Dick Harris
Encyclopedia
Richard M. "Dick" Harris (born September 6, 1944) is a Canadian
politician. He is a Member of Parliament and member of the Conservative Party of Canada
. He also was a member of the Reform Party of Canada
and the Canadian Alliance
. He represents the electoral district of Cariboo—Prince George
, and formerly Prince George–Bulkley Valley. He was first elected during the 1993 federal election
and was re-elected in 1997
, 2000
, 2004
, 2006
, 2008
and 2011. He challenged Reform Party leader Preston Manning
for leadership when Manning proposed merging the party with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
. He later campaigned for Stockwell Day
to become leader. The most prominent position he held with his party was Chief Opposition Whip from 2001 to 2002. He was accused of financial irregularities during a nomination race in 2004 and generated controversy when he appointed an unelected, Conservative Party member to represent a neighbouring electoral district in governmental affairs, though the electoral district had an elected Member of Parliament, but from an opposition party.
He has served a member on several parliamentary committees, including the 'Standing Committee on Finance' during the 36th and 37th Parliaments and the 'Standing Committee on Natural Resources' during the 39th, 40th, and 41st Parliaments. He has introduced 2 Private Member Bills into the House of Commons, though neither were adopted: An Act to amend the Criminal Code (failure to stop at scene of accident) in the 38th Parliament and An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (incarceration) in the 41st Parliament.
but, along with a brother, he was raised in Prince Rupert, British Columbia
by his mother, a single parent
. After finishing school he moved to Prince George, married and raised three children. A businessman, he owned and operated several companies in Prince George and the Cariboo
region. His most successful company specialized in tire
s and distribution of tire parts, though he sold the companies before being elected as a Member of Parliament. One of his businesses, RMH Home Innovations, became insolvent and Harris was sued in 1995 for non-payment of debts.
Politically, Harris had been a supporter of the Progressive Conservative Party
for 20 years before joining the Reform Party
in 1989. He was active in fundraising and became chairman of the Reform Fund Canada. He served on the party's executive council from 1991 to 1993. In 1992, Harris won the Reform Party nomination to stand for election in the next federal election in the Prince George–Bulkley Valley riding. While a sitting Member of parliament, he was borrowed money from constituent Roman Muentner. Muentner sued Harris for non-payment. While Harris admitted he owed the money, he successfully argued that he should not have to repay the loan because the loan documentation was not signed under seal.
. The race in the Prince George–Bulkley Valley riding was expected to be close between Harris and the incumbent MP, Brian Gardiner (NDP
). However, his party placed third and the Liberal Party of Canada
formed a majority government. In both sessions of the 35th Parliament
Harris sat on the 'Standing Committee on Government Operations' and the 'Standing Committee on Transport'. In the first session he was also assigned to two subcommittees: the 'Subcommittee on the St. Lawrence Seaway' and the 'Subcommittee on the Consideration of the Objections Filed on the Proposed Electoral Boundaries for the Western Provinces'. In July 1994, Reform Party leader Preston Manning
formed a three member critic team for Indian Affairs and Northern Development with Harris, Mike Scott
and John Duncan
. The team held town hall-style meetings in BC where they opposed independent self-governments but advocated for municipal-style governments on reserves, like the Sechelt Indian Government District, and warned that land claims could be costly and usurp private property rights. The three member team was unable to draw sufficient attention to the Reform Party's position on native affairs, so the team was disbanded in December 1994 and Harris re-assigned to the "Reform Posse", a special team of Reform Party MPs (Harris, Jay Hill
and Randy White
) meant to investigate government spending, similar to the Liberal Party of Canada Rat Pack
. With the assistance of a forensic accountant, the Reform Posse investigated the Department of Indian Affairs but Manning disbanded them in August 1995 and Harris was re-assigned to be the Reform Party's deputy critic of public works. He was subsequently re-assigned to be the assistant critic on Transport in February 1997, a role he filled until the end of the parliamentary session in June.
and Harris won re-election with 54% of the vote in the Prince George—Bulkley Valley riding. The Liberal Party again formed a majority government but Harris' Reform Party formed the Official Opposition
. Harris became the Vice-Chair of the 'Standing Committee on Finance' in both sessions of the 36th Parliament
, as well as being the Reform Party's assistant critic on Finance.
Meanwhile, a division formed within the Reform Party as the leader, Preston Manning
, explored merging the party with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
. In April 1999, Harris became the 13th Reform Party MP to publicly oppose a merger, saying "There's nothing wrong with our product. There's nothing wrong with our brand-label. Maybe the salesmen communicating the message are not the right people out there." Harris was concerned that they would have to compromise on their opposition to official bilingualism and positions on Senate reform
, family values
, and justice issues. A referendum within the Reform Party on whether to explore a merger plan was called and Harris debated Manning on the issue at Reform Party events. Harris paid for national advertising opposing the merger idea and co-signed a letter distributed to all 59 Reform Party MPs which said "A Yes vote in May would be a tactical disaster... [the] Reform [Party] will be perceived as having already decided to commit suicide". The referendum passed with 60% voting in favour of a merger, dubbed the 'United Alternative'. Committees were formed to investigate a plan for merger and Harris joined the policy committee.
A second referendum was set for the Reform Party's convention in March 2000 to decide on whether to pursue the merger. Harris, in January 2000, still opposed to the United Alternative, and announced his candidacy for leader of the party — a challenge to party leader Manning who was campaigning for the merger. Harris immediately assigned a campaign chairman and launched a nationwide membership and fund-raising drives. The 55-year old Harris viewed his campaign as staying true to the Reform Party's roots in populism
and rejecting the Progressive Conservative Party's "elitist politics". Manning and those who favoured the United Alternative, like Reform Party MP Jay Hill
(Prince George—Peace River
) with whom Harris shared a constituency office in Prince George, saw the merger as the best way to form a government. Harris viewed the push for the United Alternative as a top-down initiative by Manning and a small group of advisers and called the United Alternative an "unholy alliance". At a late-January meeting, party members voted against launching a leadership review, ending Harris' leadership bid. At a later meeting, in March, party members voted in favour of dissolving the Reform Party of Canada and re-forming as the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance
with a new constitution and policy planks better suited for a merger with the Progressive Conservatives. When it came time to select a leader, Harris endorsed Stockwell Day
, an Albertan provincial politician
who went on to defeat Manning.
Harris, as a member of the Canadian Alliance, was again re-elected in the Prince George–Bulkley Valley riding, this time with 59% of the vote. The Canadian Alliance again formed the Official Opposition to the Liberal Party's majority government. In the first session of the 37th Parliament, Harris served as a vice-chair of the 'Standing Committee on Finance', and a member of the 'Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs', the 'Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages', and the 'Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations'. Fellow Canadian Alliance were criticizing the performance of their leader, Stockwell Day, during the election. In response, Day shuffled the responsibilities of his MPs in April 2001, demoting Opposition House Leader
Chuck Strahl
and promoting Harris to Chief Opposition Whip
. Day and Harris took aggressive stances by forbidding public criticism. Art Hanger
immediately spoke out against them to the media and was subsequently removed from caucus. On May 16, several Day loyalist, including Harris, co-signed a letter directed at the remaining caucus members acknowledging rumours of a parallel caucus being formed but that could not be "tolerated". The letter re-stated the formal responsibilities that all Canadian Alliance MPs agreed to and that "members will be breaching their formal written word, given to the leader, the party and their constituency, as a condition of their nomination" if they were found to "publicly attack any other colleague, the leader or the party".
Hanger was followed by Chuck Strahl
, Gary Lunn
, Jim Pankiw
, Val Meredith
, Grant McNally
, Jay Hill
and Jim Gouk
who all publicly criticized Day and withdrew or were removed from the Canadian Alliance caucus. Five more members left in June and July, including Deborah Grey
. Grey accused Harris of seizing her computer and reviewing her files without her knowledge. Speaker of the House Peter Milliken
investigated and ruled that Grey's "rights had been violated". In September, the dissident Canadian Alliance members formed a parallel caucus called the Democratic Representative Caucus
and Day eventually conceded to a formal leadership review. Harris resigned as whip in January 2002 in order to campaign for Day's re-election as party leader. Stephen Harper
won the leadership contest in April 2002 with 55% of the party votes. Under Harper, Harris remained the assistant critic on finance but his committee roles were reduced to solely the 'Standing Committee on Finance' which he was a vice-chair in the 2nd session and a member in the 3rd session. Harper led the merger of the Canadian Alliance with Progressive Conservative Party to form the Conservative Party of Canada
which Harris joined.
Harris was challenged by Williams Lake
dentist Elmer Thiessen for the Conservative Party nomination. On the evening of the vote, the committee counting the votes announced that Harris was leading and that they wanted to wait to count mail-in ballots before announcing a winner. After protests, based on Elections Canada rules that all ballots must be in by the time of counting, the party ordered a second ballot take place due to voting irregularities, including accusations that Harris improperly signed up new members and that constituency association officials purposely restricted voting to Williams Lake only. Harris won on the second ballot by 16 votes but the RCMP launched an investigation into Harris for financial irregularities. Harris's campaign manager, Josh Bredo is currently in prison. The investigation could find no irregularities. Harris went onto win the election in the Cariboo—Prince George
riding with 46% of the vote and his party again formed the Official Opposition to the Liberal Party. Harris was given no critic duties or committee roles during the 38th Parliament but Harris did introduce one bill into the House of Commons: Bill C-275 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (failure to stop at scene of accident). Bill C-275 received first reading on November 15, 2004. In his sponsor's speech Harris said,
The Minister of Justice
did not support bill based on its lack of distinction between intentionally
and unintentionally not stopping at the scene of accident and its dis-proportionality to other crimes, so the bill was voted down, 194 to 94, on June 22, 2005. Meanwhile, his constituency association (most of whom had supported Harris' nomination challenger, Elmer Thiessen) formed a committee to investigate the financial irregularities charges, eventually finding charges to be valid. The constituency association held an election in February 2005 for their board of directors. Harris supporters filled 27 of the 30 seats and the new board withdrew the previous board's findings against Harris. A month later, the RCMP dropped its investigation due to "insufficient information". A new constituency office was opened in Williams Lake in September 2004 and an office in Quesnel in November 2005.
. He went on to win the Cariboo—Prince George
riding with 45% of the vote and this time Harris' party won and formed the government. In the 39th Parliament, he served as a member of the 'Standing Committee on Natural Resources' for both sessions and as a member on the 'Legislative Committee on Bill C-2' (Tackling Violent Crime Act) during the second session. Harper appointed Harris to be the chair of the British Columbia Conservative Caucus and the party's forestry caucus.
Harris generated controversy in August 2007 when, as chair of the BC Conservative Caucus, he appointed Houston
mayor Sharon Smith as the "government go-to person" in neighbouring electoral district Skeena—Bulkley Valley
. He told residents, through the media, to approach Smith rather than elected local MP Nathan Cullen
, a member of an opposition party, for help with government services or lobbying for federal funding. The Conservative Party denounced the move with government spokesman Ryan Sparrow saying it was not sanctioned by the party and that local residents should use their elected member of parliament. Another controversy arose when it was discovered that the Conservative Party used an "in-and-out" plan to have regional offices pay for national advertising. Opposition parties contend that the Conservatives did this to avoid campaign financing limits and attain reimbursement for the costs through Election Canada. Harris' office participated with $30,000 (36% of his total campaign expenses for advertising), though Harris and the party maintain that they kept within the law.
Harris was re-elected in the Cariboo—Prince George
riding with 55% of the vote and his party again formed a minority government. During the campaign he received criticism for being "invisible" and living a semi-retired life in Kelowna
some 600 km from his constituency. Harris maintained an apartment in Prince George on Range Road during this period. He did not own property in Kelowna. However, he responded to specific residency questions by suggesting that his prior long-term residence (over 50 years in the area) in Prince George qualifies him to represent the region. In the 40th Parliament, he served as a member of the 'Standing Committee on International Trade' in the 2nd session and on the 'Standing Committee on Natural Resources' during the 3rd session. He retained his chairmanship of the Conservative's forestry caucus and the BC Caucus. Government opposition members and local critics, called Harris to task for failing to read the Canada/US Softwood Lumber Agreement, however, letters to newspapers from the main forestry companies in his province supported him in the work he did on their behalf during the Softwood Lumber negotiations.
riding. In the May 2011 election he faced UNBC
student Jon Van Barneveld for the NDP, rancher Heidi Redl for the Green Party, UBC
student Sangeeta Lalli for the Liberal Party, pilot Henry Thiessen for the Christian Heritage Party, UNBC student Jordan Turner for the Rhinoceros Party, and independent Jon Ronan. Harris won the riding with 56% of the vote and his Conservative Party formed a majority government. As the 41st Parliament
began, Harris was assigned to the Standing Committee on Natural Resources. In the first session Harris introduced a Private Member's Bill (C-316) An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (incarceration) which would have made time spent in jail ineligible as wait times in qualifying for employment insurance.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
politician. He is a Member of Parliament and member of the Conservative Party of Canada
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
. He also was a member of the Reform Party of Canada
Reform Party of Canada
The Reform Party of Canada was a Canadian federal political party that existed from 1987 to 2000. It was originally founded as a Western Canada-based protest party, but attempted to expand eastward in the 1990s. It viewed itself as a populist party....
and the Canadian Alliance
Canadian Alliance
The Canadian Alliance , formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance , was a Canadian conservative political party that existed from 2000 to 2003. The party was the successor to the Reform Party of Canada and inherited its position as the Official Opposition in the House of Commons and held...
. He represents the electoral district of Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
, and formerly Prince George–Bulkley Valley. He was first elected during the 1993 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1993
The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...
and was re-elected in 1997
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
, 2000
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....
, 2004
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
, 2006
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
, 2008
Canadian federal election, 2008
The 2008 Canadian federal election was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 40th Canadian Parliament after the previous parliament had been dissolved by the Governor General on September 7, 2008...
and 2011. He challenged Reform Party leader Preston Manning
Preston Manning
Ernest Preston Manning, CC is a Canadian politician. He was the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance...
for leadership when Manning proposed merging the party with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
. He later campaigned for Stockwell Day
Stockwell Day
Stockwell Burt Day, Jr., PC, MP is a former Canadian politician, and a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He is a former cabinet minister in Alberta, and a former leader of the Canadian Alliance. Day was MP for the riding of Okanagan—Coquihalla in British Columbia and the president of...
to become leader. The most prominent position he held with his party was Chief Opposition Whip from 2001 to 2002. He was accused of financial irregularities during a nomination race in 2004 and generated controversy when he appointed an unelected, Conservative Party member to represent a neighbouring electoral district in governmental affairs, though the electoral district had an elected Member of Parliament, but from an opposition party.
He has served a member on several parliamentary committees, including the 'Standing Committee on Finance' during the 36th and 37th Parliaments and the 'Standing Committee on Natural Resources' during the 39th, 40th, and 41st Parliaments. He has introduced 2 Private Member Bills into the House of Commons, though neither were adopted: An Act to amend the Criminal Code (failure to stop at scene of accident) in the 38th Parliament and An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (incarceration) in the 41st Parliament.
Before becoming a Member of Parliament
Dick Harris was born in VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
but, along with a brother, he was raised in Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Prince Rupert is a port city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is the land, air, and water transportation hub of British Columbia's North Coast, and home to some 12,815 people .-History:...
by his mother, a single parent
Single parent
Single parent is a term that is mostly used to suggest that one parent has most of the day to day responsibilities in the raising of the child or children, which would categorize them as the dominant caregiver...
. After finishing school he moved to Prince George, married and raised three children. A businessman, he owned and operated several companies in Prince George and the Cariboo
Cariboo
The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia along a plateau stretching from the Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the woodland caribou that were once abundant in the region...
region. His most successful company specialized in tire
Tire
A tire or tyre is a ring-shaped covering that fits around a wheel rim to protect it and enable better vehicle performance by providing a flexible cushion that absorbs shock while keeping the wheel in close contact with the ground...
s and distribution of tire parts, though he sold the companies before being elected as a Member of Parliament. One of his businesses, RMH Home Innovations, became insolvent and Harris was sued in 1995 for non-payment of debts.
Politically, Harris had been a supporter of the Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
for 20 years before joining the Reform Party
Reform Party of Canada
The Reform Party of Canada was a Canadian federal political party that existed from 1987 to 2000. It was originally founded as a Western Canada-based protest party, but attempted to expand eastward in the 1990s. It viewed itself as a populist party....
in 1989. He was active in fundraising and became chairman of the Reform Fund Canada. He served on the party's executive council from 1991 to 1993. In 1992, Harris won the Reform Party nomination to stand for election in the next federal election in the Prince George–Bulkley Valley riding. While a sitting Member of parliament, he was borrowed money from constituent Roman Muentner. Muentner sued Harris for non-payment. While Harris admitted he owed the money, he successfully argued that he should not have to repay the loan because the loan documentation was not signed under seal.
35th Parliament
The next federal election was held in October 1993Canadian federal election, 1993
The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...
. The race in the Prince George–Bulkley Valley riding was expected to be close between Harris and the incumbent MP, Brian Gardiner (NDP
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
). However, his party placed third and the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
formed a majority government. In both sessions of the 35th Parliament
35th Canadian Parliament
The 35th Canadian Parliament was in session from January 17, 1994 until April 27, 1997. The membership was set by the 1993 federal election on October 25, 1993, and it changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections until it was dissolved prior to the 1997 election.It was controlled by...
Harris sat on the 'Standing Committee on Government Operations' and the 'Standing Committee on Transport'. In the first session he was also assigned to two subcommittees: the 'Subcommittee on the St. Lawrence Seaway' and the 'Subcommittee on the Consideration of the Objections Filed on the Proposed Electoral Boundaries for the Western Provinces'. In July 1994, Reform Party leader Preston Manning
Preston Manning
Ernest Preston Manning, CC is a Canadian politician. He was the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance...
formed a three member critic team for Indian Affairs and Northern Development with Harris, Mike Scott
Mike Scott (politician)
Mike Scott was a Reform Party of Canada Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993-2000. Scott represented the riding of Skeena , in Northwestern British Columbia....
and John Duncan
John Duncan (Canadian politician)
John Morris Duncan, PC, MP, is a Canadian politician sitting as a member of the Canadian Parliament from 1993 to January 2006 and again from October 2008...
. The team held town hall-style meetings in BC where they opposed independent self-governments but advocated for municipal-style governments on reserves, like the Sechelt Indian Government District, and warned that land claims could be costly and usurp private property rights. The three member team was unable to draw sufficient attention to the Reform Party's position on native affairs, so the team was disbanded in December 1994 and Harris re-assigned to the "Reform Posse", a special team of Reform Party MPs (Harris, Jay Hill
Jay Hill
Jay D. Hill PC is a former Canadian politician and member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He was the Member of Parliament for the riding of Prince George—Peace River from 1993 until his retirement in 2010. He also served as Government House Leader in the Canadian House of Commons during his...
and Randy White
Randy White (politician)
Randy White is an accountant and former Canadian politician.White was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons as theReform Party Member of Parliament for...
) meant to investigate government spending, similar to the Liberal Party of Canada Rat Pack
Liberal Party of Canada Rat Pack
The Rat Pack was the nickname given to a group of young, high-profile Canadian Liberal opposition Members of Parliament during the Progressive Conservative government of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney....
. With the assistance of a forensic accountant, the Reform Posse investigated the Department of Indian Affairs but Manning disbanded them in August 1995 and Harris was re-assigned to be the Reform Party's deputy critic of public works. He was subsequently re-assigned to be the assistant critic on Transport in February 1997, a role he filled until the end of the parliamentary session in June.
36th Parliament
The next election was held in June 1997Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
and Harris won re-election with 54% of the vote in the Prince George—Bulkley Valley riding. The Liberal Party again formed a majority government but Harris' Reform Party formed the Official Opposition
Official Opposition (Canada)
In Canada, Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition , commonly known as the Official Opposition, is usually the largest parliamentary opposition party in the House of Commons or a provincial legislative assembly that is not in government, either on its own or as part of a governing coalition...
. Harris became the Vice-Chair of the 'Standing Committee on Finance' in both sessions of the 36th Parliament
36th Canadian Parliament
The 36th Canadian Parliament was in session from September 22, 1997 until October 22, 2000. The membership was set by the 1997 federal election on June 2, 1997, and it changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections until it was dissolved prior to the 2000 election.It was controlled by...
, as well as being the Reform Party's assistant critic on Finance.
Meanwhile, a division formed within the Reform Party as the leader, Preston Manning
Preston Manning
Ernest Preston Manning, CC is a Canadian politician. He was the only leader of the Reform Party of Canada, a Canadian federal political party that evolved into the Canadian Alliance...
, explored merging the party with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
. In April 1999, Harris became the 13th Reform Party MP to publicly oppose a merger, saying "There's nothing wrong with our product. There's nothing wrong with our brand-label. Maybe the salesmen communicating the message are not the right people out there." Harris was concerned that they would have to compromise on their opposition to official bilingualism and positions on Senate reform
Triple-E Senate
The Triple-E Senate is a proposed variation of reform to the current Canadian Senate, calling for senators to be elected to exercise effective powers in numbers equally representative of each province; this is in contrast to the present arrangement wherein individuals are appointed to the Senate...
, family values
Family values
Family values are political and social beliefs that hold the nuclear family to be the essential ethical and moral unit of society. Familialism is the ideology that promotes the family and its values as an institution....
, and justice issues. A referendum within the Reform Party on whether to explore a merger plan was called and Harris debated Manning on the issue at Reform Party events. Harris paid for national advertising opposing the merger idea and co-signed a letter distributed to all 59 Reform Party MPs which said "A Yes vote in May would be a tactical disaster... [the] Reform [Party] will be perceived as having already decided to commit suicide". The referendum passed with 60% voting in favour of a merger, dubbed the 'United Alternative'. Committees were formed to investigate a plan for merger and Harris joined the policy committee.
A second referendum was set for the Reform Party's convention in March 2000 to decide on whether to pursue the merger. Harris, in January 2000, still opposed to the United Alternative, and announced his candidacy for leader of the party — a challenge to party leader Manning who was campaigning for the merger. Harris immediately assigned a campaign chairman and launched a nationwide membership and fund-raising drives. The 55-year old Harris viewed his campaign as staying true to the Reform Party's roots in populism
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
and rejecting the Progressive Conservative Party's "elitist politics". Manning and those who favoured the United Alternative, like Reform Party MP Jay Hill
Jay Hill
Jay D. Hill PC is a former Canadian politician and member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He was the Member of Parliament for the riding of Prince George—Peace River from 1993 until his retirement in 2010. He also served as Government House Leader in the Canadian House of Commons during his...
(Prince George—Peace River
Prince George—Peace River
Prince George—Peace River is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.-Geography:...
) with whom Harris shared a constituency office in Prince George, saw the merger as the best way to form a government. Harris viewed the push for the United Alternative as a top-down initiative by Manning and a small group of advisers and called the United Alternative an "unholy alliance". At a late-January meeting, party members voted against launching a leadership review, ending Harris' leadership bid. At a later meeting, in March, party members voted in favour of dissolving the Reform Party of Canada and re-forming as the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance
Canadian Alliance
The Canadian Alliance , formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance , was a Canadian conservative political party that existed from 2000 to 2003. The party was the successor to the Reform Party of Canada and inherited its position as the Official Opposition in the House of Commons and held...
with a new constitution and policy planks better suited for a merger with the Progressive Conservatives. When it came time to select a leader, Harris endorsed Stockwell Day
Stockwell Day
Stockwell Burt Day, Jr., PC, MP is a former Canadian politician, and a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He is a former cabinet minister in Alberta, and a former leader of the Canadian Alliance. Day was MP for the riding of Okanagan—Coquihalla in British Columbia and the president of...
, an Albertan provincial politician
Legislative Assembly of Alberta
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...
who went on to defeat Manning.
37th Parliament
In the November 2000 electionCanadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....
Harris, as a member of the Canadian Alliance, was again re-elected in the Prince George–Bulkley Valley riding, this time with 59% of the vote. The Canadian Alliance again formed the Official Opposition to the Liberal Party's majority government. In the first session of the 37th Parliament, Harris served as a vice-chair of the 'Standing Committee on Finance', and a member of the 'Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs', the 'Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages', and the 'Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations'. Fellow Canadian Alliance were criticizing the performance of their leader, Stockwell Day, during the election. In response, Day shuffled the responsibilities of his MPs in April 2001, demoting Opposition House Leader
House Leader
In Canada, each political party with representation in the House of Commons has a House Leader who is a front bench Member of Parliament and an expert in parliamentary procedure...
Chuck Strahl
Chuck Strahl
Charles Strahl, PC, MP was a politician in British Columbia, Canada. He was a Member of Parliament in the governing Conservative Party of Canada.-Before politics:...
and promoting Harris to Chief Opposition Whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
. Day and Harris took aggressive stances by forbidding public criticism. Art Hanger
Art Hanger
Arthur "Art" Hanger is a Canadian politician.Hanger is a former member of the Conservative Party of Canada in the Canadian House of Commons, having represented the riding of Calgary Northeast since 1993 until his retirement in 2008. He has also been a member of the Reform Party of Canada , and the...
immediately spoke out against them to the media and was subsequently removed from caucus. On May 16, several Day loyalist, including Harris, co-signed a letter directed at the remaining caucus members acknowledging rumours of a parallel caucus being formed but that could not be "tolerated". The letter re-stated the formal responsibilities that all Canadian Alliance MPs agreed to and that "members will be breaching their formal written word, given to the leader, the party and their constituency, as a condition of their nomination" if they were found to "publicly attack any other colleague, the leader or the party".
Hanger was followed by Chuck Strahl
Chuck Strahl
Charles Strahl, PC, MP was a politician in British Columbia, Canada. He was a Member of Parliament in the governing Conservative Party of Canada.-Before politics:...
, Gary Lunn
Gary Lunn
Gary Vincent Lunn, PC, MP is the former Canadian Member of Parliament for the British Columbia riding of Saanich—Gulf Islands. He served in the House of Commons from 1997 to 2011, first as a member of the Reform Party of Canada and subsequently as a member of the Canadian Alliance and the...
, Jim Pankiw
Jim Pankiw
Jim Pankiw is a Canadian politician and former Member of Parliament.Pankiw served two terms in the Canadian House of Commons, representing Saskatoon—Humboldt in Saskatchewan from 1997 until 2004 as a member of the Reform Party of Canada, the Canadian Alliance, the Democratic Representative Caucus...
, Val Meredith
Val Meredith
Valerie Meredith was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2004. She was a realtor by career....
, Grant McNally
Grant McNally
Grant McNally was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2004. He was educated at Trinity Western University in Langley, BC. By career, he is a teacher....
, Jay Hill
Jay Hill
Jay D. Hill PC is a former Canadian politician and member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He was the Member of Parliament for the riding of Prince George—Peace River from 1993 until his retirement in 2010. He also served as Government House Leader in the Canadian House of Commons during his...
and Jim Gouk
Jim Gouk
James William "Jim" Gouk is a Canadian politician.Gouk began his political career as an alderman in Castlegar, British Columbia. Gouk would enter federal politics in 1993 when he was elected into the Canadian House of Commons. In the Canadian federal election, 1993 he was elected in Kootenay...
who all publicly criticized Day and withdrew or were removed from the Canadian Alliance caucus. Five more members left in June and July, including Deborah Grey
Deborah Grey
Deborah Cleland Grey, OC, sometimes called Deb Grey is a former Canadian Member of Parliament from Alberta for the Reform Party of Canada, Canadian Alliance and Conservative Party of Canada....
. Grey accused Harris of seizing her computer and reviewing her files without her knowledge. Speaker of the House Peter Milliken
Peter Milliken
Peter Andrew Stewart Milliken, UE is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 until his retirement in 2011 and served as Speaker of the House for 10 years beginning in 2001. Milliken represented the Ontario riding of Kingston and the Islands as a...
investigated and ruled that Grey's "rights had been violated". In September, the dissident Canadian Alliance members formed a parallel caucus called the Democratic Representative Caucus
Democratic Representative Caucus
The Democratic Representative Caucus was a group of Canadian Members of Parliament who left the Canadian Alliance in 2001 in protest against the leadership of Stockwell Day...
and Day eventually conceded to a formal leadership review. Harris resigned as whip in January 2002 in order to campaign for Day's re-election as party leader. Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
won the leadership contest in April 2002 with 55% of the party votes. Under Harper, Harris remained the assistant critic on finance but his committee roles were reduced to solely the 'Standing Committee on Finance' which he was a vice-chair in the 2nd session and a member in the 3rd session. Harper led the merger of the Canadian Alliance with Progressive Conservative Party to form the Conservative Party of Canada
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
which Harris joined.
38th Parliament
In preparation for the 2004 electionCanadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
Harris was challenged by Williams Lake
Williams Lake, British Columbia
Williams Lake, is a city in the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the central part of a region known as the Cariboo, it is the largest urban centre between Kamloops and Prince George, with a population of 11,150 in city limits....
dentist Elmer Thiessen for the Conservative Party nomination. On the evening of the vote, the committee counting the votes announced that Harris was leading and that they wanted to wait to count mail-in ballots before announcing a winner. After protests, based on Elections Canada rules that all ballots must be in by the time of counting, the party ordered a second ballot take place due to voting irregularities, including accusations that Harris improperly signed up new members and that constituency association officials purposely restricted voting to Williams Lake only. Harris won on the second ballot by 16 votes but the RCMP launched an investigation into Harris for financial irregularities. Harris's campaign manager, Josh Bredo is currently in prison. The investigation could find no irregularities. Harris went onto win the election in the Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
riding with 46% of the vote and his party again formed the Official Opposition to the Liberal Party. Harris was given no critic duties or committee roles during the 38th Parliament but Harris did introduce one bill into the House of Commons: Bill C-275 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (failure to stop at scene of accident). Bill C-275 received first reading on November 15, 2004. In his sponsor's speech Harris said,
The Minister of Justice
Minister of Justice (Canada)
The Minister of Justice is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Department of Justice and is also Attorney General of Canada .This cabinet position is usually reserved for someone with formal legal training...
did not support bill based on its lack of distinction between intentionally
Mens rea
Mens rea is Latin for "guilty mind". In criminal law, it is viewed as one of the necessary elements of a crime. The standard common law test of criminal liability is usually expressed in the Latin phrase, actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea, which means "the act does not make a person guilty...
and unintentionally not stopping at the scene of accident and its dis-proportionality to other crimes, so the bill was voted down, 194 to 94, on June 22, 2005. Meanwhile, his constituency association (most of whom had supported Harris' nomination challenger, Elmer Thiessen) formed a committee to investigate the financial irregularities charges, eventually finding charges to be valid. The constituency association held an election in February 2005 for their board of directors. Harris supporters filled 27 of the 30 seats and the new board withdrew the previous board's findings against Harris. A month later, the RCMP dropped its investigation due to "insufficient information". A new constituency office was opened in Williams Lake in September 2004 and an office in Quesnel in November 2005.
39th Parliament
No one was permitted to challenge Harris for the Conservative Party nomination for the January 2006 electionCanadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
. He went on to win the Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
riding with 45% of the vote and this time Harris' party won and formed the government. In the 39th Parliament, he served as a member of the 'Standing Committee on Natural Resources' for both sessions and as a member on the 'Legislative Committee on Bill C-2' (Tackling Violent Crime Act) during the second session. Harper appointed Harris to be the chair of the British Columbia Conservative Caucus and the party's forestry caucus.
Harris generated controversy in August 2007 when, as chair of the BC Conservative Caucus, he appointed Houston
Houston, British Columbia
Houston is a forestry, mining and tourism town in the Bulkley Valley of the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its urban population is approximately 3600 people, with approximately 2000 in the surrounding rural area. It is known as the "Steelhead Capital" and it has the world's largest...
mayor Sharon Smith as the "government go-to person" in neighbouring electoral district Skeena—Bulkley Valley
Skeena—Bulkley Valley
Skeena—Bulkley Valley is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
. He told residents, through the media, to approach Smith rather than elected local MP Nathan Cullen
Nathan Cullen
Nathan Cullen is a Canadian Member of Parliament for the riding of Skeena—Bulkley Valley in the Canadian House of Commons. He is a candidate for the federal leadership of the NDP. A native of Toronto, Ontario, Cullen is fluent in English, French and Spanish and is married with young twin sons...
, a member of an opposition party, for help with government services or lobbying for federal funding. The Conservative Party denounced the move with government spokesman Ryan Sparrow saying it was not sanctioned by the party and that local residents should use their elected member of parliament. Another controversy arose when it was discovered that the Conservative Party used an "in-and-out" plan to have regional offices pay for national advertising. Opposition parties contend that the Conservatives did this to avoid campaign financing limits and attain reimbursement for the costs through Election Canada. Harris' office participated with $30,000 (36% of his total campaign expenses for advertising), though Harris and the party maintain that they kept within the law.
40th Parliament
In the October 2008 electionCanadian federal election, 2008
The 2008 Canadian federal election was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 40th Canadian Parliament after the previous parliament had been dissolved by the Governor General on September 7, 2008...
Harris was re-elected in the Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
riding with 55% of the vote and his party again formed a minority government. During the campaign he received criticism for being "invisible" and living a semi-retired life in Kelowna
Kelowna
Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley, in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its name derives from a Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear"...
some 600 km from his constituency. Harris maintained an apartment in Prince George on Range Road during this period. He did not own property in Kelowna. However, he responded to specific residency questions by suggesting that his prior long-term residence (over 50 years in the area) in Prince George qualifies him to represent the region. In the 40th Parliament, he served as a member of the 'Standing Committee on International Trade' in the 2nd session and on the 'Standing Committee on Natural Resources' during the 3rd session. He retained his chairmanship of the Conservative's forestry caucus and the BC Caucus. Government opposition members and local critics, called Harris to task for failing to read the Canada/US Softwood Lumber Agreement, however, letters to newspapers from the main forestry companies in his province supported him in the work he did on their behalf during the Softwood Lumber negotiations.
41st Parliament
As the incumbent seeking re-election, Harris was automatically acclaimed as the Conservative Party candidate in Cariboo—Prince GeorgeCariboo—Prince George
Cariboo—Prince George is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Geography:...
riding. In the May 2011 election he faced UNBC
University of Northern British Columbia
The University of Northern British Columbia is a small, primarily undergraduate university whose main campus is in Prince George, British Columbia. UNBC also has regional campuses in the northern British Columbia cities of Prince Rupert, Terrace, Quesnel, and Fort St. John...
student Jon Van Barneveld for the NDP, rancher Heidi Redl for the Green Party, UBC
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
student Sangeeta Lalli for the Liberal Party, pilot Henry Thiessen for the Christian Heritage Party, UNBC student Jordan Turner for the Rhinoceros Party, and independent Jon Ronan. Harris won the riding with 56% of the vote and his Conservative Party formed a majority government. As the 41st Parliament
41st Canadian Parliament
The 41st Canadian Parliament is the current Parliament of Canada, with the membership of its House of Commons having been determined by the results of the 2011 federal election held on May 2, 2011...
began, Harris was assigned to the Standing Committee on Natural Resources. In the first session Harris introduced a Private Member's Bill (C-316) An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (incarceration) which would have made time spent in jail ineligible as wait times in qualifying for employment insurance.
External links
- Member of Parliament Profile
- Dick Harris' official website
- Bill C-275 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (failure to stop at scene of accident) introduced by Dick Harris during 38th Parliament