Mr. Speaker, on behalf of all members of the Bloc Québécois caucus, I want to congratulate you on being elected to the prestigious office of Speaker of the House of Commons. I also want to pay respect to the member for Don Valley East, the member for Brome—Missisquoi and the member for Simcoe North for putting their names forward. That is always touching to see.
On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I would also like to express our respect and compassion for our colleague, the hon. member for Ottawa—Vanier, who worked hard in his bid for the position of Speaker and who is now waging his own serious battle. I want our esteemed colleague to know that he has our full support.
Mr. Speaker, I assure you that you will have our full co-operation in upholding our democracy and having meaningful, respectful debates in the House. The House can also count on us to work diligently to protect and promote the interests, rights, and privileges of all the voters who put their trust in us. We are excited and hopeful to hear you talk about meaningful, respectful debate. You can count on our co-operation.