Hon. members, I beg to return my humble acknowledgements to the House for the great honour you have been pleased to confer upon me in choosing me to be your Speaker.
With those historic words, which are very historic because they have been used so often, I want to say how much I appreciate the kind support of all hon. members throughout the period from election day on November 27 to today.
Over the past two months, I have had the opportunity to speak to a number of members by phone or in person. It was a great experience to discuss the business of this House with you. It was a pleasure for me to have the opportunity to speak with my colleagues in the House before, during and after the election.
I have appreciated very much your kind words and your support today in the election. I am very grateful that you have chosen me to be the Speaker of the House.
I also want to express my thanks to the electors of Kingston and the Islands who have on four occasions chosen me to be their representative in the House.
It is a great honour to be a member of parliament. Those of you who are new in the House have now realized, I am sure, what a great experience it is. I well remember my first day in the House in 1988 when Mr. Speaker Fraser was elected to be the Speaker of the House, on one ballot, frankly.
I realized then, sitting in my seat, that the House was complete because we had chosen a Speaker and we were then a House complete and ready to act as the House of Commons, which of course the law requires the House to do. We have now done it.
Thank you for your support.
I also wish to express my gratitude to the constituents of Kingston and the Islands for all they have done for me over the years I have represented them here in the House.
As many of you will discover, your constituents will be very kind to you. You will have wonderful interaction with them. You will get a lot of encouragement in all that you do in the House, of course assuming it is reasonable. You will also enjoy interaction on a regular basis by phone and by correspondence. In particular, I hope new members will find the experience rich and rewarding. I certainly have in my 12 years and I continue to find it so.
I would like to pass on my gratitude to my family, who have worked for me in election campaigns in Kingston for the last 12 years. A number of them are here today. Perhaps you would permit me to indicate those who are here. My mother, Peg Milliken, is sitting in the gallery. With her are my sister Amanda and her husband Marc; my brother Bill and his wife Pat; my sister Catherine and her son Ben McIlquham; and my dad, John Milliken.