Mr. Speaker, my colleagues in the Liberal Party and in the House of Commons heard the sad news about the passing of our dear friend Diane Marleau, who was the member of Parliament for Sudbury for nearly 20 years and a minister in the Right Honourable Jean Chrétien's government for a number of years.
I had the pleasure of knowing and working with Diane Marleau. Her death has taken away a vibrant, engaged, dedicated and committed woman of great valour and great charm. She was a fighter for the causes that matter: for her home community, for jobs, justice, health care and for equal rights for all Canadians.
It is a difficult loss for her family and for all those who, like me, had the pleasure of working with Diane.
Today, and in the weeks to come, we will celebrate the life of a woman who was full of life and courage, a great Franco-Ontarian and Canadian. We will commit to continuing the good fight she so boldly fought.