September 15, 1988 (33rd Parliament, 2nd Session)

Hon. Allan B. McKinnon (Victoria):

Mr. Speaker, I am sure all Members of the House were pleased to hear this morning that Canada, Victoria in particular, has been chosen as the site for the Commonwealth Games in 1994. This success has been achieved because of two factors: an incredible amount of work and effort put forward by volunteers, and, second, the co-operation of every level of government.
A volunteer committee self-started in Victoria, chaired by Mr. David Black and assisted by Rodger Banister and many others. They masterminded a brisk competition to be Canada's nominee for the Games site, and when Victoria was chosen the effort was doubled to win the second contest which finished this morning.
The Victoria committee sent representatives to all the voting countries of the Commonwealth and they were pleasantly surprised at the high regard in which Canada is held in those countries.
On behalf of Victoria I would like to thank all levels of government for their support, beginning with the municipalities neighbouring Victoria; the City Council and Mayor of Victoria; the Capital Region District; the Government of British Columbia; and the federal Government, in particular, the Minister of State for Fitness and Amateur Sport (Mr. Charest) and the Secretary of State for External Affairs (Mr. Clark). I am sure they had the support of all sides of the House in their actions, for a project such as this to be successful requires the support and co-operation of everyone.
Thanks again, and welcome to Victoria in 1994!