Lawrence Cannon

Infobox CanadianMP
honorific-prefix = The Honourable
name = Lawrence Cannon
honorific-suffix =
PC, MP


riding = Pontiac
parliament = Canadian
term_start = 2006 federal election
term_end =
predecessor = David Smith
birth_date = birth date and age|1947|12|6
birth_place = Quebec City, Quebec
death_date =
death_place =
party = Conservative
profession = Businessman, communications consultant, political assistant
portfolio = Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
spouse = Christine Donoghue
residence = Gatineau, Quebec
footnotes=

Lawrence Cannon, PC, MP (born December 6, 1947 in Quebec City, Quebec) is a Canadian politician from Québec and Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Quebec lieutenant.

Genealogy

Cannon is the son of government lawyer Louis Cannon and Quebec television broadcast pioneer Rosemary "Posie" Power, and the grand-nephew of Lawrence Arthur Dumoulin Cannon, a long-time Liberal politician and Supreme Court judge. He is of Irish descent.

The extended Cannon family has had strong regional and national political influence in Canada for over a century and is considered to be influential as one of Canada's hereditary ruling class families, members having served in positions as lawyers, judges, Supreme Court judges, senators, ministers of defence, solicitors general, and members of parliament. They have had large influence in the national resource industries, as "barons" in the lumber industry particularly, as well as in broadcasting.

The most famous member of the family was Cannon's maternal grandfather, Charles "Chubby" Power, a confidante and Minister of National Defence for Air to Governor General John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Mackenzie King.

Early life

Cannon's father was francophone while his mother was anglophone. He was educated at French speaking public junior and high schools near Quebec City and is bilingual.

He graduated in political science from the Université de Montréal in 1971; and then worked for Liberal Premier Robert Bourassa as correspondence secretary, leaving in 1976 for higher academic studies. Cannon received an MBA from Université Laval in 1979. He worked then in private sector as a financial analyst for Société de développement industriel until 1981; and then as head of Les Radiateurs Roy ltée from September 1981, to December 1985.

Provincial political career

Cannon then was elected in 1985 as a member of the National Assembly of Quebec for the provincial riding of La Peltrie; and then held several cabinet level positions: notably as Minister of Foreign Trade and Technological Development, Tourism, and then Transport. From October 1990 to January 1994 he was minister for communications, and implemented the 911 emergency system as well as the Privacy Act within Quebec. He was also active with the federal Liberals supporting Sheila Copps (who as well later became Deputy Prime Minister of Canada) in her attempt to win the federal 1990 Liberal leadership convention won instead by Jean Chrétien.

Private sector work

Cannon worked in private industry as vice-president of Unitel; now AT&T Canada Corp. during the AT&T takeover of the Canadian firm; and in other concerns between 1994 and 2001 primarily in the field of information technologies. Cannon then remarried; and took an interest in Quebec local politics building a new constituency.

Constituency building in local politics

Cannon was elected as councillor for the city of Gatineau in 2001, representing Hull's Val-Tétreau District, under mayor Yves Ducharme. He served as president of the Société de Transport de l'Outaouais from January 2002 to November 2005, while at the same time he was appointed president of the Association du transport urbain du Québec. He had an especial sympathy for solving transport problems in Gatineau by road building rather than public transit approaches. During his mandate, the STO developed a BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) project called "Rapibus", which is still pending. His association and ownership of Groupe Cannon and Associates, a consulting company in telecommunications, has received little attention, and this ownership is expected to be put in a blind trust as is usual in federal politics.

Foreign policy initiatives

Cannon travelled extensively in Europe and the Americas both in and out of public life. In 2001, Cannon was appointed to the Board of the World Commerce Institute, and then as President and General Manager of AmeriContact for the Quebec City Summit of the Americas in Quebec City.

Present activities

Although Cannon and his family have historically supported the federal Liberals, he switched to the Conservative Party of Canada in the early 21st century. On September 16, 2005, he was named deputy chief of staff and deputy executive director of the Conservative Party. He was also named as Quebec lieutenant to party leader Stephen Harper.

He successfully ran as Conservative candidate in the riding of Pontiac in the 2006 federal election, beating incumbent Liberal M.P. David Smith. Winning with 33.68% of the vote, Cannon gained a support from traditional Liberal voters. The Liberals had held the riding and its predecessors for all but nine years since 1935, and the Conservative candidate had finished a distant third in 2004 with 22.15% of the vote.

On February 6, 2006, he was sworn in as Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. His portfolio includes Transport Canada, Infrastructure Canada, the Canadian Transportation Agency, the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada and 16 Crown corporations [http://www.tc.gc.ca/aboutus/crowncorporations.htm] .

Many pundits had predicted that Cannon would also be named Deputy Prime Minister of Canada, but Harper chose not to fill that office. However, Cannon is first on the list of ministers designated to fill in for Harper if he is unable to perform his duties, making him Deputy Prime Minister in practice if not in name. This was further emphasized when Cannon seconded the pro forma bill to start the first session of the 39th Canadian Parliament; the bill is introduced before the House takes the Speech from the Throne under consideration so as to maintain the right of the House to consider matters other than those directed to it by the crown. This bill is normally proposed by the Prime Minister and seconded by either the Deputy Prime Minister or the Government House Leader. [http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=39&Ses=1&DocId=2154159]

Cannon is one of the higher-ranking Red Tories in the Harper cabinet. He is very liberal on social issues (for instance, he strongly supports same-sex marriage), but conservative on fiscal matters.Fact|date=August 2008

Controversy in 2008 election

On Wednesday 18th, 2008, during the 40th Canadian federal election, Mr. Cannon was campaigning in Maniwaki, Que., Wednesday when a group of protesters from the divided native community of Barriere Lake showed up to outline their demands. After Mr. Cannon left, “If you behave and you're sober and there's no problems and if you don't do a sit down and whatever, I don't care,” said Mr. Cannon's assistant Darlene Lannigan to Mr. Matchewan. She then added: “One of them showed up the other day and was drinking.”

“Are you calling me an alcoholic?” replied Mr. Matchewan.

The exchange was caught on tape by the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network, running as the top story on the networks news broadcast. Mr. Cannon's director of communications was forced to issue a statement of apology for the remarks. [http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080918.welxncanapolgy0918/BNStory/politics/home]

ee also

* List of Canadian political families

References

*

External links

* [http://www.lawrencecannon.com/ Official website of Lawrence Cannon]
* [http://www.tomifobia.com/black/new_tory.shtml History of the Cannon Family 1900->date]
* [http://www.assnat.qc.ca/fra/membres/notices/c/cannl.htm/ Archives liées à ce parlementaire Lawrence Cannon en francais]
* [http://www.fasken.com/WEB/fmdwebsite.nsf/0/AC520936FE629A77872569D8005F8D61/$File/FOREIGNOWNERSHIP.PDF?OpenElement Unitel and AT&T in 1996]
* [http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/Files/Parliamentarian.aspx?Item=7d224fe4-489d-41a1-aaa5-a36d127d8585&Language=E&Section=FederalExperience Parliament Webpage]