Mr. Speaker, I certainly want to follow and echo the comments made by the member for Toronto Centre.
Gib served in this House for exactly 8,100 days. Any of us who have the opportunity to be elected and sit in this House would see it as quite an achievement to reach that level. He served as the member of Parliament for St. Catharines from 1974 to 1979, one of 17 proud Canadians to have represented St. Catharines since Confederation.
While politics certainly was Mr. Parent's passion, teaching was his love. In 1996 he launched the Teachers Institute on Canadian Parliamentary Democracy, a professional development opportunity that brings 70 teachers from across the country to the capital each year for an insider's view on how Parliament works.
I thought I would share with the House a short story about a student, actually a very close friend of mine, Mr. Wayne Schmidt. He was a student of Mr. Parent's. As a vice-principal in the public school board at Thorold, Mr. Parent reached out to Wayne, not in a mean way, not in a direct way that would have him think anything less of himself, but in a way that allowed him to think more clearly about the future that he wanted to lead and the importance of his education, of community-mindedness and of community spirit.
I hear from Wayne on a regular basis about how he used to knock on doors for Gib just because of the commitment that he made to him, as an educator and as a friend, to help him along not only with his education but also with his steps in life. That is a strong testament for any individual who aspires to leadership. Wayne used to vote for Gib in that party; thankfully he has now converted, but nonetheless he continues to speak highly of Mr. Parent and the impact Gib had on him.
When we look at his political focus, he certainly did lose an election in 1984, but came back that much stronger in 1988 and was returned to this House. He won his seat back, showing the commitment he had to his community and what it meant to him.
I want to echo somewhat the comments from the member for Toronto Centre when he spoke about the fact that Gib was elected as Speaker of the House. What is interesting is that in 1993 there was a majority led by former Prime Minister Chrétien, who did have his choice for who he believed should be the Speaker at that time. Mr. Gauthier, a member at the time, was the former prime minister's choice, but Gib, after thoughtful reflection, determined that he would put his name forward. Two members who sit on this side of the House now, the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and our current House leader, and this will speak to the type of camaraderie that this side of the House would like to continue to work by, assisted Mr. Parent in his endeavour to become Speaker of the House.
That evening it took a long time for Mr. Parent to actually become the Speaker. Ironically, it was a tie vote on the second-last ballot. A number of members in the House had assumed that this was the final ballot and that they could leave. One of the members of the former Reform Party, Mr. Ray Speaker, was actually getting his hair cut at the time. He saw on TV that it was a tie. He was only halfway through getting his hair cut, and he ripped off the cover and stormed back into the House. Of course, as legend would have it, it was the first time ever that a fellow by the name of Speaker actually determined who the next Speaker would be.
One further thought I would leave the House with is one that Gib Parent made when he became the Speaker. He pledged his best efforts to ensure that MPs would comport themselves with dignity, respect and civility in the strenuous debates that were sure to follow, considering the potentially intractable positions represented in the 35th Parliament.
I would suggest that those words for the 35th Parliament are just as needed, just as ready, and just able for us to follow here in the 40th Parliament.