Francis Scarpaleggia
Francis Scarpaleggia
Member of Parliament for Lac-Saint-Louis
Speech: Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
September 15, 2022

Mr. Speaker, I listened to almost all the speeches today, whether from here in my seat in this House of Parliament or behind the curtain when I had to step out. I found so many of the speeches erudite and touching.

I learned about history. I learned about the history of our great nation. I learned about the history of democracy. I learned about the history of the Commonwealth. I shared in the wisdom of the words of Queen Elizabeth II that were quoted by different members. I also learned about regional histories, about parts of this country where Loyalists settled. I learned about their attachment to the monarchy, the values that the monarchy represented to them and the values that they brought to this great country of ours.

We also heard many personal stories.

These were stories of ordinary life, stories told by people, by individuals, not about major events but about things they care about.

I heard many stories told by individual MPs about their brushes with the Queen, with royal visits, with meeting the Queen, and of course we have all read stories like the one that was repeated today and I read in The Globe and Mail last week. It was about Catherine Clark and how she knew she could not leave a reception until the Queen left, and how they marched off together, arm in arm. It is a very touching story that, no doubt, is extremely dear to Ms. Clark.

I also read, in the paper, recollections and anecdotes from Prime Minister Mulroney, who spoke about how he spent a very long stretch with the Queen around a very informal lunch at 24 Sussex. How wonderful that memory must be for Mr. Mulroney and his wife Mila.

Of course, we all know that the Queen had a soft spot for Prime Minister Chrétien. We could see it, in fact, on her face. Whenever we see a photo of the Queen meeting Mr. Chrétien, she is beaming. He was no doubt one of her favourite people in the world.

Like all, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is the only monarch I have known. She has been a constant for me as she has been for countless others. She represents, and this has been mentioned many times in speeches, the bedrock of our constitutional democracy. She represents the constancy of our democracy. Like all here in the House, I deeply appreciate our constitutional democracy. I appreciate its separation of the role of head of state from that of head of government, which provides us with a sense, as has been said by so many, that the institutions are much greater than those who may occupy those institutions at any one period of time, and that our democracy is much stronger than the partisan conflicts that arise from time to time, which, of course, are part of democracy. We have the sense that there is something overarching these political debates and these partisan debates.

I also appreciate, as I am sure so many others in the House do, that Canada, and we cannot separate the history of the Crown from the history of Canada, was not born of violence and revolution. Yes, there has been violence in our past and there has been oppression. These past wrongs need to be addressed, but essentially Canada evolved. It adapted.

That capacity to adapt, that ethic of adapting rather than pushing for violent breaks with the past, I believe, has a lot to do with the Crown and the wisdom of the Crown. We saw this, in fact. It is very important to understand that while Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II did not have legislative power, military power or the power of financial markets, she had the power of moral suasion, the power of the wisdom that she acquired over a lifetime.

I was reading in the paper, related by former prime minister Brian Mulroney, how she supported his policy to end apartheid. As we know, Prime Minister Thatcher was not on the same side as Mr. Mulroney in this historical initiative. The Queen offered her wisdom to Mr. Mulroney and supported him in his quest to end apartheid. We also heard about how the Quebec Act allowed for the peaceful evolution of our nation, a peaceful evolution that respected people’s rights. The Crown has been very instrumental in this capacity of our democracy to adapt peacefully.

This goes back to my point, which I just mentioned, that we have heard a lot in the speeches about how the Queen must have so many stories. I know what people mean by that and I revel in that thought, but it is more than stories. She has been more than an observer in history because she has had access to first-hand knowledge and information, intelligence, if we want to call it that. She would have consulted and been consulted by those making very important decisions, so she has been more than an observer. She has been an actor, an actor without the power that we associate with political power but an actor with the power of persuasion, and that is very important. That has been very important in the evolution of our country and the evolution of the Commonwealth.

Of course, in addition to all of this, Her Majesty the Queen embodied certain values and virtues that we can call personal values and virtues, the values of graciousness and kindness, virtues that, quite frankly, are still relevant today and can continue to inform us and produce a more harmonious world, including more harmonious politics.

She was a bedrock presence in our lives and we will miss her. I would like to extend my sincerest condolences to all members of the royal family, all the people of Britain and all those around the world who had an emotional connection with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

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