| James D. Lunney MP |
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|---|---|
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Nanaimo—Alberni |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2000 |
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| Preceded by | Bill Gilmour |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 5, 1951 Winnipeg, Manitoba |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Other political affiliations |
Canadian Alliance (2000-2003) |
| Spouse(s) | Helen Lunney |
| Residence | Errington, British Columbia |
| Profession | chiropractor |
James D. Lunney (born September 5, 1951) is a Canadian politician. He is the current Conservative Member of Parliament[1][2] for the riding of Nanaimo—Alberni.
Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba he received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Manitoba in 1972 and a Doctor of Chiropractic from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College in Toronto in 1976. He was first elected in 2000 as a Canadian Alliance candidate. He was re-elected in 2004, 2006 and 2008 under the banner of the Conservative Party.
After practicing chiropractic health care in Kitchener, Ontario for approximately 15 years, the Lunneys relocated to Vancouver Island where James established West Coast Chiropractic in Parksville and practiced for another 9 years. In addition to serving thousands of Island residents professionally, Lunney has contributed community service through the Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce, North Vancouver Island Chiropractic Society and the local church.
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Lunney joined the Canadian Alliance Party shortly before his bid to run in Nanaimo – Alberni in the 2000 federal election for the Canadian Alliance Party. He garnered 50.45 percent of the vote, beating his Liberal opponent, Hira Chopra by more than 15639 votes. In the 2004 general election, Lunney won with 39.06 percent of the vote over NDP candidate Scott Fraser. Lunney won again in 2006 with 41 percent of the vote against NDP representative Manjeet Uppal. In 2008, Lunney beat Zeni Maartman by 15 percent of the vote.[3] Lunney beat Maartman again by a margin of 8.1% gaining 46.4 percent of the vote in the 2011 Federal Election.
In 2006 Lunney was sued by Robert Pound for the use of the term “Dr” on all campaign signs and promotional materials. Pound stated that “The Chiropractors Act states that chiropractors "may display or make use of the title 'doctor' or the abbreviation 'Dr.', but only as 'Doctor of Chiropractic', 'Dr. of Chiropractic', 'Chiropractic Doctor' or 'Chiropractic Dr.'"[4] Pound had previously filed a grievance with the B.C. Chiropractic College. who quickly dismissed the complaint in January 2007. The case went to the BC Supreme Court where the presiding judge, Justice Douglas Halfyard exonerated Lunney ruling that the use of the title “Dr.” did not “infringe any legal or equitable right” of the petitioner, Robert Pound. The judge also called the timing of Mr. Pound’s complaint “suspicious to say the least” –referring to the timing of the petition close to the federal election. Pound was ordered to pay Lunney’s legal expenses.
On March 20, 2003, Mr. Lunney introduced Private Members’ Bill C-420, “An act to amend the Food and Drugs Act”, in the House of Commons. The Bill, would’ve re-classified all natural health products as foods and lift restrictions on health claims that manufacturers can make about their products. C-420 was originally recommended by a team of seventeen experts appointed by the government in 2000 to bring in new rules for Natural Health Products.[5]
Lunney said in the House of Commons: “Bill C-420 is about releasing the tremendous amount of information that supports the judicious use of natural health products, and it’s about greater freedom of choice in personal health care. With a minority government, we have the opportunity to advance effectiveness and cost effectiveness in health care”.[6]
C-420 Died in the House in 2004 with the General election and was reintroduced (with the same name) by Conservative MP Colin Carrie. On November 22, 2005, the Health Committee voted to not proceed with the second Bill voting 7-4 to kill it.
On June 29, 2010 Lunney called upon Health Canada to tighten controls on “over-prescribed” proton pump inhibitors which suppress stomach acids but have been shown to increase the likelihood of Clostridium difficile - an intestinal disease with flu like symptoms. Lunney said "It has proven difficult to eradicate but much of its spread and related death toll could be prevented, if patients were made aware of the risks when doctors prescribe PPI medication" [7]
In April 2009, Lunney made a statement in Parliament proclaiming his belief in creationism and attacking theory of evolution.[8][9]
In May 2010, it was documented in the Times Colonist that: "Lunney spent $169,935 just on travelling between Nanaimo-Alberni and Ottawa in the one-year.
He said it's a long trip but he comes back to the riding "every chance I get" to attend events and meet with his constituents to discuss their concerns.
Lunney said he regularly flies business class because he works en-route and he needs the extra space to allow him to work on sometimes confidential material on his laptop computer.
"I sometimes also encourage my wife to come along on these trips because I wouldn't have much of a chance to see her if she didn't, but it's allowed according to the rules on spending and she travels in economy class," he said." This caused controversy due to the on-going debate regarding MP expenses.
| Parliament of Canada | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Bill Gilmour |
Member of Parliament from Nanaimo—Alberni 2000–present |
Incumbent |