as well as to his children, his grandchildren and the entire Mulroney family.
Although I did not have the privilege of personally knowing Brian Mulroney, I have always admired and appreciated the tremendous statesmanship and leadership he provided during the nine years he served as our prime minister. To understand the many achievements and accomplishments of Brian Mulroney, it is important to understand that, when he was elected in 1984 with the second largest majority government in Canadian history, save for John Diefenbaker's landslide win in 1958, he inherited very difficult circumstances. They were difficult economic circumstances, with double-digit inflation, double-digit unemployment and interest rates that were north of 20%. It was also a difficult fiscal situation, with the fiscal cupboard being bare.
Notwithstanding those challenges, he got to work to implement many bold policies, some of which were controversial, many of which were transformational and, with the benefit of history, have proven to have been for the benefit of Canada on the whole.
It should be further noted that, when Brian Mulroney was first elected, the unity of the country was very much imperiled. There was great division across the land. It was Brian Mulroney who spoke about bringing Quebec back into the constitutional fold with honour and enthusiasm.
Although he, in the end, did not succeed, he must be credited for the tremendous leadership and courage he demonstrated, at considerable political cost to himself and his party, but it was for the betterment of strengthening the unity of Canada. That was his objective, and he brought Canadians together. He brought Albertans and Quebeckers together in 1984, and again in 1988, when he made history by being the only Conservative to win a back-to-back majority government, save for Sir John A. Macdonald.
When Brian Mulroney was elected in 1984, speaking as an Alberta MP, Alberta was reeling. Alberta had been devastated as a result of the national energy program, which had devastated Alberta's economy and had driven many Albertans to unemployment and bankruptcy.
Brian Mulroney recognized the difficulty Alberta faced, and his government moved expeditiously, in difficult circumstances, to abolish the national energy program, as well as the petroleum and gas revenue tax, the PGRT, which was a punitive tax. However, it was not just in the context of energy policy that Alberta benefited from Brian Mulroney. His government also abolished the Foreign Investment Review Agency, a board whose decisions often imperiled the flow of investment to Alberta and the west.
Brian Mulroney negotiated the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement, which was a win for Canada, but which was very much in Alberta's economic interest. Indeed, free trade continues to be in Alberta's economic interest. While Brian Mulroney was not always popular in Alberta, he demonstrated, or history has demonstrated, rather, that Brian Mulroney consistently had Albertans' backs. He delivered for Alberta.
While much has been spoken this evening about some of his obvious important achievements, including negotiating the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement and the acid rain treaty with the United States, standing up to apartheid and strengthening our most important bilateral relationship, that being with the United States, there are other areas he deserves great credit for that he often has not received credit for.
One example is that it was the Mulroney government that restored fiscal responsibility to Ottawa. When Brian Mulroney was elected, he inherited a deficit that, in today's terms, would be approaching $100 billion. That is a large deficit even by the current Liberal government's standards. It has exceeded deficits on that scale, but I digress.
The Mulroney government faced a bloated federal government and program spending that was being increased on an unsustainable basis annually. Does that sound familiar? The Mulroney government responded by initiating policies to reduce the size and scope of government to get spending under control. Indeed, on an incremental and responsible but significant basis, annual program spending growth was substantially reduced in the neighbourhood of 70%. Consequently, what was a very large operating deficit turned into an operating surplus. In short, the Mulroney government fixed Canada's budget.
It is true that Jean Chrétien did inherit a deficit from the Mulroney government, but it was because of the costs associated with servicing that debt, debt that had been accumulated by the previous Trudeau government and not the Conservative Mulroney government.
Of course, Brian Mulroney's government deserves significant credit for contributing in a major way to building Canada's modern economy through the policy of free trade, yes, but also through a series of free market policies, including a comprehensive program around privatization, deregulation and tax reform. Together, these policies contributed over the long term to growth and prosperity and to the enhancement of Canada's competitiveness.
I could go on with a long list of the many other achievements of Brian Mulroney and his government over nine years, but time does not allow it. However, what these achievements I have highlighted and my colleagues have highlighted over this evening demonstrate is that Brian Mulroney was a transformative prime minister. He was a consequential prime minister. He will go down as one Canada's greatest prime ministers, and Canada is better off because of his leadership.
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