Mr. Speaker, allow me, on behalf of myself and my colleagues in the Bloc Quebecois, to offer our sincere condolences to the family and friends of a great parliamentarian, Lucien Lamoureux, who passed away on July 16 at the age of 77.
Mr. Lamoureux was born in Ottawa in 1920. He studied philosophy at the University of Ottawa and went on to earn a law degree from Osgoode Hall in Toronto in 1945. His first experience in the House of Commons was as assistant to Lionel Chevrier when he was a minister in the governments of Mackenzie King and Louis St-Laurent. In 1954, Mr. Lamoureux left Parliament Hill to practice law in Cornwall.
He returned to the House of Commons in 1962 as the Liberal member representing the people of Stormont—Dundas. He was re-elected in 1963 and appointed Deputy Speaker. Following the 1965 election, he became Speaker of the House and remained so until his retirement from politics in 1974.
During that time, he presided over 3,010 days of debate. He left his own mark on the Chair, because, in order to ensure the impartiality of the position of Speaker, he ran as an independent in the elections of 1968 and 1972 seeking the support of all parties. Both times he was re-elected with a strong majority.
In September 1974, he gave up active political life. He was appointed Canada's ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg, a position he held until 1980. From 1980 to 1985, he served as ambassador to Portugal. After his retirement from public life, in 1985, he settled in Belgium.
Recently, Mr. Lamoureux was named an Officer of the Order of Canada, an honour he was to receive at the end of July.
Mr. Lamoureux spent many years of his life in the service of his fellow citizens and of this place of assembly.
His family and friends should be proud of his accomplishments during his career. It is an honour for me as a parliamentarian to pay tribute to this man who marked the history of the House of Commons.