Hon. Céline Hervieux-Payette:

Honourable senators, dear Michel, today we are paying tribute to a man who is far too young to retire, a man who, I have no doubt, will continue to contribute to our country.

Senator Biron has worked hard for the cause of Canadian unity. We must thank him for that, because it may be even harder to be a die-hard federalist in Nicolet than in other parts of Quebec. Senator Biron has been a champion of Canadian unity. On behalf of everyone, I want to salute and thank him.

I would also like to point out that, before coming to the Senate, he was a businessman. Senator Biron once headed up H.N. Biron, a going concern that manufactured socks. Without Senator Biron's socks, we should all have gone barefoot.

He also contributed to the health of Canadians, particularly those in his region. He acquired several mountains, among them Mont-Orignal. He himself skied, and he also gave the people of his region the opportunity to ski and to keep jobs in the region because, from time to time, the local tourism industry, unlike his excellent socks, has come close to unravelling. Senator Biron persisted, invested and has served his region well.

At the same time — and, being a humble person, he would never boast about any of his achievements — he owns a telephone company. Every year, to save taxpayers' money, many of us use the free Sogetel datebook he gives us.

In short, he has made a remarkable contribution to the growth of the telecommunications industry. He consolidated small companies in his region and provided excellent service. As we know, sometimes the regions are not as well served as urban areas. Sogetel, however, is a success story. I was talking earlier to our colleague, Senator Bacon about the Régie des communications du Québec and the CRTC, which have certainly always found that this company has served taxpayers and people in the region extremely well.

Just recently, likely in anticipation of his new career, Senator Biron purchased a large boat — I was going to call it a ship. Senator Biron was very nearly unable to be with us today so that we could say our goodbyes, because on his maiden voyage to the southern United States, he ran into a storm, and he must have said his act of contrition several times. Had he not had some sailors on board to help him, there might have been a disaster at sea. Fortunately, with the help of his friends, he reached safe harbour.

As well, in anticipation of his return to his part of the country, he has had a very lovely house built, likely so that he can enjoy all the pleasures of living in that magnificent region. As you may know, he has a special fondness for beautiful cars. We all noticed that he changed his car fairly often, but I think he deserves to indulge his passion because he works very hard.

I would like to conclude by saying that he has made a significant contribution to FIPA, the Inter-Parliamentary Forum of the Americas. We will miss him here in the Senate and within the parliamentary associations. Thank you again, Senator Biron.

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