Visitors to the Hill

Originally published on the DaninOttawa.com site on September 23, 2011.

Today was a great day on Parliament Hill. Not only was the House of Commons honored to hear an address from British Prime Minister David Cameron, I was also fortunate to find local constituent Derek Badger in Ottawa and was able to invite Mr. Badger as a guest for a quick tour of the House and to sit in on the speech.

It is often said that as Canadians we are our own toughest critics. There are some days in the House of Commons where the discussion on this great Country overlooks that ours is truly a great Canada that has helped to make the world a better place. Today it was refreshing to hear David Cameron share some history of Canada’s contributions and sacrifices on the world stage for the betterment of others. Indeed sometimes in the heat of Parliamentary debate we as Parliamentarians overlook that indeed Canada has in fact chartered a course that other nations continue to struggle to set.

History aside though we must also be mindful of the future. Prime Minister Cameron remarked on the importance that as countries we must keep our citizens safe and we must work hard to ensure there are jobs. To achieve these goals we will need to work together and recognize that debt is the crisis that can no longer be ignored. We must also prioritize our spending wisely and recognize that international aid and helping to educate the youth in developing countries are investments today than can yield long-term benefits down the road. Diplomacy and investment must be a measure not overlooked given the immense cost on all levels of military campaigns.

In order to tackle the debt crises we must stay focused and apply strong leadership. We cannot ignore today’s problems as they will surely become larger problems tomorrow. Tackling debt will not be an easy subject but it is an important one that will require strong political will. There were those in attendance who clearly did not agree with the comments from the British Prime Minister. I was not one of them. I believe that David Cameron’s speech is an important one, and I say that both as a Member of Parliament and as a Canadian. I am grateful for having had the opportunity to hear and ponder some of the challenges that we will all face in keeping Canada strong. I am also thankful that the majority of those in the House of Commons are united to work in this regard. On a daily basis I get to meet many of my caucus colleagues from around Canada and am greatly impressed with the dedication and passion of those who I am fortunate to work with.

Today is a day that I felt proud to be a Canadian and as David Cameron reminded us all, when the world has been at some of it its darkest times in history, Canada has always been there to defend the values that help shape this great nation.

Related articles

• LIVE: British PM Cameron holds news conference in Ottawa (cbc.ca)