I went into the foreign service because I was interested in politics. But, in 1991, when I joined, I didn't see much of an opportunity to be involved in federal politics as a Conservative. We were at the tail end of the Brian Mulroney era. I wanted to do something non-partisan as a way of preparing for a role in our politics later.

The plant goes down. The industry is weaker. The price of the commodity has lagged. Any of those things can push people into unemployment or lower income categories, and that hurts.

We need to give the private sector many more powerful incentives to do research and development, to bring ideas and new discoveries to market in Canada, and commercialize them here, and stay here through successive stages of growth. But they can only do it with better government policies that give them more powerful incentive.

People follow those who act like leaders, not those who proclaim themselves to be leaders.

We Canadians need to go beyond what any previous government has done in terms of our diplomatic network, our support for companies to export, trade and invest beyond North America, and our contribution to the safety of the international system, through defence, development, international organizations, and so forth.

Move around, be nomadic, make each day a new horizon.

We need to EARN the right to be leaders. It is to our peril when we are given things for which we are not qualified. For Believers, we must only engage in activities for which the Lord has called us.