Mr. Speaker, I was saddened last weekend to hear of the passing of one of Canada's great parliamentarians, the Hon. Michael Starr.
Mr. Starr represented part of my riding and I met with him on a number of occasions.
This feisty Ukrainian was first elected to the House on May 26, 1952.
Mr. Starr's compassion for the underdog elevated him to the position of Minister of Labour from 1957 to 1963. He later became interim leader for the opposition during the Diefenbaker years.
The appointment of Mr. Starr as Minister of Labour made him the first Canadian of Ukrainian descent to be appointed to the federal cabinet.
I can tell the House that I have run into a lot of his supporters on my rounds, and they all have a story to tell. I think the most interesting was when Mr. Starr went down to the Unemployment Insurance Commission and got in line with a lot of GM workers to see what it would be like. In short order he bellowed out from the end of the line that if it did not start moving, somebody would lose their job.