Mr. Speaker, I pleased to say a few words about Mr. Rocheleau on behalf of the Progressive Conservative Party. While I did not have the opportunity to work within the same party with him, I can say he deserved our full respect.
I am not going to review his career, because my colleagues speaking before me have so. What struck me especially about him was his involvement, at a very early age, in the social and economic activities of his region.
At 27 or 28, he was I believe the chairman of the Association des hommes d'affaires. This was an indication of his passion in the defence of the interests of his region.
He then became involved at various levels of government, in Quebec City, among other places, and then in Ottawa. His involvement was marked by the effectiveness of his interventions. People who had dealings with him when we were in government found his work to always be constructive.
On behalf of the Progressive Conservative Party I extend my condolences to his family and hope that Mr. Rocheleau will agree to pass on to us from above some of his fine qualities. What struck me most about him, obviously, was his huge disappointment—it was existential—at the failure of the Meech Lake accord. I think all Quebeckers working to bring about national reconciliation at the time were struck by the decision Mr. Rocheleau made. I think we could learn something from it for future use.