Beverly "Bev" Shipley (born June 22, 1947 in Middlesex Centre, Ontario) is a retired farmer and politician in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada who served as the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for the riding of

Lambton—Kent—Middlesex Lambton—Kent—Middlesex (formerly known as Middlesex—Kent—Lambton) is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1997. The district includes all of Middlesex Coun ...

from 2006 to 2019 as a member of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. Shipley ran in the 2004 election for the Conservatives in

but lost to incumbent

Rose-Marie Ur Rose-Marie Margaret Ur (born July 28, 1946 in Glencoe, Ontario) is a Canadian politician. She was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1993 until 2005 and, in her final term in office, represented the riding of Middlesex—Kent— ...

of the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' ...

by only 164 votes. Shipley won the seat in 2006 after Ur did not seek re-election, and was re-elected in 2008, 2011, and 2015. Shipley announced on July 9, 2018 that he would not be running in the 2019 federal election.

Political life

Shipley has championed various agriculture-related causes during his time in Parliament, including his Prime Member's Motion M-460. The motion called on Parliament to streamline the fertilizer regulations and approval processes with the United States. It has influenced sections of Bill C-18: ''Agricultural Growth Act''. Shipley also introduced a second Private Members' Motion M-382 on Religious Freedom. It passed by unanimous consent in the House of Commons and backed the creation of the Office of Religious Freedom. Shipley was chosen in 2011 by the Prime Minister to chair the South West Ontario Conservative Regional Caucus. He sat as a member on many standing committees, including Public Accounts and International Trade. In October 2013, he was elected as Chair of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-food. The committee was involved in various studies, including Bill C-30: ''Fair Rail for Grain Farmers Act'' and Bill C-18: ''Agricultural Growth Act''. The committee also conducted a study of the Canada-Europe Trade Agreement (CETA).

Personal life

Shipley has lived in Middlesex County his entire life. His interest in agriculture stems from having taken over his family farm. A graduate of the

Centralia College of Agricultural Technology Centralia College of Agricultural Technology was an agricultural college in Huron Park, Ontario near the town of Exeter. It opened in 1967 and operated under the direction of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The college used local f ...

, Shipley was elected as a councilor in Lobo Township in 1986 and as the Warden of Middlesex County in 1995. He was also the mayor of

Middlesex Centre Middlesex Centre is a township (Canada), township in Middlesex County, Ontario, Middlesex County, in southwestern Ontario, Canada, north and west of London, Ontario, London. The Corporation of the Township of Middlesex Centre formed on January 1, ...

for six years. Shipley is married to Barb Shipley (née: Stewart) and has three children, one girl and two boys. His father-in-law is Bill Stewart, former Minister of Agriculture for the province of

(1961–1975).

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shipley, Bev 1947 births Canadian evangelicals Canadian farmers Conservative Party of Canada MPs Living people Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario 21st-century Canadian politicians