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PM, MPs pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth ll in House of Commons

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Members of parliament paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth in the house in Ottawa today.

A two-day special session is being held to commemorate the queen and mark the accession of King Charles III.

“Canadians feel like they’ve lost a family member, a family member who grew up alongside us,” Justin Trudeau said.

Trudeau described meeting the queen as a little boy and describing how she felt at home in our country, a country he says that came of age during her reign.

Freshly minted conservative leader Pierre Poilievre spoke of the importance of the monarchy as an institution.

“The authority of the Crown may in a sense be fictional, but it is also functional. The separation of symbolic authority from political power allows partisan politics to be contested fearlessly without threatening the enduring constitutional order,” Poilievre said.

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh urged King Charles III to work to heal the legacy of colonialism around the world and in Canada.

“I hope that he will meet the challenge of reconciliation that has been laid out by First Nations leaders and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission,” Singh said.

Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet was less complimentary, “the history between the Crown and the Quebec nation is both thorny and cruel.”

South of the border at United Nations headquarters the secretary general and others paid tribute including Canadian ambassador Bob Rae.

“I want to thank you for convening this very fitting tribute to the memory of her majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, who was Canada’s longest reigning sovereign and head of state,” Rae said.

In London, people are lining up for hours for a chance to walk past the queen’s coffin

Inside Westminster Hall, the U.K.’s defense minister joined guards standing vigil at her coffin.

In eastern England the new prince and princess of Wales, William and Kate met with mourners outside Sandringham Estate. William told people walking behind the queen’s coffin yesterday brought back memories of his mother Princess Diana’s funeral.

You can watch the queen’s funeral on Monday on CHCH News starting at 5:30 a.m.