Colleagues, the hallmarks of the Senate as an institution are its spirit of collegiality and collaboration and a time-honoured respect for the integrity of each of us. It is a political forum that fosters honest discussion of the critical issues facing our country, while contributing a degree of humanity to our political environment.

The beauty of our democracy resides in the diversity of conflicting and opposing opinions that it engenders, and how easily we are able to express these opinions and change them. That is a tribute to our capacity for self-governance and our commitment to a process of improvement.

I want to take this time to acknowledge the strong feelings expressed by my colleagues regarding the sacred nature of opinion pieces in the press. Rules and procedures are not static; they can evolve over time when circumstances necessitate change. I, personally, am committed to ensuring that views pertaining to this issue are heard and considered at the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration. I want all senators to feel at ease to express their views and disagreements with respect to processes that exist within the Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration Committee’s mandate.

As the chair of the committee, I feel compelled to clearly express that we are taking all of your feedback with careful consideration. More importantly, I wish to uphold this tradition of collegiality and respect by expressing regrets personally to my colleague Senator Plett for the unfortunate turn of events that resulted in your opinion piece in The Hill Times being modified without your consent or knowledge. I sympathize with the situation you have been placed in following the Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration Committee’s procedure.

Senator Plett and I had an engaging and constructive conversation on this issue, and we were able to settle our differences. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me, Senator Plett. I’m hoping we will continue this long tradition of collegiality, collaboration and respect of integrity that is unique to the Senate, and that we continue to serve Canadians in the best way we know how, striving to find creative solutions and engage in constructive dialogue. Thank you, colleagues, for your attention.