Peter Tabuns

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Peter Tabuns

Peter Tabuns is a Canadian politician and environmentalist, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the Toronto—Danforth provincial by-election on March 30, 2006.

On February 15, 2006, the Toronto—Danforth NDP riding association nominated Tabuns as the party's candidate in the provincial byelection to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation former NDP Member of Provincial Parliament Marilyn Churley. Churley was required to resign her provincial seat when she ran in the 2006 federal election.

Tabuns defeated Barbara Warner to win the nomination. Tabuns' Liberal opponent in the election was former broadcaster Ben Chin. Georgina Blanas ran for the Progressive Conservatives, and Paul Charbonneau for the Green Party. On election day, Tabuns won with 47.8% of the vote (13,064).

Tabuns had previously been the federal NDP candidate in the riding of Beaches—East York during the 2004 federal election. He lost the race to Liberal incumbent Maria Minna. The riding is held provincially by Michael Prue of the NDP, but Minna has been elected there since the 1993 election.

Tabuns was city councillor for the Riverdale portion of the riding from 1990 to 1997. Jack Layton and Tabuns ran joint campaigns in the 1994 and 1997 elections. Prior to being a city councillor he was president of Citizens for a Safe Environment and helped end garbage incineration in the Toronto Portlands. He championed housing alternatives as vice-chair of the Co-operative Housing Federation of Toronto.

Best known over his council terms for introducing the ban on smoking in bars and restaurants, he went on to serve as head of Greenpeace Canada for several years. He was defeated as a city councillor in 1997 due largely to the candidacy of the similarly named Larry Tabin who, it has been alleged, was enlisted as a candidate by bar and restaurant owners seeking to defeat Tabuns over his anti-smoking initiative; despite his presence on the ballot, Tabin did not actually conduct any visible campaign. The number of votes won by Tabin was greater than the number of votes by which Pam McConnell defeated Tabuns for the second councillor position in the ward. As the number of members of Toronto City Council had been reduced, Tabuns had been forced to compete with fellow NDPers Jack Layton (with whom he ran as a running mate), and McConnell for either of two councillor positions returned by the east-end ward.

Tabuns has long campaigned for protection of the environment. As executive director of Greenpeace Canada from 1999 to 2004, he advocated for environmental protection, including the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol. Currently, Tabuns is on leave from his position as special advisor on climate change to Jack Layton.

Tabuns has won some support across the political spectrum. Conservative tabloid journalist Judi McLeod wrote in Our Toronto (now the Canada Free Press), "We go to council meetings looking for integrity from right-wing, pro-business members of city council. We didn't find it from the right. We, who believe strongly in the voting public's right to know how their elected officials earn their living outside of the council chamber, did find integrity from councillor Peter Tabuns." McLeod also wrote, "Peter Tabuns truly earns his pay. He is one of the most honest people I have ever met. Tabuns, unlike some of his council colleagues, continued to treat 'Our Toronto' with courtesy. The voters of Ward 8 restored him to council in the last two elections with veritable landslide victories." In later campaigns, however, McLeod has also criticized Tabuns for decisions he reportedly made while working for Greenpeace. [1]

Upon Tabuns being sworn in as a MPP, NDP Leader Howard Hampton reorganized his shadow cabinet and gave the rookie legislator a long list of portfolios including Transportation, Environment, Public Infrastructure Renewal, Greater Toronto Area, Culture, Tourism and Recreation, Citizenship and Immigration, and Multicultural Affairs. [2]

Tabuns has a son, Anton, and lives with his partner, theatre designer and York University professor Shawn Kerwin. (Although some sources have incorrectly described Tabuns as gay because of his partner's name, Shawn Kerwin is a woman [3].)