Mr. Speaker, the opposition should be very careful when it attacks the past of a man who has dedicated more than 30 years of his life to politics and by whom the interests of Quebec and Canada were well served.
The people in the Bloc Quebecois and the Parti Quebecois and their separatist leaders have made a habit of attacking the person of the Prime Minister instead of sticking to the issues. They obviously have no more arguments of substance to prove that separation would be a good thing, so now they attack personalities. There is no doubt that the federation has evolved in a positive way in recent years.
The hon. member for Roberval says it is meaningless. Is it meaningless to acknowledge that the quiet revolution took place in Quebec within the federation, within Canada?
Is it meaningless to acknowledge that Quebec's language rights were asserted, protected and augmented in recent years within Quebec and Canada? Is it meaningless to point out that Quebec industrialists have managed to win back Quebec's economy and play a far more important role than they did 20, 25 or 30 years ago, in Quebec and Canada?