Parm Gill

This article is about the Member of the Canadian Parliament. For the Member of the British Parliament, see Parmjit Singh Gill.
Parm Gill
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Brampton—Springdale
Incumbent
Assumed office
2011
Preceded by Ruby Dhalla
Personal details
Born May 17, 1974
Moga district, Punjab, India[1]
Political party Conservative
Profession Entrepreneur
Religion Sikh

Parm Gill (born May 17, 1974) is an elected member of the Canadian Parliament, representing the riding of Brampton—Springdale in Ontario. He is a member of the Conservative Party. In the 2011 election, he defeated Liberal incumbent Ruby Dhalla.

Early life

Gill was born in India and moved to Canada at young age. First ran for public office in 2006.[2] In 2008, he ran a family-owned business in the hospitality sector. He has volunteered with many charitable and community organizations.[3]

Political career

First elected to Canadian Parliament on May 2, 2011 as Conservative Member of Parliament for Brampton - Springdale. In September 2013, Gill was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs. He is currently Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade. Rt. Hon. Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister of Canada gave him this new responsibility on 23 January 2015. Mr. Gill has served on the Standing Committees on Canadian Heritage, Health, Procedure and House Affairs, and on Public Safety and National Security. He has been involved in organizations such as the Peel Regional Police, Toys-for-Tots, Champions 4 Change, Salvation Army, Canadian Cancer Society and many other.

Controversy

Shortly after his narrow defeat to Dhalla in the 2008 election, Gill accompanied Immigration Minister Jason Kenney on a trip to India. While in Punjab, he told reporters that the Conservatives would reduce the immigration rejection rate for Punjabi youths. Some speculated that this announcement had less to do with promoting skilled immigration than with garnering political support from Punjabi-Canadians, who often solicit assistance from their Members of Parliament with issues related to their relatives' Canadian visa applications.[4] During the 2011 election, Gill was accused by Dhalla, who was struggling to recover from her "nannygate" scandal, of exploiting his special relationship with the immigration minister to expedite visa applications for her constituents to win votes.[5] He would go on to defeat her on election night.

Regarding the justice system, Gill has said "The system of justice in Canada is lenient and it is like a revolving door, where criminals enter from one side and move out from the other. The judicial system needs to be toughened."[6]

Election results

Canadian federal election, 2011
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
Conservative(x)Parm Gill 24,617 48.3% – –
LiberalRuby Dhalla 14,231 27.9% – –
New DemocraticManjit Grewal 9,963 19.6% – –
GreenMark Hoffberg 1,926 3.8% – –
CommunistLiz Rowley 219 0.4% – –
Total valid votes 50,956 100.0%–
Canadian federal election, 2008: Brampton—Springdale
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
LiberalRuby Dhalla 18,577 41.03 -6.3 $80,011
     Conservative Parm Gill 17,804 39.32 +5.5 $86,444
     New Democratic Party Mani Singh 5,238 11.57 -6.1 $21,152
GreenDave Finlay 3,516 7.76 +3.9 $746
     Communist Dimitrios Kabitsis 135 0.29 +0.1 $407
Total valid votes/Expense Limit 45,270 100.0 – $87,594
Total rejected ballots 419 0.92
Turnout 45,689 54.24 -7.0
Electors on the lists 84,239
Canadian federal election, 2006: York West
Party Candidate Votes%Expenditures
LiberalJudy Sgro 21,418 63.78 $48,741.93
     Conservative Parm Gill 6,244 18.59 $71,005.65
     New Democratic Party Sandra Romano Anthony 4,724 14.07 $8,845.73
GreenNick Capra 1,002 2.98 $1,692.18
     Independent Axcel Cocon 192 0.57 $1,801.61
Total valid votes 33,580 100.00
Total rejected ballots 261
Turnout 33,841 57.90
Electors on the lists 58,450

References

  1. ↑ Chaudhry, Amrita (4 May 2011). "Moga man Gill trumps Ruby Dhalla". Indian Express. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  2. ↑ 2006 Election: Riding-by-riding: Parm Gil l, CTV, online edition, accessed 22 May 2009.
  3. ↑ "About Parm", Parm Gill [official website, accessed 22 May 2009.
  4. ↑ Don Martin, "Kenney loves spotlight". Windsor Star, 1 April 2009, A6.
  5. ↑ CBC "Tory candidate's access to Kenney questioned. CBC News, 26 April 2011.
  6. ↑ Singh Nibber, Gurpreet. "Hindustan times - Indian-origin MP advocates tough stand against criminals". Hindustan times. Hindustan times. Retrieved September 15, 2012.

External links