Scott Simms is a Canadian

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 the 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...

 Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for the Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

 riding of Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor

Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor

Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-Demographics:...

.

Early life

Simms graduated from Mount Allison University

Mount Allison University

Mount Allison University is a primarily undergraduate Canadian liberal arts and science university situated in Sackville, New Brunswick. It is located about a half hour from the regional city of Moncton and 20 minutes from the Greater Moncton International Airport...

 with a Bachelor in Commerce and Loyalist College

Loyalist College

Loyalist College is an English-language community college in Belleville, Ontario, Canada.- History :...

 in Journalism. Before entering elected politics, Simms worked for The Weather Network

The Weather Network

The Weather Network is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel that broadcasts weather-related news and information 24 hours a day....

, prior to which he had worked as a radio reporter in Gander

Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador

Gander is a Canadian town located in the northeastern part of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, approximately south of Gander Bay, south of Twillingate and east of Grand Falls-Windsor...

 and Grand Falls-Windsor. He was an active campaigner for the "No" side in the 1995 Quebec referendum

1995 Quebec referendum

The 1995 Quebec referendum was the second referendum to ask voters in the Canadian province of Quebec whether Quebec should secede from Canada and become an independent state, through the question:...

.

Politics

He was elected in the 2004 election

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...

 and beat out four other candidates, including Conservative

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...

 incumbent Rex Barnes

Rex Barnes

Rex Barnes is a Canadian politician.Born in Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland and Labrador, Barnes was a member of the Progressive Conservative caucus in the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Gander—Grand Falls...

. Simms was re-elected on Jan. 23, 2006, beating Conservative candidate Aaron Hynes by approximately 5,000 votes. On May 2, 2011, Simms was again re-elected, defeating Conservative candidate Aaron Hynes by approximately 9,200 votes, with a total of 17,895 votes in his riding.

He is a member of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage and the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans. Since January 18, 2006, he has been the critic for the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans

Minister of Fisheries and Oceans (Canada)

The Minister of Fisheries and Oceans is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for supervising the fishing industry and administrating all navigable waterways in the country...

. He was the critic for the Minister for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency from February 23, 2006 until January 17, 2007.

Scott Simms is also now known by a number of people who live on the west coast of Ireland following the epic voyage of one of his election posters across the Atlantic Ocean to Keem Bay in the village of Dooagh on Achill Island

Achill Island

Achill Island in County Mayo is the largest island off the coast of Ireland, and is situated off the west coast. It has a population of 2,700. Its area is . Achill is attached to the mainland by Michael Davitt Bridge, between the villages of Gob an Choire and Poll Raithní . A bridge was first...

, County Mayo

County Mayo

County Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...

. The story was published by a local news paper called The Mayo News after a lifeguard at the beach, Conal Dixon, found the poster washed up on the sand.

External links