Peter Stollery
Encyclopedia
Peter Alan Stollery is a former Canadian
politician and businessman.
family, the Stollerys owned a famous furnishings store named Stollery’s, which opened in 1901 in downtown Toronto
. Peter Stollery, the founder’s grandson, worked on and off at the haberdashery for 24 years, first as a furnishings’ man and eventually as a manager from 1965 to 1968 after his father, Alan Stollery, died suddenly. His attachment to these roots explain his later designation in the Canadian Senate
as Senator for "Bloor
and Yonge
", the intersection at which the store is located.
Before entering public life, Stollery also worked as a teacher in Algeria
and travel writer for Maclean's
. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society
, and a Member of the National Liberal Club
in London. In addition, he worked as a cab driver in Toronto.
as a Liberal
candidate in the 1972 election
for Spadina
riding
in Toronto defeating incumbent MP Perry Ryan
who had left the Liberals and crossed the floor to the Progressive Conservatives
. He was re-elected in the 1974
, 1979
and 1980 elections
. He served for a time as chairman of the Liberal Caucus
(1976-1978), and as parliamentary secretary to the Secretary of State and to the Minister of Communications (1980-1981).
In 1981, Stollery was appointed to the Canadian Senate
on the recommendation of Prime Minister
Pierre Trudeau
. Trudeau wanted to open Stollery's Spadina riding so his aide James Coutts
could be elected to Parliament in a by-election
. The voters rebelled, and in the subsequent by-election Coutts was defeated in what had been a safe Liberal seat by Dan Heap
of the New Democratic Party
. He retired from the Senate on November 29, 2010 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, at which point he had served in Parliament for over 38 years, including more than 29 years in the Senate.
In the Senate, Stollery served on several committees. His deep-seated interest in international affairs and humanitarian aid have led him to take part in numerous overseas delegations and to assume the position of Chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs (1999-2005). He continued to serve on the committee as Vice-Chair until his retirement from the Senate. He has been involved with the Canada-Europe Interparliamentary Union.
, then President of Afghanistan
. Although Karzai was democratically elected, Stollery implied that Karzai's ascent to power was due to US influence. He argued that Canadian troops could be better used to help “create a democratic society in Afghanistan”.
In September 2006, Stollery added that the limited presence of Canadian troops on the African continent was a result of military officials believing it was not as "sexy" as helping the U.S. by fighting in Afghanistan. He was subsequently criticized by Liberal Senator Roméo Dallaire
, who called Stollery's comments "scandalous language." Dallaire stated that "Nothing is sexy in war. The whole concept of war is perverse, and the reason we're in one area and not another is because political decisions have been taken."
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 and businessman.
Background
An old YorkvilleYorkville, Toronto
Yorkville is a district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, well known for its shopping. It is a former village, annexed by the City of Toronto. It is roughly bounded by Bloor Street to the south, Davenport Road to the north, Yonge Street to the east and Avenue Road to the west, and is considered part of...
family, the Stollerys owned a famous furnishings store named Stollery’s, which opened in 1901 in downtown Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. Peter Stollery, the founder’s grandson, worked on and off at the haberdashery for 24 years, first as a furnishings’ man and eventually as a manager from 1965 to 1968 after his father, Alan Stollery, died suddenly. His attachment to these roots explain his later designation in the Canadian Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
as Senator for "Bloor
Bloor Street
Bloor Street is a major east–west residential and commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, in the Canadian province of Ontario. Bloor Street runs from the Prince Edward Viaduct westward into Mississauga, where it ends at Central Parkway. East of the viaduct, Danforth Avenue continues along the same...
and Yonge
Yonge Street
Yonge Street is a major arterial route connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes. It was formerly listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest street in the world at , and the construction of Yonge Street is designated an "Event of...
", the intersection at which the store is located.
Before entering public life, Stollery also worked as a teacher in Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
and travel writer for Maclean's
Maclean's
Maclean's is a Canadian weekly news magazine, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events.-History:Founded in 1905 by Toronto journalist/entrepreneur Lt.-Col. John Bayne Maclean, a 43-year-old trade magazine publisher who purchased an advertising agency's in-house...
. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
, and a Member of the National Liberal Club
National Liberal Club
The National Liberal Club, known to its members as the NLC, is a London gentlemen's club, now also open to women, which was established by William Ewart Gladstone in 1882 for the purpose of providing club facilities for Liberal Party campaigners among the newly-enlarged electorate after the Third...
in London. In addition, he worked as a cab driver in Toronto.
Career in Parliament
Peter Stollery was first elected to the Canadian House of CommonsCanadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
as a Liberal
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...
candidate in the 1972 election
Canadian federal election, 1972
The Canadian federal election of 1972 was held on October 30, 1972 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 29th Parliament of Canada. It resulted in a slim victory for the governing Liberal Party, which won 109 seats, compared to 107 seats for the opposition Progressive...
for Spadina
Spadina (electoral district)
Spadina was a Canadian electoral district that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1935 to 1988. It covered a portion of the western-central Toronto. Its name comes from the Spadina Avenue, which runs through the heart of the riding....
riding
Electoral district (Canada)
An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...
in Toronto defeating incumbent MP Perry Ryan
Sylvester Perry Ryan
Sylvester Perry Ryan was a Canadian lawyer and politician.Ryan's federal political career began in 1949 when he ran, twice, for the Toronto seat of Greenwood...
who had left the Liberals and crossed the floor to the Progressive Conservatives
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 was re-elected in the 1974
Canadian federal election, 1974
The Canadian federal election of 1974 was held on July 8, 1974 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 30th Parliament of Canada. The governing Liberal Party won its first majority government since 1968, and gave Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau his third term...
, 1979
Canadian federal election, 1979
The Canadian federal election of 1979 was held on May 22, 1979 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 31st Parliament of Canada. It resulted in the defeat of Liberal Party of Canada after 11 years in power under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Joe Clark led the Progressive...
and 1980 elections
Canadian federal election, 1980
The Canadian federal election of 1980 was held on February 18, 1980 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 32nd Parliament of Canada...
. He served for a time as chairman of the Liberal Caucus
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...
(1976-1978), and as parliamentary secretary to the Secretary of State and to the Minister of Communications (1980-1981).
In 1981, Stollery was appointed to the Canadian Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
on the recommendation of Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Pierre Trudeau
Pierre Trudeau
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau, , usually known as Pierre Trudeau or Pierre Elliott Trudeau, was the 15th Prime Minister of Canada from April 20, 1968 to June 4, 1979, and again from March 3, 1980 to June 30, 1984.Trudeau began his political career campaigning for socialist ideals,...
. Trudeau wanted to open Stollery's Spadina riding so his aide James Coutts
Jim Coutts
James Allan Coutts, is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and former advisor to two Prime Ministers.Born in High River, Alberta, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1960 and a law degree in 1961 from the University of Alberta and an MBA from the Harvard Business School in 1968...
could be elected to Parliament in a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
. The voters rebelled, and in the subsequent by-election Coutts was defeated in what had been a safe Liberal seat by Dan Heap
Dan Heap
Daniel James Macdonnell "Dan" Heap is a former Canadian politician with the New Democratic Party, a political activist and an Anglican priest. He represented the Toronto, Ontario, Canada riding of Spadina, which, in 1988, was renamed Trinity—Spadina, from 1981 until 1993...
of the New Democratic Party
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...
. He retired from the Senate on November 29, 2010 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, at which point he had served in Parliament for over 38 years, including more than 29 years in the Senate.
In the Senate, Stollery served on several committees. His deep-seated interest in international affairs and humanitarian aid have led him to take part in numerous overseas delegations and to assume the position of Chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs (1999-2005). He continued to serve on the committee as Vice-Chair until his retirement from the Senate. He has been involved with the Canada-Europe Interparliamentary Union.
Controversy
On May 29, 2006 during a session of the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence, Stollery criticized Hamid KarzaiHamid Karzai
Hamid Karzai, GCMG is the 12th and current President of Afghanistan, taking office on 7 December 2004. He became a dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001...
, then President of Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. Although Karzai was democratically elected, Stollery implied that Karzai's ascent to power was due to US influence. He argued that Canadian troops could be better used to help “create a democratic society in Afghanistan”.
In September 2006, Stollery added that the limited presence of Canadian troops on the African continent was a result of military officials believing it was not as "sexy" as helping the U.S. by fighting in Afghanistan. He was subsequently criticized by Liberal Senator Roméo Dallaire
Roméo Dallaire
Lieutenant-General Roméo Antonius Dallaire, is a Canadian senator, humanitarian, author and retired general...
, who called Stollery's comments "scandalous language." Dallaire stated that "Nothing is sexy in war. The whole concept of war is perverse, and the reason we're in one area and not another is because political decisions have been taken."