Mr. Speaker, apologies to my friend across the way for interrupting his speech. It was my intention to have it otherwise, but the pressing clock requires me to rise now.
I am rising on a point of order resulting from a very disturbing event that took place this very afternoon. I will be asking for unanimous consent to table a document at the end of remarks to the House.
At 12:53 p.m. today, Conservative Senator Jean-Guy Dagenais circulated a letter to all members of Parliament, senators and their staff. The letter was addressed to the MP for Terrebonne—Blainville. The letter was offensive to the point that I rise today in the House.
Senator Dagenais was rejected by voters in the 2011 election, and then appointed by the Prime Minister to the Senate, which is unelected, unaccountable and under investigation. From atop his pedestal of legitimacy, this man used his Senate office, title and taxpayers' money to make vicious and personal attacks against the duly elected member for Terrebonne—Blainville.
The letter in question attacks the very legitimacy of a sitting member of Parliament. The attack is paternalistic, childish, condescending and frankly misogynistic.
This man is a federal legislator, but not because he was elected by voters. He holds this position simply because he was a Conservative Party of Canada crony.
The timing of this attack could not be worse. Today, of all days, the tone deafness of Senator Dagenais's actions are absolutely stupefying.
We often lament the lack of participation of young Canadians, and in particular young women, in the democratic process. We are all aware of the effort to bring those voices into our Parliament. We will be looking more closely at this matter over the weekend and I expect that you, Mr. Speaker, will be hearing about this again from us when the House resumes on Monday.
I will now ask for the unanimous consent of the House and my colleagues to table the letter that was issued by their Conservative senator just this very afternoon in the attack on the member from Terrebonne—Blainville.