Honourable senators, today, we bid farewell to our honourable colleague Senator David Paul Smith. He was elected to the House of Commons in 1980, when Pierre Elliot Trudeau was Prime Minister, and now he is leaving us under Trudeau the younger.

Two years ago, he called his new big boss "not perfect, but a very impressive guy in an interview." As you can see, he is a very generous person. In another interview, he called the Senate "not boring, a lively and exciting place." Well, for the last 14 years, he has contributed to that vitality here in the Senate. He certainly hasn't been idle.

He showed his dedication to our institution through his work as Chair of the Special Committee on Anti-Terrorism and as a member of the Rules Committee; the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Committee; the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration; the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee; the National Security and Defence Committee; and others. He served the Canadian public in an exemplary manner.

Senator Smith has great character — I can tell you that. He has the Senate's Question Period on his website, and the National Post once called him a "mischievous Liberal senator" for telling Margaret Thatcher a joke.

I had the privilege of getting to know him recently when we travelled to London as part of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association delegation. Our goal was to learn about various parliamentary practices and the best policies. I really enjoyed his quick wit, his skills as a raconteur, and his many stories, which, I must point out, were not always verifiable. I wish I could have gotten to know him sooner.

Senator Smith is also a great humanitarian who has stood up for people with disabilities on many different occasions. When he was an MP and Chair of the House of Commons Special Committee on the Disabled and the Handicapped, he helped to identify the main obstacles facing people with disabilities. That inspired him to defend the rights of those people when the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was being drafted.

He was relentless in his promotion to amend section 15 to include mental and physical disabilities.

Honourable senators, that is the kind of determination that our colleague showed in the Senate. Senator Smith, we thank you for your great contribution and your spirit of cooperation. We wish you, your wife Heather, and your children many memorable moments in your summer home in Cobourg.

I hope we will see you soon.