Hon. Lorna Milne:

Honourable senators, after receiving such extravagant praise, I hardly know where to start. In fact, I will have to severely edit these remarks that I have already written, because I do not want to repeat what has been said on some of my issues.

I will start with my heartfelt thanks to all the visible and invisible people who make our lives in this privileged place run so smoothly: from the pages to the Speaker and his office staff; from the table officers and the committee clerks to the transcribers and the interpreters; from the bull crew, the Library of Parliament staff and the researchers to the printers, the cleaners, and Senate security.

I will never forget one of the first times I came up the stairs into this chamber. I was bringing a friend here to sit up in the gallery. The friend turned to me in absolute astonishment and said, "That man saluted you!" It is such a privilege to be treated the way Senate security treat us all.

The list goes on and on of the people who work behind the scenes and who are never seen, but particularly I want to thank my own office staff. I have been lucky enough over the years to hire wonderful people. I remember Rosanna Bradley, who started her life on the Hill working for my husband Ross in the other place and ended up working for me here in the Senate. I remember Vince MacNeil, Jeff Paul, and Jon Bishop. I now have Sara May and Diana Ris working for me. Diana has gone far beyond that extra mile these past few stressful months when I tried to clean out my office and made impossible and sometimes rather bad tempered demands of her. I thank you so much, Diana.

I remember good friends from here who are now retired — in fact, someone who retired before I got here. Lorna Marsden was out of here before I arrived. People still call me Senator Marsden, and I am always complimented.

Of course, that is not when they are calling me Ione Christensen, my twin. I will never forget the day that Ione and I showed up here wearing identical outfits purchased from the Tall Girl Shop. I remember Derek Lewis, my first friend in this place; Lorne Bonnell; Peter Bosa; Landon Pearson — it is so good to have a friend to share a giggle with — John Bryden; Joan Cook, from whom I learned more than I probably should know about Newfoundland and Labrador politics; Sharon Carstairs, such a good friend, whom I knew long before we both arrived here from our days in the political trenches; Serge Joyal; Willie Moore. This is another list that goes on and on, but I cannot forget the very close and perhaps surprising friendship that I share with Joan Fraser. We come from such completely different backgrounds that I think we remain both astounded, but it is a continuing joy, that we have had such a warm meeting of minds. I thank you, Joan.

My friends, I will miss you all, including the people across the aisle, whom I have enjoyed skewering on every possible occasion lately. I notice the "skewerree" is not here today.

Senator Mercer: She is listening.

Senator Milne: Over the years, I am fairly proud of some of the things I have been able to accomplish here. Senator Cowan and others have spoken of them, so I will not carry on. They include my battle to make hemp a legal crop, and that fledgling industry is now beginning to thrive on its own. That is a good, positive mark.

I will never forget my seven-year struggle with the census results. As Senator Comeau has mentioned, we were certainly on opposite sides on that one. I still cannot believe that it took seven whole years to change the decision of one bureaucrat. My hackles still rise when I think about it.

Senator Banks: Watch out for rising hackles.

Senator Milne: Careful, Senator Banks. There were my years as President of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association, and I have led so many official delegations over in Europe and to the capitals of some of the countries in Europe. It has been an enormous privilege to be able to do that and it has been a great learning experience. One of my great regrets now is that I have been watching Canada's influence over there plummet over the last two or three years. Europe is our second largest trading partner and, my friends, they notice when we downgrade them and it rapidly becomes mutual.

One of my greatest joys has been to serve as the vice-chair of the national Liberal caucus for the past several years. It has been fascinating to watch the weekly action in that unique forum from such a privileged spot up on the platform.

Those few accomplishments remind me that, before I leave, I want to preach a bit of sedition to our new senators sitting opposite. When I first arrived here, Liberals formed the government but were in the minority in the Senate. I was never directed to pass legislation without taking a good hard look at it and amending it when it seemed necessary. In fact, most, if not all, of the amendments in committee here were made at that time by Liberals and were accepted by the government. That is our job here, to improve legislation and to make it do what the government of the day intends it to do, not to accept it blindly. The perfect piece of legislation has yet to be written. Amending and improving legislation is one of the main things the Senate was set up to do, and I remind you all that we have a constitutional duty to look at legislation through the eyes of the Constitution, through the eyes of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the viewpoints of our own regions, and we must protect the rights of Canada's many minorities. The Senate was never intended to be a rubber-stamp body for the other place.

Some Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.

Senator Milne: We are here to provide some balance to the political antics over there. That is our role and that is our purpose. A backbench senator can influence the course of history, but not by being a rubber-stamp.

To sum up — and you will all be glad to know that I am summing up — it has been an extremely satisfying and enormous privilege to be here for these past 14 years in this crimson chamber, right at the beating heart of our great country. Decisions are made here that have affected and will affect the daily lives of all Canadians, and it has been such an overwhelming gift to have been in some small way able to influence those decisions for the better.

I leave here with a few pangs, little twinges of regret, but I am ready to move on. There are new projects ahead, new projects to finish, miles to go, bridges to cross and hills to climb ahead.

Last, I want to thank my wonderful family, all of whom have been so supportive over these 14 years, particularly my very patient husband, Ross Milne. Ross is my spouse from the other house, who knows politics like the back of his hand and has constantly come up with the suggestions, the new ideas, the criticism and the support that we all need when we spend so much time away from home. He has always stood beside me; that is not when he is right behind me giving a little push.

I am the forty-second woman in Canadian history to have been appointed to the Senate, but Ross and I are only the second couple in Canadian history to have one serve in the other place and one serve here. Of course, now there is a third couple, Senator Finley.

If I may usurp your privilege, Your Honour, Ross and I have been blessed with a truly marvellous family: bright, healthy, beautiful, not to mention tall. May I ask them just to stand up?

Hon. Senators: Hear, hear!

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