Steven Blaney

The Honourable
Steven Blaney
PC MP
Official Opposition Critic for Public Services
Assumed office
November 20, 2015
Minister Judy Foote
Leader Rona Ambrose
Preceded by Pat Martin
Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
In office
July 15, 2013 – November 4, 2015
Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Preceded by Vic Toews
Succeeded by Ralph Goodale
Chair of the Standing Committee on Official Languages
In office
May 31, 2007 – June 20, 2011
Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Preceded by Guy Lauzon
Succeeded by Michael Chong
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis
Assumed office
October 19, 2015
Preceded by Constituency established
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Lévis—Bellechasse
In office
January 23, 2006 – October 19, 2015
Preceded by Réal Lapierre
Succeeded by Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born (1965-04-08) April 8, 1965
Sherbrooke, Canada
Political party Action démocratique du Québec (Before 2006)
Conservative (2006–present)
Spouse(s) Marie Bouchard
Alma mater University of Quebec, Montreal
University of Sherbrooke
Religion Roman Catholicism

Steven Blaney PC, MP (born April 8, 1965 in Sherbrooke, Quebec) is a Canadian businessman and Conservative politician. He served as the minister of Public Safety Canada from July 15, 2013 to November 4, 2015, and previously as the minister of Veterans Affairs and minister of State for La Francophonie in the cabinet of the Prime Minister Stephen Harper (May 18, 2011 to July 14, 2013). He represents the Québec riding of Lévis—Bellechasse in the Canadian House of Commons since the 2006 federal election. Despite his Anglophone-sounding name, Blaney is a francophone. He was reelected in the 2015 election.

Early life

Blaney was born in Sherbrooke, Quebec, and was raised in Sainte-Marie-de-Beauce. Today, he lives in Lévis along with his wife Marie Bouchard and his two children, William-Antoine and Alexandra.[1] For 15 years, he worked in Quebec’s engineering sector, more particularly in water purification and energy efficiency. Blaney started up two companies specializing in environmental technology and carried out many environmental projects.[2] Blaney was an active member of Réseau Environnement, Canada’s largest group of environmental professionals; he presided over the organization’s Québec-Chaudière-Appalaches chapter between 2003 and 2006.[1]

Political career

Provincial politics

Blaney’s first political stint occurred during the Quebec general elections of 1998; he was a candidate of the Action démocratique du Québec in the provincial electoral district of Beauce-Nord. Blaney arrived in third place, behind Normand Poulin (PLQ) and Gaston Gourde (PQ), collecting 14.42% of the votes.[3]

Federal politics

Following many years of activity with the Conservative Party in Quebec, Blaney decided to run for the first time for a seat at the House of Commons during the 2006 federal elections in the riding of Lévis-Bellechasse. He successfully defeated Bloc Québécois incumbent Réal Lapierre with 46.40% of the votes.[4] Blaney joined nine other Quebec MPs in Ottawa, following the Conservative Party breakthrough in Quebec that year.[5]

After his victory in 2006, Blaney was appointed Vice-President of the Quebec conservative caucus. On May 31, 2007, he was selected as Chair of the Standing Committee on Official Languages; a position that he held till September 2010.[6]

Moreover, he joined various other committees, ranging from Indian Affairs to Industry, Science and Technology, including the Environment and Sustainable Development Committee.[7] In January 2006, Blaney visited Canadian soldiers in Kandahar as part of a trip organized by the Standing Committee on National Defence for its members. He is also Vice-Chair of the Canada-France Interparliamentary Association.

After his reelection in 2008, Blaney became the new President of the Quebec conservative caucus.[1] Furthermore, he promised to offset the greenhouse gas emissions resulting from his activities through tree planting, in cooperation with Tree Canada and the Comité de restauration de la rivière Etchemin, thus becoming the first carbon neutral MP.[8]

On May 2, 2011, Blaney was reelected for a third mandate as representative of Lévis-Bellechasse at the House of Commons earning 43.95% of the votes, beating the NDP candidate with more than 10% of the votes, receiving 1065 more votes than during the 2008 election.[4]

Minister of Veterans Affairs

Steven Blaney at Halifax International Security Forum 2014

On May 18, 2011, Blaney was appointed to the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He assumed the position of Minister of Veterans Affairs taking over this role from Jean-Pierre Blackburn, who was defeated in the May 2 election. Blaney also sits as a member of the Cabinet Committee on Social Affairs and the Cabinet Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence. Blaney carried on the policies launched by his two conservative predecessors. During the summer following the elections, Blaney announced regulatory changes to the Enhanced Veterans Charter Act to revamp the pension system that was set up following World War I and World War II.[9] The New Veterans Charter (NVC) was designed to provide Veterans with the support they required to successfully transition from military to civilian life.

As Minister of Veterans Affairs, Blaney can be credited for improving the benefits and services for Veterans suffering from severe diagnosed medical conditions or/and disabilities. He also launched the Helmet to Hardhats Program which assists many former Canadian Forces members find well-paid jobs in the construction sector.[10] Preoccupied by the modernization of Veterans Affairs Canada, Blaney initiated the Cutting Red Tape for Veterans initiative[11] aimed at simplifying administrative processes for Veterans and at making all of Veterans Affairs Canada’s forms and decisions comprehensible for all.

In March 2011, Blaney sparked controversy by telling a meeting of seniors, "Et rappelez-vous, le ciel est bleu, l'enfer est rouge!" (And remember—Heaven is blue, Hell is red!), referring to the colours of the Conservative and Liberal parties. The slogan was used by the government of Maurice Duplessis in the mid-20th century during the period of church-state collaboration in Quebec known as the Grande Noirceur.[12]

Minister of Public Safety

Canadian Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Steven Blaney meets with U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson
Canadian Minister of National Defence & MP for Niagara Falls Rob Nicholson (R), Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Steven Blaney (C) and U.S. Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas on the Ontario side of Peace Bridge

On July 15, 2013, Blaney assumed the position of Minister of Public Safety, taking over this role from Vic Toews who announced his retirement on July 9, 2013. The announcement of the appointment was made during the Prime Minister Stephen Harper's 2013 Cabinet shuffle.

On August 13, 2013, in response to a brief from Dennis Edney arguing that Omar Khadr should be held in a youth facility not an adult prison, because he was a minor when the crimes he was convicted of occurred, Blaney asserted that the Harper government would fight to keep Khadr in adult prisoner for the full term of his sentence.[13]

Electoral record

Federal

Canadian federal election, 2015: Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
ConservativeSteven Blaney 31,872 50.92 +7.17 –
LiberalJacques Turgeon 12,961 20.71 +14.89 –
New DemocraticJean-Luc Daigle 8,516 13.6 -20.21 –
Bloc QuébécoisAntoine Dubé 7,217 11.53 -3.36 –
GreenAndré Bélisle 2,032 3.25 +1.71 –
Total valid votes/Expense limit 62,598100.0 $234,497.01
Total rejected ballots 8240.89–
Turnout 63,42268.62–
Eligible voters 92,420
Conservative hold Swing +13.7
Source: Elections Canada[14][15]
Canadian federal election, 2011: Lévis—Bellechasse
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
ConservativeSteven Blaney 25,850 43.95 -1.95 $85,522.71
New DemocraticNicole Laliberté 19,890 33.81 +22.97 $336.36
Bloc QuébécoisDanielle-Maude Gosselin 8,757 14.89 -10.57 $44,495.06
LiberalFrancis Laforesterie 3,421 5.82 -9.24 $16,904.21
GreenSacha Dougé 903 1.54 -1.00 none listed
Total valid votes/Expense limit 58,821100.0   $94.740.90
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 808 1.36-0.19
Turnout 59,62965.88+3.43
Eligible voters 90,515
Conservative hold Swing -12.46
Sources:[16][17]
Canadian federal election, 2008: Lévis—Bellechasse
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
ConservativeSteven Blaney 24,785 45.90 -0.50 $66,280.10
Bloc QuébécoisGuy Bergeron 13,747 25.46 -3.56 $18,536.02
LiberalPauline Côté 8,130 15.06 +6.87 $14,138.27
New DemocraticGabriel Biron 5,856 10.84 +6.21 none listed
GreenLynne Champoux-Williams 1,370 2.54 -1.56 none listed
Marxist–LeninistNormand Fournier 113 0.21 – none listed
Total valid votes/Expense limit 54,001100.0    $90,335
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 8481.55+0.57
Turnout 54,84962.45-3.47
Eligible voters 87,830
Conservative hold Swing +1.53
Canadian federal election, 2006: Lévis—Bellechasse
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
ConservativeSteven Blaney 25,940 46.40 +27.35 $59,351.14
Bloc QuébécoisRéal Lapierre 16,223 29.02 -15.31 $61,706.32
LiberalShirley Baril 4,581 8.19 -19.43 $9,831.42
IndependentNormand Cadrin 4,275 7.65 – $15,519.63
New DemocraticÉric Boucher 2,590 4.63 +0.77 $868.27
GreenMathieu Castonguay 2,293 4.10 -0.69 $3,066.75
Total valid votes/Expense limit 55,902 100.0    $83,486
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 5510.98-1.24
Turnout 56,45365.92
Eligible voters 85,635
Conservative gain from Bloc Québécois Swing +21.33

Provincial

Quebec general election, 1998: Beauce-Nord
Party Candidate Votes%∆%
LiberalNormand Poulin 12,137 46.39 +0.58
Parti QuébécoisGaston Gourde 10,126 38.70 -6.85
Action démocratiqueSteven Blaney 3,772 14.42 –
Socialist DemocracySerge Foisy 127 0.49 -5.62
Total valid votes 26,162 100.00 –
Liberal hold Swing +3.72

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Biography", Steven Blaney – Official Website
  2. ↑ http://www.engineerscanada.ca/e/files/engineeringonthehill_issue_09.pdf
  3. ↑ 1998 Québec General Elections- Results: District Beauce-Nord
  4. 1 2 History of Federal Ridings since 1867: Lévis-Bellechasse
  5. ↑ Conservatives make breakthrough in Quebec; Bloc wins 51 seats CBC News. Tuesday, January 24, 2006.
  6. ↑ Member of Parliament Profile- Steven Blaney
  7. ↑ Idem.
  8. ↑ Idem.
  9. ↑ Backgrounder NVC
  10. ↑ Helmets to Hardhats announcement
  11. ↑ Cutting Red Tape for Veterans – news release
  12. ↑ Martin, Stéphanie. "«Le ciel est bleu, l'enfer est rouge!» lance Blaney aux aînés." Le Soleil (Quebec City), 24 March 2011.
  13. ↑ "Omar Khadr held illegally in federal prison, lawyer argues: 8-year sentence called unlawful". CBC News. 2013-08-13. Archived from the original on 2013-08-13. “Omar Khadr pleaded guilty to very serious crimes, including the murder of American army medic Sgt. Christopher Speer," he said. "The government of Canada will vigorously defend against any attempted court action to lessen his punishment for these crimes."
  14. ↑ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, 30 September 2015
  15. ↑ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates
  16. ↑ Elections Canada – Official voting results, Forty-first general election, 2011
  17. ↑ Elections Canada – Candidate's electoral campaign return, 41st general election

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Steven Blaney.
28th Ministry – Cabinet of Stephen Harper
Cabinet Posts (2)
Predecessor Office Successor
Jean-Pierre Blackburn Minister of Veterans Affairs
2011–2013		 Julian Fantino
Vic Toews Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
2013–2015		 Ralph Goodale
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