Thomas J. Mulcair
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thomas J. Mulcair (born on October 24, 1954 in Ottawa, Ontario) is a Quebec politician, lawyer and the current MNA for the riding of Chomedey in Laval. He served as the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks from 2003 until 2006.
Mulcair graduated from McGill University in 1977 with degrees in law and civil law. He was named to the Quebec Bar in 1979.
He taught courses in civil law at Concordia University in Montreal in 1984 and also taught at the Saint Lawrence Campus of Champlain Regional College in Sainte-Foy.
He has held several key positions during his career including the Commissioner of the Appeals Committee on the Language of Instruction in 1986, as well as President of l'Office des professions du Québec from 1987 to 1993.
He first entered the National Assembly in the 1994 election winning the riding of Chomedey. He was re-elected in 1998 and 2003. When the Liberal Party of Quebec formed a government in 2003, Premier Jean Charest named Mulcair Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks. During his tenure he was a supporter of the Kyoto Protocol.
During a Cabinet shuffle, Charest offered Mulcair the position of Minister of Government Services which he turned down. Charest removed him from Cabinet. There was speculation that his contrary opinion on the Mont Orford project lead to his removal from Cabinet.[1] Among his realisations was the completions of Quebec Autoroute 30 between Vaudreuil and Brossard, Quebec Autoroute 50 between Gatineau and Lachute, the widening of Quebec route 175 between Stoneham and Saguenay, the widening of Quebec route 185 from Rivière-du-Loup and New Brunswick and the introduction of a toll bridge which would complete Quebec Autoroute 25 between Montreal and Laval [2] despite some public oppositions by environmental groups.
On February 20, 2007, he announced that he would not be a Liberal candidate in the 2007 Quebec general election.[3]
There has been speculation that Mulcair would run in the next federal election, and Mulcair has indicated that he has been courted by all four major federalist parties.[1] In March of 2007, he was in the front row during a speech in Montreal by NDP Leader Jack Layton. After the speech, Mulcair and Layton left together.
[edit] References
- ^ Corbeil, Michel, Mulcair règle ses comptes: Malgré ses flèches à Charest, il reste député Le Soleil, Quebec, March 7, 2006, page A1
- ^ Meunier, Hugo, Prolongement de l'autoroute 25 : Les environnementalistes s'adressent à la Cour supérieure, La Presse, April 1, 2006, page A6
- ^ Mulcair will not be a Liberal candidate in the next election (press release distributed by Canada NewsWire), February 20, 2007
