Honourable senators, it’s that time of year, finally.

In recent months, we have all worked together to achieve significant progress on key government legislation. This week alone, 11 government bills will have received Royal Assent. That includes important pieces of legislation ranging from measures to make life more affordable to Canadians to ones advancing reconciliation. With the passage of Bill C-13, we have achieved the most substantive update to the Official Languages Act in more than 50 years. With Bill C-41, we have facilitated humanitarian aid in Afghanistan as well as other places under terrorist control. With Bill S-8, we have banned sanctioned foreign nationals from Canada, notably ensuring that individuals and entities sanctioned in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are inadmissible to Canada.

The Senate has also strengthened legislation with amendments that have followed from in-depth study at committee and in the chamber. Although not all Senate amendments were supported by our elected colleagues in the other place, many have now been solidified in law. For example, Bill C-18, known as the online news act, will shortly receive Royal Assent with key Senate improvements. Canadian journalism will now have much-needed support with the creation of a framework for digital platforms to enter into voluntary commercial agreements with the news organizations whose content is posted on their sites.

The Senate also strengthened Bill C-9, which replaces the process through which the conduct of federally appointed judges is reviewed by the Canadian Judicial Council. This law establishes a new process for reviewing allegations of misconduct in cases that do not warrant a judge’s removal from office.

I have no doubt that senators will continue to study bills with passion and expertise when the Senate resumes its sitting in the fall.

To my colleague in the GRO, Senator LaBoucane-Benson, Patti, I owe you a huge debt of gratitude for playing double duty these past few weeks. You took on the role of legislative deputy with aplomb and enthusiasm in May while continuing to do your fabulous work as government liaison. Your skill is obvious, and your dedication is, without exception, unparalleled. Your friendship is really appreciated. Thank you.

To our small but mighty team in the Government Representative Office: The long hours that you spend conducting research, giving advice and doing advocacy work on a wide range of subjects are essential to our team.

I would like to pay special tribute to Ginette Tremblay from Grandpré, our director of operations, who will be taking a well‑deserved retirement at the end of the month, after a long career in the public service.

Ginette joined my office when I was first appointed to the Senate in 2016. The learning curve was steep, but thanks to Ginette and her experience, dedication and wisdom, I quickly became comfortable in my new role as senator.

Thank you so much, Ginette.

To our Speaker, dear Raymonde, I want to once again congratulate you on your new responsibilities. It was a bittersweet moment when you left our GRO team after three years of commitment and support as the legislative coordinator. Your spirit of cooperation, determination, diplomacy and friendship will be very useful in your new role as Speaker of the Senate. Thank you so much.

To my colleagues in leadership — Don Plett, Raymonde Saint‑Germain, Jane Cordy, Scott Tannas — we didn’t always agree on which bills should be prioritized and at what pace we should advance them, but the record shows clearly that we managed to move important parliamentary business forward. We did so because we worked collaboratively in the interests of Canadians — each and every one of you, and your teams that support you. I’m very grateful to you all. Thank you.

I want to extend my sincere thanks to the clerks, pages, interpreters, reporters, client service officers, Senate Administration staff and Parliamentary Protective Service officers for your various roles in making this chamber and our committees run smoothly.

To all senators and everyone working behind the scenes to keep the Senate operating, and to your families who support you, I wish you a wonderful summer with your family members, friends and everyone you hold dear.

Finally, to my dear wife, Nancy, who has been so patient with me through the long hours that I spent in the Senate this spring and during the many years I have been here, I say thank you. I recall that when George Furey swore me in, along with Marie‑Françoise Mégie, he made a point of underlining the burden that this job puts on partners and spouses. I know it’s true for each and every one of you. It has been true in my family as well. Nancy, I couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you very much.

Thank you all very much.

Honourable senators, you all know I don’t like making long speeches, so I will be brief.

I’m not quite as enthusiastic about some of the legislation that we passed as my colleague Senator Gold is, but nevertheless, I believe we have done our job as an official opposition, and I am proud of that. I am certainly proud of my team and all of my colleagues for the tremendous work they have done. Our group is getting smaller, but our spirit and our heart are big, so we will continue to do that.

First, I want to wish all of you a wonderful, relaxing summer. Have an enjoyable time. I’m not going to list all the ones Senator Gold did, because he already did. I will just say to all of those whom he mentioned, “me too.”

However, I will say to Senator Gold, Senator Saint-Germain, Senator Cordy and Senator Tannas that it’s a pleasure — most of the time — working with all of you. I do agree with Senator Gold that we have had a lot of good meetings, and in politics, you simply don’t win all the battles. You try to win the war. We will continue to do that to the best of our ability.

I want to thank the staff in my office and the staff in all of the senators’ offices.

I also want to wish each and every senator a great summer. As I have said many times before, I am an opinionated person. I have my opinions, but I want everybody to know that I fully respect everybody else’s opinions in this chamber. It’s great that we can have the conversations that we have. We can vote in our democracy as we see fit or as we have been whipped to do. Nevertheless, there have been some challenges, but I’m looking forward to better days.

I want to truly wish everybody a great, relaxing summer. I know we’re not allowed to use props, but I can get away with it before the Speaker cuts me off. Senator Gignac, I will use these this weekend. Thank you very much. To all of my other colleagues, God bless. Have a great summer. Thank you.

Colleagues, this is my favourite time of year because it is the only time I see Marc Gold, Don Plett, Scott Tannas, Jane Cordy and myself smiling at the same time. Nevertheless, this is a time when we must continue to negotiate and reach agreements.

I very much enjoy negotiating and collaborating with my esteemed colleagues in the best interest of all groups and, most importantly, in Canadians’ best interest. Like my colleagues, I would note that this is a time to take stock of what we have accomplished under sometimes challenging conditions. I believe we have done our work with skill, honesty, dedication and diligence.

Like Senators Gold and Plett, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who make our work possible. That includes the Senate Administration, the team here in the chamber, the Usher of the Black Rod, the support staff, the officers responsible for our security, the pages, our office staff and everyone we collaborate with. Let us not forget our interpreters, who enable us to understand one another, who understand us very well and who even improve on what we say by taking out some of the words.

Always in my thoughts are our colleagues, both present and absent, who are going through tough times because of their health or family issues. I hope that the break will do you good and that we will have the pleasure of being together again in September.

With fondness, I want to recognize a colleague who just voted for the last time in this chamber. He has decided to resign from the Senate after nearly seven years of distinguished service, including four years as Chair of our Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration. I am talking about Senator Sabi Marwah.

Senator Marwah, thank you for everything. On behalf of your colleagues in the Independent Senators Group, but also on behalf of the Canadians you have served with skill and dignity, thank you very much.

We’ve had an eventful and busy end to the session. Generally speaking, we’ve accomplished what we needed to accomplish with skill, dedication and diligence, as I said earlier.

Much has happened since last September. Strong debates were held, and sometimes tensions were palpable between some of us — yes, including myself. I would like to propose that we all take this time — away from the Senate — as an opportunity to reflect on the contribution to democracy in our country, and on what we might do to better serve all Canadians. A lot more unites us than divides us. This should reflect in the way we act and work as senators.

As such, I would like to echo the comments made by two respectable departing parliamentarians in the other place — Marc Garneau and Erin O’Toole — in calling for more civility and dignity in our debates. We are not nominated to the upper house of Parliament to generate endless social media engagement, but rather to work diligently on legislation, as well as bring a complementary and added value to the work of the elected House of Commons.

Recently, we bid farewell to a Speaker and welcomed a new one. Speaker Gagné has embraced her new role, and acted with tact and efficiency. However, the responsibility to uphold order and decorum is not only for her and for our Speaker pro tempore, Senator Ringuette — it is, rather, the duty of all senators. It is, I believe, the brand of this chamber and part of what distinguishes us.

There is always a place in the Senate for different opinions — actually, that is kind of the point — but divergent views must always be expressed with respect. As so eloquently expressed by Senator Shugart in his maiden speech:

. . . whether it is what we say to or about each other, or how we learn again to listen and dialogue with others who don’t share our outlook, or how we guard the health of our institutions — we need to relearn the virtue of restraint.

And I would add this: the virtue of respect.

To my very dedicated and capable colleagues in the Independent Senators Group, and to all colleagues from all caucuses and groups, I wish you a wonderful summer. Let’s take this time to think and reflect while enjoying the good weather and relaxing. I’m looking forward to seeing all of us in good spirits in the fall. Thank you. Meegwetch.

I also wish to say a few words on behalf of the Progressive Senate Group before we depart to head to our homes for the summer. I often say that our group is small but mighty, and I assure you I will try to keep my remarks simply short but sweet.

Much has been said, and I could almost say “ditto” because I think we all work really well as leaders and we all appreciate differing opinions and so on, but I will continue with my remarks.

As other leaders have noted, our work here could not happen without the enormous support that we receive from behind the scenes. We have so many people to thank, between the countless number of Senate Administration staff, our brilliant and wonderful pages, some of whom will be leaving us, the interpreters, our shared parliamentary staff and the staff in our respective offices. We are lucky to be part of what is sometimes referred to as the “Senate family.”

It feels like I was just delivering similar remarks not that long ago — maybe it’s an age thing; I’m not sure — but we certainly have been extremely busy since this January. I should like to take a moment to note that after many years in this chamber, there is always more to learn. I am so fortunate to have been — and continue to be — surrounded by such impressive and generous colleagues. Truly, that is what enriches our work here in the Senate: to have diverse voices and opinions and then to find the best way to move forward.

We have, in the past few months, said goodbye to some of those extraordinary colleagues, and those moments are often pretty hard. But we have also been fortunate to welcome in new colleagues, and I hope that this trend continues in the fall.

We have welcomed our new Speaker, and I must echo the other leaders and say, Your Honour, that we are, indeed, well served by having you represent us, not only in the chamber but outside of our chamber.

Thank you also to our very capable, very able Speaker pro tempore, Senator Ringuette, for the wonderful job that you do.

I want to especially thank the amazing team of senators and staff in our Progressive Senate Group. We are a true team, and I am blessed and privileged to work with you each and every day. I love you all.

Colleagues, I do want to express my hope that we all have the opportunity this summer to reconnect with our communities and our families, to find the time to have those important conversations with those whose voices we represent. I enjoy the discussions and conversations that take place in this chamber and in committees. As Senator Tannas spoke about earlier, just being together and talking, whether it’s in the Reading Room or walking to and from the chamber, we learn a lot about one another in those short conversations, and we also learn a lot about the great things that are happening in the Senate.

On that note, I would like to thank my esteemed and hard‑working fellow leaders. Senator Gold — Marc — by the way, happy birthday next Friday! To Senator Saint-Germain — Raymonde — Senator Tannas, Senator Plett, thank you for providing countless examples of both enjoyable and sometimes maybe not-so-enjoyable conversations. We certainly don’t all share the same views on the best course of action, but that’s a pretty positive thing, I believe.

I know we all want what is best for our respective groups, and, indeed, most importantly, we all want what is best for Canadians, as we all do in the Senate. It is a pleasure to work with all of you as leaders.

We often hear the term “the Ottawa bubble,” and although I know we do our best not to get trapped in the bubble, the best way to combat that is to ensure that we pay attention to what’s being said outside of it. The exchanges that we have with people who are under-represented here are the most important voices to hear. They help enlighten us to views we might be missing, and they remind us of why our work is so very important and why our work is best when we are advocating for groups who are typically underserved.

Our respective regions are full of constituents and stakeholders who count on us to bring their voices to Parliament, to the Senate of Canada.

While I am proud to serve as leader of the Progressives, I am first and foremost proud to be a senator representing my province of Nova Scotia. By the way, we still have three Senate vacancies from Nova Scotia — I hope you’re listening, Prime Minister. I hope that they will be filled soon.

Staying connected with our home communities is a vital part of our job so that we can ensure that each region in Canada is well considered through our deliberations here.

Finally, I especially hope that everyone has the opportunity over the next couple of months to rest, to relax and to recharge. Spending time with friends and family is so important.

On behalf of the Progressive Senate Group, I offer each of you our best wishes for the summer, and I look forward to resuming our work here in the fall.

Honourable senators, esteemed members of the leadership teams, first, I would like to thank you for your touching words and for the warm welcome I’ve received. I have left some wonderful teams.

I think of the entire scroll team. I kind of miss the scroll meetings in the morning, believe it or not, and I also certainly miss the Government Representative Office, or GRO, team, but I have gained all of you here as Speaker of the Senate. Thank you so much for the warm welcome and, again, for the warm messages.

I would like to take a moment to make mine your words and thank everyone who makes our work in this chamber possible.

It goes without saying that as senators, we benefit from extraordinary support, both within our own offices and from the wider Senate family.

On behalf of all senators, I would like to express our deep appreciation to the staff, particularly the clerks, the pages, the Usher of the Black Rod and his team, the Committees Directorate, the Corporate Security Directorate, the interpreters, the stenographers, the communications team, the console operators, multimedia services and broadcasting, the Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel, Corporate Services, including the cleaning and maintenance personnel, our partners in the Library of Parliament and the Parliamentary Protective Service, our own staff and all those who contribute to the success of our work on behalf of all Canadians.

I will join my colleagues in wishing you a wonderful summer. I’m not sure where Senator Tannas is going on vacation. He might publish his address, and we could all join him this summer.

Please have a wonderful summer, enjoy your families and, as former Speaker Furey always told us, please shut your phones off.

I look forward to seeing you all again in the fall.

Thank you very much.