Brad Clark
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Brad Clark (born 1960 in Hamilton, Ontario) is a Canadian politician in Ontario, Canada. He is currently the councillor in Ward nine in Hamilton, Ontario. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1999 to 2003, and was a cabinet minister in the governments of Mike Harris and Ernie Eves.
[edit] Early life and education
Clark was educated at Mohawk College in Hamilton, receiving a diploma in Radio Broadcasting. He owned and operated a small business after his graduation, and also served as Executive Director of the Songwriters Association of Canada.
[edit] Political life
He was elected to the Ontario legislature in the provincial election of 1999, defeating Liberal Chris Phillips by about 2,500 votes in the suburban Hamilton riding of Stoney Creek. On February 8, 2001, he was appointed as the province's Minister of Transportation. When Ernie Eves succeeded Mike Harris as Premier on April 15, 2002, he named Clark as his Minister of Labour.
Clark was generally regarded as one of the more progressive figures in the Harris and Eves governments. He was one of the first ministers to call for a cap on hydro rates in 2002, and also used Ontario's Environmental Bill of Rights to challenge the Eves government's landfill policy. He did not, however, increase the province's minimum wage, which had been frozen since the Tories assumed office in 1995.
Clark was initially favoured for re-election in the provincial election of 2003 against Liberal candidate Tony Magnini. Magnini was forced to resign in mid-campaign amid allegations of fraud, however, and the Liberals were able to convince Jennifer Mossop, a popular local journalist, to take his place. She defeated Clark by over 5,000 votes.
[edit] Broadcasting
In June 2004, Clark began co-hosting a weekly program on aging on CHML radio. In the same year, he endorsed Frank Klees's bid to lead the Ontario PC Party.
On November 13, 2006, Clark beat out incumbent city councillor Phil Bruckler by a narrow margin for a seat on Hamilton City Council.
