Wally Stiles

R. Wallis "Wally" Stiles, BBA (born October 18 1950 in Sussex, New Brunswick, Canada) is a New Brunswick politician. He is currently a member of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick (MLA), where he serves as the whip for his Progressive Conservative Party. On September 17 2005, he married fellow MLA Joan MacAlpine making them the first husband and wife to serve together in the New Brunswick legislature.

A 1973 graduate of the University of New Brunswick with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, he worked for various companies as a controller and also managed his own private woodlot where he produced maple sugar.

He was involved with his local riding association for some years and was elected to Petitcodiac municipal council in 1995 and 1998. In 1998, he received the most votes of any of the candidates of councillor which entitled him to the position of deputy mayor.

He was elected to the legislature in the 1999 provincial election and served as chairman of the select committee on private passenger automobile insurance in 2002-2003. This committee was charged with investigating the surging insurance rates in the province and making recommendations to curb and reduce them; something that would become a major issue in the 2003 election.

Stiles was re-elected in 2003 and would serve as vice-chairman of the select committee to study public auto insurance which was chaired by New Brunswick New Democratic Party leader Elizabeth Weir. In late February 2006 he became the whip and caucus chair for his party. This was following a cabinet shuffle on February 14 2006 in which incumbent caucus chair Jody Carr was named to cabinet and the crossing of the floor of Michael Malley on February 17 2006, who had been serving as Progressive Conservative whip.

On April 17, 2007, he announced that he would cross the floor to join the Liberal party, along with his wife and fellow MLA Joan MacAlpine. On October 31 2007, he was named to the Liberal cabinet.

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ources

* [http://www1.gnb.ca/legis/bios/bio-e.asp?id=25&version=e Stiles' official bio]
* [http://gnb.ca/elections/98mun/98munresultsntor-e.asp#petitcodiac 1998 election results for Petitcodiac]
* [http://www.cbc.ca/nbvotes2003/ CBC coverage of the 2003 New Brunswick election]