John Snobelen
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John Snobelen (born 1954 in Guelph, Ontario) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1995 to 2003, and served as a cabinet minister in the government of Mike Harris.
Snobelen was raised in Meadowlark, Ontario, and dropped out of high school in Grade 11. He eventually became a successful businessman, making a fortune in the waste-haulage business. He served as President of Jarnso Environmental Inc., Mid-Ontario Equipment Limited and the Cameron Group.
Snobelen was also a chair of the Hunger Project, and an associate of the Carter Centre, a human-rights organization started by former United States President Jimmy Carter.
Snobelen first ran for the Ontario legislature in the provincial election of 1990, placing third behind incumbent Liberal Steve Offer and a New Democrat in Mississauga North. In the provincial election of 1995, he ran in the same riding and defeated Offer by about 4,500 votes.
The Progressive Conservatives won a majority government in the 1995 election, and Snobelen was appointed as Minister of Education and Training in Mike Harris's government on June 26, 1995. Some regarded the appointment of a high-school dropout to this position as a calculated insult to the teaching community.
Shortly after his appointment, Snobelen was filmed arguing that the PC government needs to create a "useful crisis" in the education system so as to initiate significant reforms. This controversy provoked several calls for his resignation, and further unsettled the relationship between the government and the teaching community, which were already tense after the previous NDP administration unilaterally imposed a Social Contract.
In 1997, Snobelen introduced Bill 160, which introduced standardized testing, cut teaching preparation time, allowed the government to determine class sizes and granted early retirement initiatives to older, more experienced teachers. The purpose of this bill was to lower public education costs and reduce the power of the teachers' unions. The education restructuring, along with other cuts to government spending, was expected to significantly reduce the province's deficit. Several teachers and leaders of the provincial unions criticized the bill not only as an attack on their bargaining influence, but also as unnecessarily confrontational and as threatening the quality of Ontario's education system.
Snobelen was moved to the Ministry of Natural Resources on October 10, 1997, amid speculation that the Harris government needed a more experienced minister to manage the Education portfolio. Shortly after his transfer, Ontario's public school teachers entered a two-week strike against the Harris government, with much of their anger directed against the reforms proposed by Snobelen. The Harris government argued that two million students were being held "hostage" by the strike and denounced the teachers for striking in violation of provincial labour laws. Some also criticized the teachers for using their work hours to participate in union activities. Teachers's representatives argued that they had no other viable options to oppose the proposed legislation. A provincial judge later determined that the provincial government did not meet its obligations in seeking to resolve the strike.
Snobelen's successor as Minister of Education, David Johnson, implemented many aspects of Bill 160 after the strike.
As Natural Resources Minister, Snobelen helped push through the Harris government's "Lands For Life" program, which protected 24,000 km² of public land in parks and conservation reserves off-limit to industrial activity. He also cancelled the Spring Bear Hunt, a decision which was opposed by many Ontario hunters but supported by animal rights groups.
He was re-elected in the provincial election of 1999, defeating Liberal Bob Delaney in the redistributed riding of Mississauga West. He retained the Natural Resources portfolio after the election.
Snobelen was dropped from cabinet when Ernie Eves succeeded Harris as Premier in 2002. He rarely spoke in the legislature after this time.
In late 2002, it was reported that Snobelen was spending most of his time at a private cattle ranch in Oklahoma while still drawing an Member of Provincial Parliament's (MPP) salary. Faced with criticism, he returned to the legislature for most of the 2003 session and resigned his seat on March 17.
As of 2004, he still resides in Oklahoma.
