"Mike" Harris Not all that different Tim Hudak

Michael Deane "Mike" Harris (born January 23, 1945) was the 22nd Premier of Ontario from June 26, 1995 to April 14, 2002.[1] He is most noted for the "Common Sense Revolution", his Progressive Conservative government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and cuts to government programs.



Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 Early political career
3 Leadership (1990)
4 Political Wilderness (1990-1995)
5 First term as Premier of Ontario (1995-1999)
5.1 Common Sense Revolution
6 Second term as Premier of Ontario (1999-2002)
7 Withdrawal from politics (2002-2004)
8 Ipperwash Inquest (2005-2007)
9 Later life
10 See also
11 References
12 External links


Background

Harris was born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of Hope Gooding (née Robinson) and Sidney Deane Harris.[2] He grew up in North Bay, where his father operated the Wasi Falls Resort fishing camp. Harris first attended Waterloo Lutheran University (now Wilfrid Laurier University) but left after a year. At the age of 21, following his father's purchase of a ski-hill, Harris moved to Sainte-Adèle, Quebec where he became a ski instructor over the course of two years. After the end of his first marriage, he enrolled at Laurentian University and North Bay Teacher's College where he received his teaching certificate. He was employed as an elementary school teacher at W. J. Fricker Public School in North Bay where he taught grade seven and eight mathematics for several years in a new open-concept class of 120 students. He continued in his previous occupation as a ski-instructor at Nipissing Ridge on weekends as well as working at his father's fishing camp during the summer season. He eventually left the teaching profession as the success of the ski resort escalated. After his father sold his own ski-hill operation, Harris landed a position managing North Bay's Pinewood Golf Club.[3][4]
Early political career

Harris was first elected to public office as a school board trustee in 1974. He entered provincial politics in the 1981 election, and defeated the incumbent Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) in Nipissing, Mike Bolan. Harris later suggested that he was motivated to enter politics by an opposition to the policies of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.[5]

He sat as a backbencher in Bill Davis's Progressive Conservative government from 1981 to 1985. He supported Frank Miller's successful bid to succeed Davis as party leader in 1985, and took the role of rival candidate Dennis Timbrell to prepare Miller for the party's all-candidate debates. Miller was sworn in as Premier of Ontario on February 8, 1985, and appointed Harris as his Minister of Natural Resources.

The Tories were reduced to a minority government in the 1985 provincial election, although Harris was personally re-elected without difficulty. He kept the Natural Resources portfolio after the election, and was also named Minister of Energy on May 17, 1985. Time limitations prevented Harris from making many notable contributions in these portfolios, as the Miller government was soon defeated on a motion of no confidence by David Peterson's Liberals and Bob Rae's New Democratic Party.[citation needed]

An agreement between the Liberals and the NDP allowed a Liberal minority government to govern for two years in exchange for the implementation of certain NDP policies. This decision consigned the Tories to opposition for the first time in 42 years. Miller resigned and was replaced by Larry Grossman, who led the party to a disastrous showing in the 1987 election and announced his resignation shortly thereafter. Harris was again re-elected in Nipissing without difficulty.[citation needed]
Leadership (1990)

The party was not ready to hold a leadership convention in 1987. Grossman, who had lost his legislative seat, remained the official leader of the party until 1990 while Sarnia MPP Andy Brandt served as "interim leader" in the legislature. Harris was chosen as PC house leader, and had become the party's dominant voice in the legislature by 1989. Harris entered the 1990 leadership race, and defeated Dianne Cunningham in a province-wide vote to replace Grossman as the party's official leader.
Political Wilderness (1990-1995)

The 1990 provincial election was called soon after Harris became party leader. With help from past leader Larry Grossman, Harris managed to rally his party's core supporters with pledges of tax cuts and spending reductions. Due to his teaching background, Harris was personally endorsed by several local members of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF). The election was won by Bob Rae's NDP. The Conservatives increased their seat total from 17 to 20 out of 130. Despite some early concerns, Harris was again able to retain his own seat. On 3 May 1994, Harris unveiled his "Common Sense Revolution" platform. An unusual document in the normally centrist Ontario political environment, it called for significant spending cuts and large tax cuts, as well as elimination of the province's record $11 billion deficit.[citation needed]
First term as Premier of Ontario (1995-1999)

By 1995, the governing New Democratic Party and incumbent Premier Bob Rae had become extremely unpopular with the electorate, partly due to the state of the Ontario economy and its record debt and deficit amidst a Canada-wide recession. Lyn McLeod's Liberals were leading in pre-election polls and were expected to benefit from the swing in support away from the NDP, but they began losing support due to several controversial policy reversals and what was generally regarded as an uninspiring campaign. The turning point in the election is often considered to be Harris' performance in the televised leaders' debate. Harris used his camera time to speak directly to the camera to convey his party's Common Sense Revolution platform. He was elected with a large majority government in the 1995 election. Roughly half of his party's seats came from the suburban belt surrounding Metro Toronto, often called the '905' for its telephone area code.[6]

The Rae government had previously lost much of its base in organized labour, due in part to the unpopularity of its "Social Contract" legislation in 1993 (which Harris, after some initial vacillations, eventually voted against). Harris' opposition to Rae's affirmative actionmeasures helped him to capture some unionized-worker support during the election, particularly among male workers. Although there were regional variations, many union voters shifted from the NDP to the Tories in 1995 (instead of to the Liberals as expected pre-campaign), enabling the Tories to win a number of new ridings, such as Cambridge and Oshawa, which had long supported the NDP.[7]

In late 1995, native protesters in Ipperwash took issue with a land claim process, and invaded a Provincial Park 150 km North West of Toronto. During a confrontation with the demonstrators, Ontario Provincial Police acting Sgt. Kenneth Deane fired on First Nations demonstrators who had occupied the park, killing a protester named Dudley George. An inquest (reported below) would later be called by the Liberal government of Dalton McGuinty, due to recalcitrance on Harris' part.
Common Sense Revolution
Main article: Common Sense Revolution

Upon election, the Harris government immediately began to implement a far-reaching reform agenda in order to cut the large provincial deficit accumulated under the previous Rae government. One of its first major policy decisions in 1995 was to cut social assistance rates by 22%. The government argued that too many people were taking advantage of the program, and that it acted as a disincentive for seeking employment. Critics argued that the cuts were too dramatic, and increased the hardship of Ontario's poorest residents. The government also introduced "Ontario Works," frequently referred to as "workfare," a program that required able-bodied welfare recipients to participate in either training or job placements. Opponents criticized both the rationale and effectiveness of the program, which was significantly scaled back after Harris left office.

Provincial income taxes were cut by 30% to pre-1990 levels. In addition, a new Fair Share Health Levy was established and charged to high-income earners to help pay for mounting health care costs.

The overall effects of the Common Sense Revolution were detailed in the documentary Life Under Mike, produced by filmmaker James Motluk and released in September, 2000.[8]

Shortly after assuming office, the Harris government announced that several hundred nurses would be laid off to cut costs in the health sector. The government also implemented a series of hospital closures on the recommendations of a Health Services Restructuring Commission. Harris compared the laid off hospital workers to the people who lost their jobs after the hula hoop fad died down in the early 1960s, commenting "Just as Hula-Hoops went out and those workers had to have a factory and a company that would manufacture something else that's in, it's the same in government, and you know, governments have put off these decisions for so many years that restructuring sometimes is painful" (The Globe and Mail, 6 March 1997).

In 1997, Ontario's teachers held the largest walkout in North American history, a two-week strike that the Harris government ruled was illegal, but the teachers were unsuccessful in getting significant changes to government policies.

The Harris government cut funding of major urban infrastructure projects upon assuming office. Though construction had already begun on the Eglinton West subway in Toronto, a proposed rapid transit line to ultimately link the main north/south subway line of the city with the suburbs and airport, funding was cancelled shortly after Harris' election.[9]

Harris's government also cut health spending to counter the $30 Billion cut in transfer payments from the Liberal federal government.[10] It also introduced Telehealth Ontario, a new 24-hour toll-free telephone help line with live connection to registered nurses. Harris also announced funding vehicles such as the Ontario R&D Challenge Fund, the Ontario Innovation Trust and the Premier's Research Excellence Awards.

One part of the Common Sense Revolution was to sell off various government-owned enterprises, the largest of which were to be Ontario Hydro and the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. Neither was actually sold off, but Ontario Hydro was split into five successor companies (the two largest being Ontario Power Generation and Hydro One, representing generation and distribution of power respectively) with the plan of eventually selling them off. Public opposition to the sale of these money-making government enterprises postponed the government's plans. In 1999, Highway 407 was leased to a private consortium in the largest such scheme to privatize the management of a public asset in Canadian history.[6]

The provincial government of Mike Harris undertook an extensive program of municipal mergers between 1996 and 2002. The province had 815 municipalities in 1996; by 2002, this had been reduced to just 447.[11] [12] In the largest and most widely covered of these moves, the individual cities that made up Metro Toronto were merged into a single city (called the "megacity" by the media and citizens); the amalgamation was not part of their pre-election policy platform. The Conservatives argued that the move would eliminate duplication of services and increase efficiency, however while the amalgamation produced substantial dislocation in the delivery of civic services, in the decade since the amalgamation of Toronto no quantitative evidence of cost-savings has been produced. Opposition parties were strongly opposed to the move; the NDP took the unusual step of attempting to filibuster against the bill by reading out the name of every street name in Toronto. In order to further reduce provincial commitments, financial responsibility for provincial income assistance programs were transferred or "downloaded" to municipalities, increasing the burden on municipal tax bases. The list of municipalities in Ontario is updated to the Municipal Act, 2001, which is the legislation that enables incorporation and stipulates governance of Ontario's municipalities, excluding the City of Toronto, which is now subject to the City of Toronto Act, 2006.[13] The Municipal Act, 2001 provides lower and single-tier municipalities with the authority to incorporate as cities, towns, villages,townships, or generically as municipalities.[14][15]

The Harris government also announced several education reforms, most notably the elimination of the fifth year of high school in Ontario (known as the OAC year). This created a double graduating class in 2003 (known as the "double cohort") after Harris had left office. Other education reforms reduced the powers of school boards, and mandated a standardized curriculum and province-wide testing of students. In 1999, it introduced a policy of "teacher testing", requiring teachers to take examinations on a regular basis. The latter initiative was unpopular with teachers, many of whom regarded it as an intrusion on their professional autonomy. A separate controversy occurred shortly after the Harris government took office, involving events at Ipperwash Provincial Park, in which a native protester was killed by police. (See Ipperwash Crisis.)

Amid the general rise in the North American economy, economic indicators in Ontario improved dramatically. Even with a strong economy the Ontario provincial debt increased by an additional $20 Billion between 1995 and 1999[6] due to the lost revenue and borrowing required to fund Harris' tax cuts.
Second term as Premier of Ontario (1999-2002)[edit]

In 1999, the Harris government was re-elected for a second term as a majority government, helped largely by its political base in the 905 area. 1999 Harris also announced a program called Ontario's Living Legacy. The initiative added 378 new parks and protected areas, bringing the total in Ontario to 650 and increasing Ontario's protected areas to more than 95,000 square kilometres (37,000 sq mi).

Controversy arose in 2000 when the town water supply of Walkerton became infected by E. coli. Seven people died and hundreds became ill. Provincial water testing had been privatized in October 1996 by Harris' first government.[16] It was later discovered the local official responsible for water quality, Stan Koebel, had lied, falsified records, failed to test water quality regularly, and when the outbreak occurred had failed to promptly notify the local Medical Officer of Health. In late 2004, Koebel pled guilty to a minor charge in relation to the offence and was sentenced to one year in jail.

The Walkerton tragedy had serious ramifications for Harris's government. David Peterson later acknowledged that it could have happened under any Premier's watch, and it was often noted that Koebel's lying and falsification of records had gone unnoticed by governments of different political stripes. Harris's handling of the tragedy was also criticized, as he initially attempted to place some of the blame on previous Liberal and NDP governments. Harris called a public inquiry, headed by Justice Dennis O'Connor, which later noted that in addition to Stan Koebel's failure to properly monitor and treat the water supply, deregulation of water quality testing and cuts to the Ministry of the Environment were contributing factors.[17] The inquest into the tragedy found that the government cuts to inspection services and their privatisation had created a situation in which future water safety could not be guaranteed. The Ontario government was also blamed for not regulating water quality and not enforcing the guidelines that had been in place.[16]

A riot developed at Queen's Park, the site of the Ontario Legislature, on 15 June 2000. The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty and other activists who included George Smitherman, lobbed molotov cocktails, bricks, and bottles.[18] No convictions resulted from several attempts to try individuals for substantial crimes.

The Harris government balanced the provincial budget, although its critics contend that cuts in taxes caused a drop in revenues, which in turn led to renewed budget deficits after Harris resigned. Harris supporters pointed to the fact that government revenues rose from $48 billion in 1995 to $64 billion by 2001, when the budget was balanced.[19] Harris' government reduced Ontario welfare rolls by 500,000 people; critics contend these cuts led to a rise in homelessness and poverty. Supporters argued that high welfare rates had created disincentives to find entry-level jobs, and that poverty levels remained relatively unchanged between 1995 and 2005. Employment rates increased significantly during the late 1990s, although some Harris critics argued that many of the new jobs were part-time rather than full-time and offered fewer benefits to employees. The government rewrote labour laws to require secret ballot votes before workplaces could unionize. The previous NDP government's law outlawing the hiring of replacement workers during strikes was repealed.[citation needed]

Other changes brought in by the Harris government include standardized student tests. These were criticized by some educators as forcing schools to teach in a manner simply oriented to test-passing, and not teach in a way to encourage genuine learning. Others valued the tests as a means for parents to measure their children's achievement and that of the school against peers. A new provincial funding formula for school boards stripped the local boards of their taxation powers.

The Harris government also faced controversy when Kimberly Rogers, a Sudbury woman who had been convicted of welfare fraud, died in her apartment while under house arrest in 2001. Her death was ruled a suicide. A subsequent inquest did not assign blame to the government for the woman's death, but recommended that lifetime bans for fraud be eliminated, and that adequate food, housing and medication be provided to anyone under house arrest.[20]

In 2001, the Harris government introduced a plan to give a tax credit for parents who send their children to private and denominational schools (despite having campaigned against such an initiative in 1999). Supporters claimed it was fair given the public funding of Catholic schools,[citation needed] while opponents were concerned about a potential diversion of resources and students from the public system. Harris also broke with tradition to place backbench MPPs on Cabinet committees. He appointed more women as deputy ministers than any other premier in Ontario history, including the only two women to head the Ontario public service.[citation needed]
Withdrawal from politics (2002-2004)[edit]

For personal reasons Harris resigned in 2002 and was succeeded as Tory leader and premier by his long-time friend and Minister of Finance, Ernie Eves.

Soon after leaving office, Harris joined the Toronto law firm Goodmans LLP, where he served as an advisor until 2010.[21]

Later in 2002, Harris also joined the Fraser Institute, a right-of-centre[22] libertarian think tank, as a 'Senior Fellow'. It was there that he became involved with the ideals of Preston Manning, becoming a major influence in federal politics as well as Alberta. His Common Sense Revolution was repeated in Alberta with each of the steps including the firing and rehiring of nurses. In January 2003, Harris was named to the Board of Directors of Magna International. More recently in 2011, he was criticized for accepting re-election to the Board of Magna despite receiving only 38% of shareholder support. This was possible since shareholder votes in Canada are either counted as "for" a director or else considered as "withheld", meaning that they are not counted.[23] In 2012, Harris indicated that he would step down from the Board of Directors at Magna International after completing a process to collapse the company’s dual-class share structure that he helped begin in 2010.[24]

During his time as Premier, Harris was frequently cited as someone who could "unite the right" in Canada, and lead a merged party of federal Progressive Conservatives and Reform/Canadian Alliance supporters. He made serious steps toward a career in federal politics after stepping down as Premier, weighing in on issues such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq (which he supported) and the value of the Canadian dollar (which he wanted to see increase in relation to the American dollar). In late 2003, he made a speech in Halifaxwhich many believed was the unofficial launch of a campaign to lead the new Conservative Party of Canada. In the end, Harris decided to stand aside; he later endorsed former Magna International President and CEO Belinda Stronach, in the 2004 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election.

He was later involved in a minor controversy, yelling and repeatedly swearing at a party official who asked him for his identification as he voted in the 2004 Ontario Progressive Conservative Party leadership election.[25]
Ipperwash Inquest (2005-2007)[edit]
Main article: Ipperwash Crisis

Shortly after his first election win in 1995, Mike Harris faced his first crisis as Premier. Protesters fighting land claim issues took over a Provincial Park 150 km North West of Toronto. During a confrontation with the demonstrators, Ontario Provincial Police acting Sgt. Kenneth Deane fired on First Nations demonstrators who had occupied the park, killing a protester named Dudley George. In the inquiry following the shooting, it was determined that while some protesters were carrying rocks, sticks and baseball bats, none were carrying firearms. The confrontation that led to the shooting began when police clashed with a protester armed with a steel pipe.[26] The government and the OPP maintained that there was no political involvement in the shooting, but inside the Legislature whereParliamentary privilege outweighs any civil claims, several opposition politicians suggested that the attack may have been ordered by the Premier's office, and called for an independent judicial inquiry. In a court case that went all the way the Supreme Court of Canada, Deane maintained that he was not under orders to shoot and was convicted of criminal negligence causing death. An inquiry, headed by commissioner Justice Sidney Linden, was called after the government of Dalton McGuinty was elected in 2003.

On November 28, 2005, former Attorney General Charles Harnick testified before the inquiry that Harris had shouted "I want the fucking Indians out of the park" at a meeting with Ontario Provincial Police officer Ron Fox, hours before the shooting occurred (Canadian Press, 28 November 2005, 12:45 report). Other witnesses have disputed this account, and Harris himself denied it in his testimony on 14 February 2006 at the inquiry.

The inquiry released its report on May 31, 2007. It concluded that Harris did not bear responsibility for the outcome at Ipperwash:


The evidence demonstrated that the Premier and his officials wanted the occupation to end quickly, but there is no evidence to suggest that the Premier or any official in his government was responsible for Mr. George's death.[27]

However, the report also stated that the both the provincial and federal levels of government, as well as the Ontario Provincial Police shared responsibility for the events at Ipperwash. The report found that while Harris did not order the police to remove protesters from the park, his approach "narrowed the scope" of the response to the situation:


The Premier's determination to seek a quick resolution closed off many options endorsed by civil servants in the Ontario government, including process negotiations, the appointment of mediators, and opening up communication with the First Nations people. His narrow approach to the occupation did not enable the situation to stabilize at the park.[28]

The Inquiry found that Harris did say "I want the fucking Indians out of the park," despite his denials to that effect. This finding was based on not being able to find an existing animosity from Charles Harnick towards Mike Harris and the fact that Harnick was reversing previous statements that he had made in the legislature which would not be of any benefit to himself.[29]
Later life[edit]

In late May 2010, Nipissing University confirmed that Harris would receive an honorary doctorate.[30] In response, the Ontario Teachers' Federation threatened to discourage, or even prevent, their members from acting as associate teachers for students in Nipissing University's Bachelor of Education program, which requires students to complete 12 weeks of practice teaching in a classroom.[31] Nipissing University's new 25 million dollar library was originally named after Harris.

In 2012, Mike Harris started a local Nurse Next Door Home Care franchise in Toronto with wife Laura.[32]
See also
Common Sense Revolution
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
Ipperwash Crisis
Walkerton tragedy
Life Under Mike
References[edit]

Jump up^ "Michael Harris, MPP". Legislative Assembly website. Legislative Assembly on Ontario. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
Jump up^http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/michael-deane-harris
Jump up^ Mcdonald, Marci (1995-06-19). "Harris, Michael Deane Profile, Maclean's Magazine". Thecanadianencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ Way, Diane Lois. "Mike Harris, Encyclopædia Britannica". Britannica.com. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ Stevenson, Mark. "Right in the heartland".Saturday Night (May 1995), Vol. 110 Issue 4, pp. 19–25
^ Jump up to:a b c "News & Opinions - Mismanaging During Storms: The Harris, Eves and Hudak Conservatives in Ontario". Logos Pathos Ethos. 2011-02-17. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ Mallan, Caroline. "The legacy of Mike Harris".Toronto Star, March 16, 2002, H02.
Jump up^http://contests.eyeweekly.com/eye/issue/issue_09.28.00/film/lifeundermike.php
Jump up^ "The Eglinton West Subway - Transit Toronto - Content". Transit Toronto. 2011-06-26. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ http://cupe.ca/health-care/BE4555
Jump up^ Municipal restructuring since 1996. Archives of Ontario. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
Jump up^ Archives Ontario: "The Changing Shape of Ontario" retrieved January 2014
Jump up^ "City of Toronto Act, 2006". e-Laws.Government of Ontario. Retrieved August 20, 2013.
Jump up^ "The Municipal Councillor's Guide" (PDF).Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Retrieved June 25, 2013.
Jump up^ "Ontario Municipalities". Association of Municipalities of Ontario. Retrieved June 25, 2013.
^ Jump up to:a b Walkerton Report, "Part 2: Report of the Walkerton Inquiry: A Strategy for Safe Drinking Water" May 2002
Jump up^ "INDEPTH: INSIDE WALKERTON Canada's worst-ever E. coli contamination". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 2004-12-20. Retrieved 2012-03-07.[dead link]
Jump up^ CBC Newshttp://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2000/06/15/000615riot.html |url= missing title (help).
Jump up^ "2001 Ontario Budget: Budget Papers"(PDF). Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ McCarten, James. "Coroner's jury urges Ontario to end no-tolerance crackdown on welfare cheats". Canadian Press, December 19, 2002
Jump up^http://business.financialpost.com/2013/09/16/mike-harris-to-join-fasken-martineau/
Jump up^ "CBC News.ca". Cbc.ca. 2001-06-29. Retrieved 2011-07-26.[dead link]
Jump up^ Barely one in three backed Harris for Magna chair Globe and Mail 2011 Dec. 8
Jump up^ "Mike Harris steps down from Magna Board". Financial Post. 2012-03-30. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
Jump up^ Canadian Press. "Harris apologizes for swearing at Tories." Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal, September 23, 2004.
Jump up^ "Ipperwash Inquiry, Investigation and Findings, Volume 1 - Conclusion. P681" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ "Ipperwash Inquiry, Investigation and Findings, Volume 1 - Conclusion. P675". Ipperwashinquiry.ca. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ "Ipperwash Enquiry, Investigation and Findings, Volume 1 - Executive Summary, pp. 49–50". Ipperwashinquiry.com. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ ""Ipperwash inquiry spreads blame for George's death," CBC News, 31 May 2007". Cbc.ca. 2007-05-31. Retrieved 2011-07-26.[dead link]
Jump up^ "Recent News". Nipissingu.ca. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
Jump up^ [1][dead link]
Jump up^http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1065359/from-premier-s-office-to-flower-covered-pink-car

Kathleen O'Day Wynne Liberal Party of Ontario.

Kathleen O'Day Wynne (born May 21, 1953)[3] is a politician in Ontario, the 25th and current Premier of Ontario and a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Don Valley West for theLiberal Party. She is the first premier in Canada to be openly gay and the first female premier of Ontario.

She was Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Aboriginal Affairs until resigning to run as a leadership candidate.[4]



Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 School trustee
3 Provincial politics
4 Leadership
5 Premiership
5.1 Gas Plant Scandal
5.2 2013 Budget
5.3 Education
5.4 The Economy
5.5 2014 Election
6 Personal life
7 Electoral record
8 References
9 External links


Early life

Kathleen Wynne was born to Dr. John B. Wynne[5] and Patsy O'Day,[6] a British subject musician who grew up in the Bahamas before immigrating to Canada.[7]

Wynne grew up in Richmond Hill, Ontario.[8] She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Queen's University and a Master of Arts degree in linguistics from the University of Toronto. She achieved a Master of Education degree in adult education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (University of Toronto). She was a member of the discipline committee of the Ontario Society of Psychotherapists from 1997 to 2000.

Wynne served as president of the Toronto Institute of Human Relations. In 1996, she helped found Citizens for Local Democracy, which opposed the efforts of Ontario's Progressive Conservative government to amalgamate the City of Toronto. She also founded the Metro Parent Network (now the Toronto Parent Network) which supports improvements in the province's public education system, and has participated in numerous other community endeavours. Wynne helped found MAD for Dancing, a community fundraising group that has donated over $50,000 to organizations that support gay and lesbian youth.
School trustee

Wynne first ran for trustee in 1994 in ward 12 but was defeated by Ann Vanstone.[9] In 2000, she ran again and was elected as a public school trustee in Toronto's ward 8.[10] During the campaign she was labelled an "extremist lesbian" in literature distributed by the "Concerned Citizens of North York and North Toronto". This was the ratepayer group that later supported Karen Stintz in her campaign against local councillor Anne Johnston.[11] She strongly opposed cuts to public education mandated by the Conservative government.

In 2001, she helped pass a measure encouraging public schools to purchase teaching materials reflecting the presence of gay and lesbian parents in modern society.[12] In December 2001, Wynne ran for chair of the school board but was defeated by Donna Cansfield in a 12–10 vote.[13]
Provincial politics

Wynne was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 2003 provincial election, defeating Progressive Conservative cabinet minister David Turnbull by over 5,000 votes. The Liberals won the election, and Wynne was appointed parliamentary assistant to Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities Mary Anne Chambers in October 2003. In October 2004, she was appointed parliamentary assistant to Minister of Education Gerard Kennedy. From June 2005 to November 2005 she served as a member of the Select Committee on Electoral Reform, which recommended "that the referendum be binding upon a vote of 50% + 1, and the support of 50% + 1 in at least two-thirds (i.e., 71) of the ridings or any other formula that ensures the result has support from Northern, rural, and urban areas of the Province," although the cabinet subsequently decided on 100.

On September 18, 2006, she was promoted to Minister of Education in a cabinet shuffle occasioned by the resignation of Joe Cordiano from the Legislature. She was the province's first openly lesbian cabinet minister, and only the second openly LGBT cabinet minister after Deputy Premier George Smitherman.[14] On January 18, 2010, she was moved to Minister of Transportation and in 2011 she was appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Aboriginal Affairs.

In the 2007 provincial election, Wynne was challenged by the PC leader John Tory. Tory, who was elected to Dufferin—Peel—Wellington—Grey (former PC leader Ernie Eves' riding) in a by-election, was seeking a seat in a Toronto-area riding. Though it was projected to be a close race, Wynne was re-elected with 50.4 percent of the popular vote, defeating Tory who came in second with 39.7 of the popular vote.

Wynne was also instrumental in establishing the first Minister's Student Advisory Council, a group of sixty students from all parts of the education system and regions of the province to share their ideas and advice with the Minister of Education on how to ensure Ontario's schools remain competitive.
Leadership


Premier McGuinty announced on October 15, 2012, that he would resign as leader of the Liberal Party of Ontario and premier of the province once his successor was chosen.[15] On November 2, 2012, Wynne resigned her cabinet post and three days later launched her bid for the leadership of the party.[16][17] Wynne was seen as having the strongest on-the-ground organization among the seven candidates, and along with former MPPSandra Pupatello, and was one of the front runners.[18] She had the most supporters running to be delegates at the convention, with 1,533, and was the only candidate to have supporters in place in all 107 of the province's ridings.[19] Days before members were to begin electing delegates Glen Murray announced he was exiting the leadership race and endorsed Wynne's candidacy.[20] Despite running with the most supporters for delegate positions Wynne placed second, with 468 delegates, behind Pupatello who had 509 delegates.[21] Pupatello was also believed to have the most support among ex-officio delegates, which are MPPs, MPs, defeated candidates and other Liberal insiders, and was expected to increase her lead over Wynne on the first ballot at the convention.[22][23]

At the convention on January 26, 2013, Wynne surprised many with her strong speech to delegates. In the speech she discussed repairing relations with teachers, working with opposition parties, and took aim at her main rival Pupatello, who doesn't hold a seat, by saying that she was ready to govern and would recall the legislature on February 19. Wynne also addressed her sexuality saying; "When I ran in 2003, I was told that the people of North Toronto and Thorncliffe Park weren’t ready to elect a gay woman. Well, apparently they were." She went on to say that "I don’t believe the people of Ontario judge their leaders on the basis of race, colour or sexual orientation – I don’t believe they hold that prejudice in their hearts."[24][25][26][27][28]

When the first ballot results were announced Wynne received 597 votes, trailing Pupatello by only two votes.[29] Eric Hoskins received the fewest votes of the six candidates and was therefore eliminated. Hoskins threw his support behind Wynne while fourth place candidate Harinder Takhar announced he was endorsing Pupatello. On the second ballot Pupatello's lead grew to 67 votes over Wynne. Takhar, whose name was left on the second ballot, finished last and was eliminated from the race. Gerard Kennedy and Charles Sousa, who finished third and fourth respectively, withdrew from the race and both endorsed Wynne. With the support of both Kennedy and Sousa, her win was all but guaranteed on the third ballot. When the results of that ballot were announced Wynne received 57 per cent of the votes compared to 43 per cent for Pupatello.[30][31]
Premiership

Wynne was sworn in as Premier of Ontario on February 11, 2013, becoming the province's first female Premier, and the first premier in Canada to be openly gay. After 4 months prorogation of the legislature, Wynne resumed the house on February 17th, 2013.[32]
Gas Plant Scandal

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2014)


After resuming the legislature, Opposition Parties immediately accused Wynne of co-chairing the Liberal campaign that cancelled the gas plants in Mississauga and north east Oakville. Wynne stated publicly she wasn't in the gas plant meetings and wasn't involved in cancelling the gas plants. Wynne appointed the Auditor General to investigate the real cost of the cancelled gas plants and after months of investigation the Auditor General released the report on the gas plants and stated the cancellation of both gas plants would cost taxpayers $1.1 billion dollars. After the announcement from the Auditor General, Wynne apologized publicly and stated this will never happen under her watch.

Wynne re-established the legislative committees investigating the gas plants and testified that she didn't know about the cost of the gas plants and was extremely disappointed when she found out how expensive the real cost was. At committee, Wynne stated she was blocked from knowing the truth of the cancelled gas plants and the real cost. Also, Wynne stated at committee that former Premier Dalton McGuinty told her that it wasn't her business to know the truth and the real cost of the cancelled gas plants. On June 6th 2013, the OPP were called by Opposition Parties to start a police investigation into the new allegations of deleted emails regarding the gas plants and the next day on June 7th the OPP launched a criminal investigation into the deletion of the emails after the Privacy Commissioner ruled that the gas plant emails were illegally deleted.

On November 23rd 2013, Wynne authorized the OPP anti-rackets division to investigate the Office of the Premier to further their investigation into the deleted gas plant emails. On April 8th 2014, the OPP ruled out Wynne's involvement in the deletion of the emails and criminal destruction of government information regarding the gas plants and also ruled out Wynne's involvement in the cancellation of the gas plants. The OPP stated also that Wynne's office was not under investigation and that the suspects are Dalton McGuinty, McGuinty's former chief of staff David Livingston, McGuinty's deputy chief of staff Laura Miller and Peter Faist a computer tech. Wynne stated her office would continue their co-operation with the police investigation and would provide any further documents they need.

On March 24th 2014, Wynne introduced a piece of legislation called the Public Sector and MPP Accountability and Transparency Act which involved requiring all MPP's, cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants, opposition leaders, and their respective staff to post their expense information online. The Public Sector and MPP Accountability and Transparency Act also expanded the powers of the Integrity Commissioner, expanded the powers of the Ontario Ombudsman by introducing a fine of $5,000 for the willful destruction of government records, and prohibited the destruction of records with intent to deny access to records and other accountability measure. This was in response to the previous administration's scandals under Dalton McGuinty's.
2013 Budget

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On March 21st 2013, Wynne introduced her government's first budget with measures that including a $295 million investment into a Youth Jobs Strategy to help tackle high youth unemployment rate, reducing auto insurance rates by 15 per cent saving motorists $225 a year, $260 million investment to boost home care health services for 46,000 seniors, $45 million investment into a Ontario Music Fund to help Ontario musicians, a $200 a month earnings exemption for those on Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program, $5 million into First Nations education, eliminated the employers health tax exemption for large companies, cancelled tax cuts for big businesses, extended the capital cost allowance for machinery and equipment, increased the Ontario Child Benefit frin $1,100 to $1,310 a year to support low-income families and other economic measures.
Education

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Wynne started immediate new collective bargaining negotiations with Ontario Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario after a year of labour distress of bill 115 that suspended collective bargaining rights, imposed contracts on teachers and suspended the right to strike. April 8th 2014, The Wynne government reached a new bargaining agreement with the teachers union and passed bill 122 the School Boards Collective Bargaining Act that restored the bargaining rights, the right to strike, keeps the wage freeze on teachers, eliminates the retirement gratuity for teachers that resulted in savings of $1 billion ,gives the province control over funding for schools and programs and gives the Minister powers to audit School Boards if disclosure of spending is not provided. Wynne established the Premier's Youth Advisory Council to share ideas, advise the Premier on issues facing youth and improve job opportunities for young people.
The Economy

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On January 30th 2014, Wynne announced her government was increasing the minimum wage from $10.25 to $11 after four years of freeze on the rate and introduced legislation to ensure future increases to the minimum wage to keep up with the CPI (Consumer Price Index). December 13th 2013, Wynne announced partnership with Cisco Canada and announced that the province would provide up to $190 million that would create 5,000 new jobs. May 2nd 2013, Wynne announced tax relief for small businesses by increasing the employers health tax exemption from $400,000 to $450,000.



2014 Election

After presenting a budget that both opposition parties stated they would not support, Wynne called an election scheduled for June 12, 2014.[33]
Personal life

Prior to her coming out as a lesbian at age 37[34] she was married to Phil Cowperthwaite,[35] with whom she had three children. She now lives with her partner[5] Jane Rounthwaite whom she married in July 2005 at Fairlawn Avenue United Church in Toronto.[34] Wynne is a member of the United Church of Canada.[36]
Electoral record
[hide]Ontario general election, 2011
PartyCandidateVotes%±pp
Liberal Kathleen Wynne 24,444 58.32 +7.9
Progressive Conservative Andrea Mandel-Campbell 12,827 30.60 -9.0
New Democratic Khalid Ahmed 3,621 8.64 +3.8
Green Louis Fliss 718 1.71 -3.1
Communist Dimitris Kabitsis 125 0.30
Independent (Vegan Environmental Party) Rosemary Waigh 108 0.26
Independent Soumen Deb 74 0.18
Total valid votes 41,917 100.00
Source: Elections Ontario.[37]

[hide]Ontario general election, 2007
PartyCandidateVotes%±pp
Liberal Kathleen Wynne 23,080 50.44 -2.15
Progressive Conservative John Tory 18,156 39.68 +0.72
Green Adrian Walker 2,202 4.81 +2.05
New Democratic Mike Kenny 2,138 4.67 -1.02
Family Coalition Daniel Kidd 183 0.40
Total valid votes 45,759 100.00
Source: Elections Ontario.[38]

[hide]Ontario general election, 2003
PartyCandidateVotes%±pp
Liberal Kathleen Wynne 23,488 52.59 +8.97
Progressive Conservative David Turnbull 17,394 38.95 -11.57
New Democratic Ali Naqvi 2,540 5.69 +1.00
Green Philip Hawkins 1,239 2.77
Total valid votes 44,661 100.00
Source: Elections Ontario.[39]

References

Jump up^ "Wynne’s political journey marked by connections, not divisions". The Globe and Mail. 2013-01-27. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
Jump up^ "University of Toronto Biochemistry - 100th Birthday". University of Toronto Department of Biochemistry. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
Jump up^ "Liberal Leadership Candidate Profile: Kathleen Wynne". TVO. January 16, 2013. Retrieved January 27, 2013.
Jump up^ "Wynne clears way for Ontario Liberal leadership bid". CBC News. November 2, 2012. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
^ Jump up to:a b Diebel, Linda. "Kathleen Wynne’s not-so-ordinary family". Toronto Star. Retrieved 29 January 2014. "They married in 2005 but prefer the term 'partner' to 'wife.'"
Jump up^ "Liberal leadership contender not your average MPP". Sun News Network. 2013-08-25. Retrieved 2013-01-13.
Jump up^ "Kathleen Wynne open to non-citizens voting in Toronto". Toronto Star. June 12, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
Jump up^ McLean, Adam (May 17, 2011). "New GO Station for Gormley". York Region.
Jump up^ "1994 Toronto General Election Results (Former Metropolitan Toronto)". City of Toronto.
Jump up^ "Toronto Vote 2000 Election Results: Toronto District School Board Ward 8". City of Toronto.
Jump up^ "Ethnic pitch all Greek to Tzekas; Council rivals seeking support from all sides". Toronto Star. November 11, 2000. p. 3.
Jump up^ Capannelli, Heather (August 17, 2001). "Union vote on gay texts angers parents' groups; 'Flabbergasted' they weren't consulted before decision". Toronto Star. p. A8.
Jump up^ Rushowy, Kristin (December 6, 2001). "Cansfield to chair school board ; Rookie trustee wins vice-chair job". Toronto Star. p. B05.
Jump up^ "School equity costs money, Wynne told". Xtra! (Pink Triangle Press). September 28, 2006.
Jump up^ "Dalton McGuinty resigns and prorogues legislature". CBC News. October 15, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
Jump up^ "Wynne poised to announce Ontario Liberal leadership bid". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. November 1, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ "Kathleen Wynne launches Ontario Liberal Party leadership bid". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. November 5, 2012. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Radwanski, Adam (January 11, 2013). "This weekend determines pecking order in Ontario Liberal leadership race". Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Benzie, Robert (January 8, 2013). "Kathleen Wynne leads Liberal leadership race". The Toronto Star. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Benzie, Robert (January 11, 2013). "Ontario Liberal leadership: Glen Murray drops out to support Kathleen Wynne". The Toronto Star. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Chown Oved, Marco (January 24, 2013). "How the Ontario Liberal leadership convention works: Candidates, delegates, ballots and voting". The Toronto Star. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Diebel, Linda (January 15, 2013). "Ontario Liberal leadership: Sandra Pupatello says politics is in her DNA". The Toronto Star. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Jenkins, Jonathan (January 14, 2013). "Ontario likely to see first female premier in Sandra Pupatello or Kathleen Wynne". The Toronto Sun. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ "Kathleen Wynne's Speech At Ontario Liberal Convention". The Huffington Post. January 26, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Radwanski, Adam (January 27, 2013). "For Ontario Liberals, the convention speeches mattered". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Leslie, Keith (January 27, 2013). "Kathleen Wynne Chosen As Ontario Liberal Leader, Next Premier At Convention". The Huffington Post. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Howlett, Karen (January 27, 2013). "Impassioned speech and help from right-of-centre Sousa win the day". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ "Kathleen Wynne – Speech to Liberal Convention Delegates". NetNewsLedger. January 26, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Lynas, Kathie (January 26, 2013). "Pupatello and Wynne in a virtual tie after first ballot at Ontario Liberal leadership convention".CFRA. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Mohammad, Adam (January 27, 2013). "Liberal leadership: Kathleen Wynne to become next premier of Ontario". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ Herhalt, Chris (January 27, 2013). "Kathleen Wynne will be next premier". The Record. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
Jump up^ "Kathleen Wynne sworn in as Ontario’s first female premier, unveils cabinet". National Post. February 11, 2013. Retrieved February 19, 2013.
Jump up^ http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/kathleen-wynne-calls-june-12-ontario-election-1.2629948
^ Jump up to:a b "My Pride: Kathleen Wynne". Metro News. June 24, 2008.
Jump up^ Wells, Jennifer (January 25, 2013). "Ontario Liberal leadership: Behind the scenes with Kathleen Wynne". Toronto Star.
Jump up^ "Fairlawn Avenue United Church: Community Life (Fall 2007)".
Jump up^ "Summary of Valid Ballots Cast for each Candidate (2011)" (PDF). Elections Ontario. p. 4. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
Jump up^ "Summary of Valid Ballots Cast for each Candidate (2007)" (PDF). Elections Ontario. p. 3. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
Jump up^ "Summary of Valid Ballots by Candidate (2003)". Elections Ontario. Retrieved November 2, 201

Andrea Horwath (pronounced Horvath NDP Ontario

Andrea Horwath (pronounced Horvath; born October 24, 1962), is a Canadian politician. She is the Leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party in Canada. She is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Hamilton Centre, and was chosen as the party's leader at its 2009 leadership convention.

She is the first woman to lead the Ontario New Democratic Party, and only the second woman to serve as leader of a political party with representation in the provincial legislature.


Early life, education, early career

Horwath was born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, and has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Labour Studies from McMaster University in that city. She worked part-time as a waitress to pay her way through university. Her father Andrew, an ethnic Hungarian, had immigrated to Canada from Slovakia, and worked on the assembly line at the Ford Motor Company plant in Oakville, Ontario.[1] Her mother is of French and Irish descent. [2]

She worked closely with the Hamilton labour movement for several years, programming and providing literacy, numeracy and ESL training for workers. She subsequently got involved in the cooperative housing movement inWelland, and later became a community development coordinator for Hamilton's McQuesten Legal & Community Services, providing public legal education to groups working with tenants, injured workers and people with disabilities.

In 1996 Horwath earned a certificate of achievement in anti-racism training, and was an organizer of Hamilton's Days of Action campaign against provincial government cutbacks announced by Mike Harris. That year she received the Woman of the Year Award in Public Affairs from the Hamilton Status of Women Committee, in recognition of her work in the community. She also dedicated her time and efforts toward the field of social housing, and was subsequently awarded the Graham Emslie Award for Community Development in Housing by the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association.

She lives in Hamilton with her son Julian (born November 1992). In a March 2011 interview with the Toronto Star, she spoke publicly for the first time about the breakup of her longtime relationship with Julian's father, Hamilton businessman Ben Leonetti.[3] Horwath had met Ben Leonetti in her university years, when she was working part-time as a waitress and he was a jazz musician. The two lived together for 25 years without getting married, and split up in 2010.[4]
Early political career

In the Canadian federal election of 1997, she was the NDP candidate against incumbent Liberal Stan Keyes in the riding of Hamilton West. Although unsuccessful, her second-place finish was a significant improvement on previous NDP efforts in the riding, and gave her an increased level of prominence in the city.
City councillor

Later in 1997, she was elected to Hamilton City Council for Ward Two, outpolling two incumbents who had represented the area for more than 20 years. She emerged as a prominent voice for the political left in the city, and was re-elected to council in 2000 and 2003. During her three terms as city councillor, she chaired the solid waste management committee and the municipal non-profit housing corporation.
Provincial politics
By-election victory

Horwath was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in a 2004 by-election in the then-extant provincial riding of Hamilton East, defeating Liberal candidate Ralph Agostino to succeed the deceased Liberal member Dominic Agostino, Ralph's brother. Winning 63.6 per cent of the vote, up from the NDP's 29.4 per cent in that riding six months earlier, her landslide victory boosted the NDP's seat count over the threshold for official party status in the legislature, and helped give the federal New Democratic Party a bounce in Hamilton that would continue into the federal election shortly thereafter.
2007 election

In the 2007 election, Horwath ran in the new riding of Hamilton Centre, due to redistricting that divided her former Hamilton East riding between Hamilton Centre and the new riding of Hamilton East—Stoney Creek. Horwath's new Hamilton Centre riding included approximately half of her former riding as well as a portion of the former Hamilton West riding where she had run federally in 1997. It also included her entire former city council ward.

In the leadup to the campaign, Horwath was expected to face Hamilton West Liberal incumbent Judy Marsales. However, Marsales opted not to run for another term, and Horwath easily defeated Liberal candidate Steve Ruddick on election day.
2009 NDP leadership campaign

On November 7, 2008, Horwath officially launched her campaign to win the party's leadership. The leadership election was held March 6–8, 2009. Horwath led on the first two ballots, and won on the third ballot with 60.4% of the vote defeating Peter Tabuns, Gilles Bisson and Michael Prue.[5]
2011 election

The 2011 provincial election saw a rise in support for the NDP under Horwath's leadership. The party won more than 20% of the popular vote for the first time since 1995 and almost doubled its seats to elect 17 members of the legislature. The election also resulted in the Liberal government of Dalton McGuinty being reduced to a minority government with the NDP holding the balance of power.

In April 2012, Horwath passed a leadership review at the party's convention with 76% support.
Awards

In March 2012, Horwath received the EVE award which is sponsored by Equal Voice, a non-profit organization focused on promoting women in politics. Past recipients have included women from every level of government.[6]
Electoral record
Hamilton West - Canadian federal election, 1997
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Stan Keyes 20,951
New Democratic Andrea Horwath 7,648
Progressive Conservative John Findlay 6,510
Reform Ken Griffith 6,285
Natural Law Brian Rickard 323
Marxist–Leninist Wendell Fields 170

Hamilton East: By-election, 2004
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Andrea Horwath 15,185 63.6
Liberal Ralph Agostino 6,362 26.6
Progressive Conservative Tara Crugnale 1,772 7.4
Green Raymond Dartsch 448 1.9 –
Independent John Turmel 120 0.5

Hamilton Centre - Ontario general election, 2007
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Andrea Horwath 17,182 44.6
Liberal Steve Ruddick 11,042 28.7
Progressive Conservative Chris Robertson 5,711 14.8
Green Peter Ormond 3,703 9.6 –
Family Coalition Lynne Scime 553 1.4
Communist Bob Mann 316 0.8

Hamilton Centre - Ontario general election, 2011
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Andrea Horwath 20,528 61.3 +16.7
Liberal Donna Tiqui-Shebib 5,852 17.5 -11.1
Progressive Conservative Don Sheppard 4,418 13.2 -1.6
Green Peter Ormond 1,243 3.7 -5.9
Libertarian Robert Kuhlman 634 1.9
Independent Micheal Baldasaro 268 0.8
Family Coalition Steve Passmore 229 0.7 -0.9
Communist Anthony Gracey 133 0.4 -0.4
Freedom Chris Lawson 128 0.4
Reform Robert Szajkowski 75 0.2
Total valid votes 33,508 100.0


Source: "Declared Candidates," The Hamilton Spectator July 23, 2011, A6, News,
Teri Pecoskie. "Liberals give lawyer Hamilton Centre nod," The Hamilton Spectator August 22, 2011, News
References[

Jump up^ NDP Leader gets up close and personal, by Anna Mehler Paperny, The Globe and Mail, Sept. 24, 2011, p. A4
Jump up^ http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/game+changer+Horwath+spotlight+budget+battle+looms/8235198/story.html
Jump up^ "Horwath opens up about life as a single mom". Toronto Star, March 11, 2011.
Jump up^ Anger is a bit motivator for NDP's Andrea Horwath, by Linda Diebel, Toronto Star, October 3, 2011, pp. A1, A3
Jump up^ Murray Campbell, "Horwath elected Ontario NDP Leader". The Globe and Mail, March 7, 2009.
Jump up^ "Equal Voice Toronto announces 2012 EVE Award Recipient Andrea Horwath". 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
External links
Andrea Horwath
Ontario Legislative Assembly Parliamentarian History




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Categories:
1963 births
Canadian people of Hungarian descent
Canadian pro-choice activists
Canadian women in municipal politics
Community activists
Female Canadian political party leaders
Hamilton, Ontario city councillors
Leaders of the Ontario New Democratic Party
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Ontario New Democratic Party MPPs
Women MPPs in Ontario
Canadian people of Irish descent
Franco-Ontarian people

Timothy Patrick "Tim" Hudak Early Early Politics Official opposition Political views

Timothy Patrick "Tim" Hudak (born November 1, 1967) is a politician in Ontario, Canada, and the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party). He also serves as member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for the riding of Niagara West—Glanbrook.


Early life

Tim Hudak was born in Fort Erie, Ontario. His father was a high school principal whose parents came to Canada from Slovakia in advance of World War II.[2] His mother, Anne Marie nee Dillon, was a teacher of Irish/Franco-Ontarian descent. He has a younger sister, Tricia.[2]

Hudak attended the University of Western Ontario, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics in 1990. He then studied at the University of Washington in Seattle on a full scholarship. He received a master's degreein economics in 1993.[3]

While in college, Hudak worked at the Peace Bridge on the U.S. – Canada Border from 1988 to 1993.[2] In 1994, he was hired by Walmart as a travelling manager, instructing employees on the company's policies and operating procedures.[4]
Politics
Early political career

Hudak ran in the provincial election of 1995 in the riding of Niagara South. He defeated Liberal Aubrey Foley by 1,081 votes.[5] At the age of 27 Hudak was the second-youngest Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) elected in 1995, the youngest being John Baird.[6] The Progressive Conservatives won a majority government under Mike Harris, and Hudak was appointed Parliamentary Assistant to Minister of Health Jim Wilson. He later served as Parliamentary Assistant to Wilson's successor, Elizabeth Witmer.[7] During this term the government closed 28 hospitals and fired more than 6,000 nurses, However Hudak was also able to negotiate an agreement to exempt rural and northern hospitals from closure, including four in the Niagara region.[6][8]




Official opposition

In August 2009, shortly after taking power, Hudak criticized the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) after a string of controversies. The government had forced the resignation of several board members and, according to Canadian broadcaster CTV, Hudak "suggested the government was trying to pre-empt another eHealth-like scandal, and promised his party would "shine the light" on any Liberal misspending."[17] Following Hudak's opposition, Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan fired the corporation's CEO, Kelly McDougald, "for cause".[18] The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) also reported that a freedom-of-information request by Hudak's Tories was behind the shakeup. According to Hudak, the Liberals "knew it would be coming up in the opening session of the legislature, [so they] put it out today to head off the scandal.... But you're not going to stop the scandalous spending until [Premier Dalton] McGuinty sets the tone by firing one of his ministers."[18]

On September 10, 2009, Hudak delivered his first major speech as Party leader to the Economic Club of Canada. In his speech, Hudak attacked the Liberals for unnecessary spending at eHealth and OLG,[19] as well as giving a $263-million grant to a video game developer.[19]

On October 19, 2009, Hudak launched a petition to support the new West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH) in West Niagara.[20] The petition called on the McGuinty government as well as the Minister of Health to stop the Hamilton-Niagara-Haldimand-Brant Local Health Integration Network from delaying the construction of the new hospital.[20]



In the midst of the fall legislative session, Hudak launched one of his first major platform pieces, the PC Caucus Small Business Jobs Plan, which he stated was essential to Ontario's economic recovery.[21] Also during the fall of 2009, Hudak and his party ramped up their opposition to the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).[22] The HST, came into effect July 1, 2010, blended the previous eight per cent provincial sales tax with the five per centGoods and Services Tax (GST).

By the end of 2009, polls indicated that under Hudak’s leadership, the Ontario PC Party jumped from a distant second to a double-digit lead.[23] The Party’s first year under Hudak’s leadership wrapped up with the Conservative’s Northern Ontario Jobs plan, a plan to restore jobs and economic growth to Ontario’s vast north. “The big picture here is that [when] developing economies like China and India grow, and the American economy rebounds, there will be a massive appetite for Ontario’s wood products and minerals and other resources,“ Hudak said.[24]

Hudak also criticized the McGuinty’s government’s approach on Ontario’s nuclear industry.[25] In line with his plan for the North, Hudak commented that “Reducing Northern Ontario's high energy costs is key to making industries there more profitable and preventing future mill closures.”[26]

In March 2010 by-elections, the Tories retained retired MPP Bob Runciman's riding of Leeds-Grenville, boosting their support by 19 points to 67 per cent of the vote. The party lost a second race in Ottawa West-Nepean to former Ottawa mayor and former MPP Bob Chiarelli, although they improved their showing over results of the 2007 election. In a third by-election held in Toronto Centre on the same day, the Progressive Conservative candidate came in third with fifteen percent of the vote.[27]

Later in April, Hudak and the Ontario PC party focused Question Period on Local Health Integrated Network (LHIN), a system of regional health authorities established by the McGuinty government. Offering examples of sole-sourced contracting, Hudak hammered the government for broken promises and removing money from front-line care. Hudak said the amount of money being paid in six-figure salaries to LHIN executives and managers had nearly doubled since 2006. Hudak promised to dissolve the LHINs if he were to win the Ontario general election in 2011.[28]

On Canada Day, 2010, the controversial harmonized sales tax (HST) came into effect across the province of Ontario. Tim Hudak responded by saying, “Dalton McGuinty will do what he does best, raising taxes on hard-working families. People will feel it at first at the pumps overnight. Next they will get hit with it on their utility bills."[29][30]

Hudak also vowed to eliminate the eco-tax, a fee on certain environmentally harmful products brought in by McGuinty, if he were elected Premier.[31]

In August 2010, Ontario Ombudsman André Marin exposed a bylaw that enables local health bureaucrats to hold closed-door meetings on hospital closures. Controversial decisions on hospital restructuring in the Niagara-area health unit could now be open to judicial review due to the use of the bylaw by the Hamilton Niagara Haldimand Brant Local Health Integration Network. Premier McGuinty had been responsible for establishing all of the 14 LHINs. In response to Marin’s report, Hudak committed to abolish the LHINs and redirect $200 million in savings back to the health system.[32]

On May 26, 2011, Hudak proposed a highly controversial plan to implement mandatory street-cleaning "work gangs" made up of provincial inmates, replacing current voluntary programs. This program was described as modern-day "chain gangs" by Hudak's critics, who pointed out that such a program would be costly to implement and could pose significant security risks to the public, along with eliminating these entry-level jobs from the paid workforce.[33]

A Nanos Research poll released on August 16, 2011 found that fewer than one in four voters describe Hudak as the most trustworthy leader. Among women, the number was one in five.[34]

Hudak faced criticism from party members after the Progressive Conservatives won only one out of five seats being contested in a series of by-elections on August 1, 2013. 10 party members have petititioned the party to allow a leadership review at the party's policy convention in the fall and two MPPs, Frank Klees and Randy Hillier, have called on Hudak to allow the review to proceed.[35][36]

Tim Hudak and fellow MPP Lisa MacLeod are currently being sued for libel by Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne for saying she “oversaw and possibly ordered the criminal destruction of [gas plant] documents.”[37] Wynne denies she had any knowledge or involvement of the allegations made.

Hudak's party also faces a subsequent lawsuit over statements made on its website brought forward by the Working Families Coalition.[38] The union-backed group that has funded attack ads and has previously been chided by the party for its support of the Ontario Liberal Party.[39]
Political views[edit]

Numerous pundits have labelled Hudak as a blue Tory who is on the right-wing of the PC Party of Ontario, though Hudak has called himself a "purple Tory".[40][41][42] He has proposed income splitting for young couples and families, and campaigned to scrap the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, replacing it with a courts-based system of settling complaints.[43] Hudak's wife Deb Hutton was a senior advisor to Mike Harris, and he is seen by some as the new standard-bearer for the Mike Harris Common Sense Revolution.[44]

When he was running for the PC leadership in 2009, Hudak told the Association for Reformed Political Action that he is pro-life and had signed petitions calling for the defunding of abortions.[45] However on July 18, 2011, during the lead-up to the October 6 provincial election, Hudak stated that he “may have” signed petitions calling for an end to abortion funding. He refused to answer follow-up questions from media regarding his views on abortion, but promised that he would not reopen the abortion debate if elected premier.[46]

In December 2012, Hudak announced that if he were to form government he would allow beer, wine and spirits to be sold at corner stores throughout the province. Hudak also said he would sell part of the Liquor Control Board of Ontario or some of its stores, to the private sector and is open to the idea of a full sell-off of the LCBO.[47] Although the McGuinty government had rejected the idea of selling alcohol in corner stores in the Summer of 2012, weeks after Hudak's announcement they launched a pilot project to allow alcohol to be sold in supermarkets.[48][49]

In April 2013, Hudak met with the National Post's editorial board to discuss education issues in Ontario. Among other things, he was asked about Ontario's publicly funded Roman Catholic school system, which operates in parallel with the public system. Hudak suggested that parents from other religions have "legitimate concerns", but expressed no interest in changing the status quo.[50]


References[edit]

Jump up^ "Tory leader chides city unions". Toronto Star, June 29, 2009.
^ Jump up to:a b c Tim Hudak, Ontario PC Leader | Ontario PC Party
Jump up^ Howlett, Karen. "Ontario Tory Leader Tim Hudak a man of contradictions". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
Jump up^ Greg Furminger, "Hudak to mind the mines," Welland Tribune, 18 June 1999, A1.
Jump up^ "Summary of Valid Ballots by Candidate - General Election of June 8, 1995". Elections Ontario. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
^ Jump up to:a b McMahon, Tamsin (24 September 2011). "The Contender: A profile of Tim Hudak". National Post. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
Jump up^ "Parliamentary Career Details". Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
Jump up^ Ladurantaye, Steve (10 September 2011). "On health care, Ontario PC's Hudak battles memories of Harris cuts". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
Jump up^ Events - London Chamber of Commerce (London, Ontario)
Jump up^ "National Post editorial board: Tim Hudak can’t have it both ways". National Post. 30 May 2011. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
Jump up^ Grenier, Eric (3 August 2011). "Tim Hudak Still The Man To Beat In Upcoming Ontario Vote". Huffington Post. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
Jump up^ Grenier, Eric (2 September 2011). "Ontario Election: Tim Hudak's Hope For Majority Seen Slipping In New Polls". Huffington Post. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
Jump up^ "McGuinty’s Liberals win minority government". The Spec. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
Jump up^ "Hudak launches PC leadership bid with lots of support". CTv News. 2 April 2009. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
^ Jump up to:a b "Tim Hudak elected leader of Ontario's Tories". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 27 June 2009. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ Hudak frontrunner to lead Tory party - The Orillia Packet & Times - Ontario, CA
Jump up^ "OLG faces major shake-up after string of controversies". CTV. 30 August 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
^ Jump up to:a b "Ontario cleans house at OLG". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 31 August 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
^ Jump up to:a b "McGriddle warms for McGuinty". Toronto Sun. 11 September 2011. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
^ Jump up to:a b "Fight for the new hospital: Hudak". Flamborough Review. 23 October 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ "Tim Hudak and PC Caucus Unveil Small Business Growth Plan". Ontario Progressive Conservative Party. 31 October 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ Cassin, Joyce (3 October 2009). "Hudak comes out swinging against HST". CNews. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ "Coyle: Hudak is one lucky, um, boy". The Toronto Star. 11 December 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ "Infrastructure investment key to job creation in north: PCs". Fort Frances Times Online. 30 December 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ Ferguson, Rob (10 February 2010). "Nuclear industry left hanging, Tim Hudak says". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ Grech, Ron. "Hudak sees need to cut North's energy costs POLITICS". The Expositor. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ Ferguson, Rob; Benzie, Robert (6 March 2010). "By-elections show Tories on the rise, Tim Hudak declares". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ "MPP raps Hudak over LHINs". The Tribune. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ "MPP: HST a boost for the future". Flamborough Review. 8 July 2010. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ "Out-of-Gas Dalton McGuinty's HST Tax Grab Set to Hit Ontario Families Tomorrow". CNW Group. 30 June 2010. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
Jump up^ http://www.sachem.ca/news/article/216304
Jump up^ Marin report blasts ‘illegal’ talks on closing Niagara ERs - Healthzone.ca
Jump up^ Brennan, Richard J.; Ferguson, Rob (27 May 2011). "Hudak proposes modern-day chain gangs". The Star (Toronto).
Jump up^ Howlett, Karen (16 August 2011). "Ontario female voters shy away from Tim Hudak - The Globe and Mail". The Globe and Mail(Toronto).
Jump up^ "Ontario PCs allege threats after calls for Tim Hudak review". CBC News. August 10, 2013. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
Jump up^ "PCs feuding over proposed leadership review for Hudak". Ottawa Citizen. August 9, 2013. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
Jump up^ "Kathleen Wynne sues Tim Hudak, MPP Lisa MacLeod and PC party". Toronto Star. 4 April 2014.
Jump up^ "Working Families group sues Tories". Toronto Sun. 27 April 2014.
Jump up^ "Tories demand probe into TV attack ads". CBC News. 24 August 2007. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
Jump up^ Taube, Michael (10 May 2010). "Sex ed blunder presents huge opportunity for Tim Hudak". Ifpress.com. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ Radwanski, Adam (31 January 2011). "Tim Hudak: A true-blue conservative - some days". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ "Hudak's purple prose marks Tory platform". Stratford Beacon Herald. 30 May 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ Ferguson, Rob (28 June 2009). "How much Harris is there in Tim Hudak?". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ "Ontario Election: Is Tory Leader Tim Hudak A Moderate Or Mike Harris Clone?". Huffington Post. 7 September 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ "Hudak won't address abortion beliefs". CBC News. 18 July 2011.
Jump up^ Park, Queen's; Talaga, Tanya (19 July 2011). "Hudak admits to once supporting anti-abortion petition". The Star (Toronto).
Jump up^ "Allow liquor sales at corner stores, Hudak urges". 4 December 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ Ferguson, Rob (25 July 2012). "McGuinty says no to beer, wine in Ontario’s corner stores". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ "Ontario pilot project will allow booze sales in supermarkets". Sun News. 31 December 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
Jump up^ "Chris Selley on Catholic schools: The constitutional quirk that won’t go away". National Post. 17 April 2013.
Jump up^ Tim Hudak’s daughter Miller the light of his life
Jump up^ Ontario PC leader Tim Hudak and his wife Deb Hutton welcome a second daughter
Jump up^ Hudak gets his own iPhone app | Canada | News | Toronto Sun
External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tim Hudak.

Tim Hudak
Ontario Legislative Assembly Parliamentarian History

Trustworthy Computing, Microsoft. Updating Internet Explorer and Driving Security

Updating Internet Explorer and Driving Security




The security of our products is something we take incredibly seriously, so the news coverage of the last few days about a vulnerability in Internet Explorer (IE) has been tough for our customers and for us. We take a huge amount of pride that, among widely used browsers, IE is the safest in the world due to its secure development and ability to protectcustomers, even in the face of cybercriminals who want to break it.

This means that when we saw the first reports about this vulnerability we said fix it, fix it fast, and fix it for all our customers. So we did. The update that does this goes live today at 10 a.m. PDT.

If you are like most people, you have automatic updates turned on, and you’ll get this new update without having to do anything. If you haven’t turned on automatic updates yet, you should do so now. Click the “Check for Updates” button on the Windows Update portion of your Control Panel to get this going.

One of the things that drove much of this coverage was that it coincided with the end of support for Windows XP. Of course we’re proud that so many people loved Windows XP, but the reality is that the threats we face today from a security standpoint have really outpaced the ability to protect those customers using an operating system that dates back over a decade. This is why we’ve been encouraging Windows XP customers to upgrade to a modern, more secure operating system like Windows 7 or Windows 8.1.

Even though Windows XP is no longer supported by Microsoft and is past the time we normally provide security updates, we’ve decided to provide an update for all versions of Windows XP (including embedded), today. We made this exception based on the proximity to the end of support for Windows XP. The reality is there have been a very small number of attacks based on this particular vulnerability and concerns were, frankly, overblown. Unfortunately this is a sign of the times and this is not to say we don’t take these reports seriously. We absolutely do.

Just because this update is out now doesn’t mean you should stop thinking about getting off Windows XP and moving to a newer version of Windows and the latest version of Internet Explorer. If you are on Windows 7, upgrade to Internet Explorer 11. Our modern operating systems provide more safety and security than ever before. The latest version of Internet Explorer has increased support for modern web standards, better performance, and expanded the ability to deliver an immersive experience from within the browser. In other words, cool stuff that you need even if you didn’t know you need it. And when you turn on auto update, we make sure your computer and your browser get better all the time.

This connected world, which brings so much goodness to consumers and businesses, also has a dark side: people and organizations who seek to disrupt technology use and steal information. We are standing guard. We’ve compiled an admirable track record over the last decade in the way we build our products with security at the core and the way we update them every single month to be more secure, chock full of privacy protections, more reliable – more trustworthy.

Today, we made our browser a bit safer. Next month, it will be better still. You can count on us.






Security, Trustworthy Computing