Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
First of all, I would like to welcome to the committee my colleague from Beauharnois—Salaberry, Ms. Claude DeBellefeuille, who is replacing Ms. Picard. Ms. Picard served on this committee for many years and decided not to seek another term.
On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I would like to congratulate you on your election, Mr. Chairman. Earlier, I jokingly said in English that you were well prepped to take on your duties as chair because you had five or six months to read the Standing Orders.
Seriously, though, I want to reassure all of my colleagues that I intend to co-operate with this committee that I have served on since 2000 in the hope that it will recapture the spirit that prevailed prior to last year, which as I'm sure we all agree, was very raucous. The past is the past. As my mother always said to me, there is no use crying over split milk. It's time to look ahead to the future.
Regardless, Mr. Chairman, if you scrupulously abide by the Standing Order of the House which govern our proceedings, if you act in a non-partisan, open manner—and we are confident that you will—, everything should go smoothly.
Again, congratulations and rest assured that I will cooperate with you to the fullest.