Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of the NDP caucus to pay tribute to Alexa McDonough who last week stepped down as leader of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party. Alexa's many achievements in Nova Scotia remind us of the way our party has been a path breaking party in welcoming women to positions of leadership.
In 1932 Agnes Macphail, who in 1921 was the first woman to be elected to Parliament, joined the CCF. In 1951, Thérèse Casgrain was elected to lead the CCF in Quebec and even though she did not win a seat she became the first woman to lead a provincial party in Canada.
One year after her election as party leader in 1980, Alexa herself became the first woman to lead a party in a legislative assembly. My colleague, the leader of the NDP, the hon. member for Yukon, presently completed this string of firsts by becoming the first woman to win the leadership of a federal party in 1989.
We thank Alexa for 14 years of dedication to fighting the good fight for social justice in Canada, a fight that needs to be fought the world over in this era of unrestrained globalization. We acknowledge the debt we all owe to the distinguished and committed Canadian women who have given leadership to our movement and made Canadian history at the same time.