Manmeet Bhullar

Manmeet Bhullar
MLA for Calgary-Montrose
Incumbent
Assumed office 2008
Preceded by	Hung Pham
Personal details
Born	March 1, 1980 (1980-03-01) (age 31) Calgary, Alberta
Political party	Progressive Conservative
Residence	Calgary, Alberta

Manmeet Singh Bhullar (born March 1, 1980 in Calgary) is a Canadian politician and current Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, representing the constituency of Calgary-Montrose as a Progressive Conservative.

Early life

Bhullar was born March 1, 1980 in the community of Penbrooke in Calgary. His family then moved to the community of Whitehorn where he attended Chief Justice Milvain School and Annie Gale Junior High School. Manmeet then attended Lester B. Pearson High School in Pineridge, where he was a member of the school’s football team.

Education

Bhullar earned his Bachelor of Arts with a Sociology concentration from Athabasca University in 2005. Bhullar also attended Mount Royal College as part of his post-secondary education. In 2011, Bhullar received his Bachelor of Laws from the University of Windsor.

Political life

Bhullar became active in politics early on by helping Rick D. Orman, the first MLA for Calgary-Montrose, in his re-election campaign. While seeking his post-secondary education, Bhullar was an organizer for Jim Prentice’s leadership campaign for the Progressive Conservative Party in 2003.

Bhullar then worked with the Hon. Jim Prentice, MP for Calgary Centre-North, aiding him with his role as Regional Minister for Alberta and the Territories. As Special Assistant at the Minister’s regional office, Manmeet advised both Minister Prentice and the Prime Minister’s Office regarding issues of importance to the region.

Bhullar first sought public office in the 2008 provincial election in the constituency of Calgary-Montrose. At 28 years of age, Bhullar became the youngest member elected to Alberta's 27th legislature. He was appointed to the position of Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Advanced Education and Technology on March 12, 2008, making him the youngest politician to serve as a parliamentary assistant or secretary in Canada at the time.^[1]. In January 2010 he was made Parliamentary Assistant to Municipal Affairs. Bhullar currently sits on two committees: Standing Committee on Legislative Offices and the Standing Committee on Community Services. Bhullar has brought forward a number of Bills in the Alberta legislature:

• Bill 7,the Post-secondary Learning Amendment Act, 2008 • Bill 30, the Alberta Evidence Amendment Act, 2008 • Bill 4, the Post-secondary Learning Amendment Act, 2009 – allowing Mount Royal College and Grant MacEwan College to become Universities. • Bill 6, the Emergency Management Amendment Act, 2010 • Motion 508, a motion encouraging innovation in education (27th Legislature, 2nd Session)

On October 12, 2011 Bhullar was appointed to Cabinet as the Minister for Service Alberta by the new Premier Alison Redford. This makes Manmeet one of the youngest cabinet Ministers ever appointed in Alberta and the first turbaned Sikh to hold a ministerial position.

Community Involvement

Manmeet became very active in the community early on. Bhullar was the founder of a youth organization called "Inspire." Bhullar co-ordinated the Walking Hunger Away campaign in Calgary, and led a team of volunteers to raise money on behalf of the Calgary Health Region. Bhullar also worked with other youth groups in that time. Because of his community work Bhullar became a recipient of the Alberta Centennial Medal, the Centennial Medallion, and the Athabasca University Leadership Award. Bhullar has been a strong advocate for the issues of East Calgarians in the Alberta legislature.

Election results

2008 Alberta general election results ( Calgary-Montrose )			Turnout 30.6%
Affiliation		Candidate	Votes	%
	Progressive Conservative	Manmeet Bhullar	2627	35%
	Independent	Ron Leech	2010	26%
	Liberal	Michael Embaie	1396	18%
	Wildrose Alliance	Said Abdulbaki	818	11%
	NDP	Al Brown	512	7%
	Green	Fred Clemens	262	3%
Total			7631	100%

References

1. ^ "Bhullar's Legislative Assembly of Alberta biography". http://www.assembly.ab.ca/net/index.aspx?p=mla_bio&rnumber=17. 

Persondata
Name	Bhullar, Manmeet
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	March 1, 1980
Place of birth	Calgary, Alberta
Date of death
Place of death