Mr. Speaker, Mr. Prime Minister, honourable senators and members of the House of Commons, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of all here present today, I wish to thank you, Mr. Prime Minister for your thoughtful and generous address to this joint session of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada.
As you have said, Mr. Prime Minister, Canada and the United Kingdom share a long history of friendship and solidarity.
Mr. Prime Minister, your current visit to our Parliament reaffirms the special relation existing between our two countries.
While the Thames River locates the Parliament of Westminster, the juncture of the Ottawa and Rideau Rivers locate the Parliament of Canada. For a long time, as you have indicated, these rivers carried timber to the ships bound for Great Britain, and those earliest commercial relations that have blossomed over the century.
Today, the United Kingdom is Canada's most important trading partner in the European Union. It is also our second largest source of, and destination for, foreign direct investment in the world.
The exchange of goods across the Atlantic also extends to human capital. Every year, thousands of young Canadians travel to the United Kingdom to study at your many prestigious universities. Likewise, each year Canadian schools have the pleasure of welcoming eager young minds from the United Kingdom. As with our economic exchanges, the flow of human capital between our countries strengthens and enriches the ties between our peoples.
The common values, as you have mentioned, Mr. Prime Minister, that our countries promote are also apparent on the international stage. Working together in the Commonwealth, NATO and at the United Nations, our countries stand up for democracy, human rights and the rule of law. These values have guarded our participation in the contact group on Libya, and, of course, these are the values that our countries continue to promote in Afghanistan.
Canadians have the deepest respect and admiration for the efforts and the sacrifices that the brave men and women in your armed forces have made in pursuit of these principles.
On a lighter note, Prime Minister Cameron, you and Prime Minister Harper have a unique commonality in that you each have acquired new feline assistance in your respective official residences. We understand that the furry occupant of 10 Downing Street is called Larry. For our part, Canadians recently came up with the name Stanley for the furry resident at 24 Sussex Drive. Perhaps Larry and Stanley are even related.
Prime Minister Cameron, it has been an honour to have heard your words today. So, on behalf of all those gathered here and those who have been watching at home, allow me to thank you for your presence in our Parliament and to wish you fruitful and successful discussions during your stay here in Canada.
[Applause]