SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Mr. Pat Kelly (Calgary Rocky Ridge, CPC)

Mar/19/24 7:57:04 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, first, let me add my deepest condolences to Mila, Caroline, Ben, Nicolas, Mark and the 16 Mulroney grandchildren on behalf of my own family, the people of Calgary Rocky Ridge, and on behalf of myself, a Mulroney-era Conservative activist. My formative years are bound up in the years when Brian Mulroney was prime minister, and it was during that time that I first became a Conservative political activist, which is something I have not stopped since that time. It is impossible to measure the impact of Brian Mulroney's life and legacy without first saying a few words about Canada in 1984. In 1984, Canada was broken. It was, quite literally, broke. Canada was kiting interest payments on the national debt like an insolvent debtor using one credit card to pay the interest on another. Interest payments from the previous government's debt were 38% of government expenditure. Foreign investment was explicitly discouraged as a matter of national policy, and that was in favour of hundreds of money-losing taxpayer-funded Crown corporations. Canada was not trusted by our most important allies, and the disastrous national energy program had destroyed the Alberta economy. Inflation, interest rates and unemployment were in the double digits. That was the state of the country that Brian Mulroney was elected to lead. What followed was a series of reforms and policy reversals that saved this country from the downward spiral that had been set in motion by the government that had come before it. Brian Mulroney became prime minister during a dangerous final peak in the Cold War when the increasingly unstable Soviet Union was led by the government of Konstantin Chernenko, who was the third, old, sick, hardline communist leader, who in his many years was running a dangerous, potentially apocalyptic arms race with the west. It was during this critical, frightening time that Brian Mulroney firmly replanted Canada in the western camp with countries that shared Canada's values, like democracy, pluralism and the rule of law. This was in sharp contrast to a previous prime minister who seemed more comfortable sucking up to dictators of the Soviet bloc, like Honecker, Ceausescu and Castro rather than leaders of the free world. It was perhaps in global affairs where Brian Mulroney's star shone the brightest. He reopened Canada to business, and before the end of his first Parliament, he negotiated the free trade deal with the United States, ushering in the era of prosperity that followed. He convinced Ronald Reagan to expend Reagan's own domestic political capital so that Canada could have an acid rain treaty. He was an indispensable ally in forcing an end to the hateful apartheid system in South Africa. By the time of his retirement, he was a global leader with easy and productive relationships with the giants of his time: François Mitterrand, Helmut Kohl, Reagan, Bush and Thatcher. All of those people took his calls any time. However, he did not just spend his time on the phone talking with world leaders. He always remained grounded to his family, his friends, his caucus and his party, and his use of the telephone was truly legendary. I was a very young political activist in that time. People knew that if there was a pressing issue, even right down to local electoral district politics, he was always a phone call away, not because he was a micromanager, not because he wanted to stick his leadership's nose into business, but because he cared so much and just wanted to help, and he made himself available to people. His humanity, his compassion and his good humour inspired intense loyalty. I have been told by many who were in his caucus in those years that even when his government was at 12% in the polls, MPs could not wait for Wednesday morning to get together and to share in the camaraderie and the team work at that time and to hear his pep talk. However, all the changes and reforms that Brian Mulroney undertook in his time were met with intense, vitriolic, bitter resistance. The Liberals and the NDP of the time viciously opposed free trade. They accused Brian Mulroney of outright disloyalty to Canada. He was accused of selling out Canada to the Americans, repeatedly, by his opponents on the left. For some western Canadians, the changes that he brought did not come quick enough. He could not undo the damage of the previous government quickly enough for some, despite fiscal reform, abolishing the national energy program and mass privatization of state-owned enterprises. Many Quebeckers turned their backs on Brian Mulroney over the failure of the Meech Lake accord. People now have forgotten the depths of the deeply personal and bitter opposition that Mulroney faced, especially during his second Parliament, from 1988 to 1993. Nobody would have blamed Brian Mulroney if he gave up on national affairs, but that was not his way. He could have just walked away. He could have stopped being a presence in the lives of so many political activists and stopped making all those phone calls, but he did not do that. His determination in forging a better Canada was matched by his equanimity in the face of tremendous setbacks in opposition. I am so glad that he lived long enough to see the undeniable proof of his legacy as a great world leader and a transformational Canadian prime minister whose legacy endures. Rest well, Brian Mulroney, with a grateful nation's thanks. Posterity is already much kinder to him than his contemporaries were.

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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Hon. Andrew Scheer (Regina—Qu'Appelle, CPC)

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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Context: House Hansard - 291 - Mar/19/24

Mr. Larry Maguire (Brandon—Souris, CPC)

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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