William J. Saunderson (born ) is a former

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

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. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

from 1995 to 1999, and served as a

cabinet minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

in the government of

Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...

Background

Saunderson was educated at the

University of Trinity College Trinity College (occasionally referred to as The University of Trinity College) is a college federated with the University of Toronto, founded in 1851 by Bishop John Strachan. Strachan originally intended Trinity as a university of strong Angli ...

in the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

, receiving a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree and subsequently becoming a certified accountant. He continued his education as an adult, and received a PhD from the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottawa ...

in 1994. After graduation, he worked as an accountant with Clarkson and Gordon. He co-founded Spectre Investment Counsel Ltd. in 1971, and worked with the Ontario Pension Commission from 1972 to 1983. Saunderson also had financial ties to the

cigarette A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhaled via the opp ...

industry, which became controversial after he entered political life.

Politics

Saunderson was active in political organization before running for office himself. He took part in fundraising activities for several municipal, provincial and federal campaigns for such figures as

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political sci ...

Joe Clark Charles Joseph Clark (born June 5, 1939) is a Canadian statesman, businessman, writer, and politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Canada from 1979 to 1980. Despite his relative inexperience, Clark rose quickly in federal polit ...

David Crombie David Edward Crombie (born April 24, 1936) is a Canadian former academic and politician who served as the 56th mayor of Toronto from 1972 to 1978. Crombie was elected to Parliament following his tenure as mayor. A member of the Progressive Conse ...

and

Art Eggleton Arthur C. Eggleton (born September 29, 1943) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 59th and longest-serving mayor of Toronto from 1980 to 1991. He was elected to Parliament in 1993, running as a Liberal in York Centre and served as ...

, and was the financial comptroller for the

Progressive Conservative Party of Canada The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (PC; french: Parti progressiste-conservateur du Canada) was a centre-right federal political party in Canada that existed from 1942 to 2003. From Canadian Confederation in 1867 until 1942, the ...

's national election campaigns in 1984 and 1988. He ran in the riding of Eglinton in the 1995 provincial election, and defeated

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

incumbent

Dianne Poole Dianne Poole (born June 28, 1949) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She served as a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1987 to 1995. Background Poole has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Trent Universi ...

by about 4,500 votes. On June 26, 1995, he was appointed as Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Tourism in the first cabinet of

. In 1997, Saunderson announced that the government would be cutting its spending on Ontario's seven "centres of excellence" by 13%. In October 1997, Harris shuffled his cabinet and Saunderson was dropped from his cabinet post. Saunderson had indicated that he would not be running for re-election in the next campaign. After leaving cabinet, he was named to chair the Ontario International Trade Corporation.

Cabinet positions

Later life

In 1999, he was appointed to the board of directors of the

Toronto Symphony Orchestra The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toronto ...

. In 2000, Saunderson and his wife established a research chair at the

to facilitate studies in brain injuries. In 1988 their daughter had been injured in a bicycling accident after being hit by a car. In 2006, he supported

Jane Pitfield Jane Pitfield, (born ) is a former Toronto city councillor, representing one of the two Don Valley West wards. She ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of Toronto in 2006. She is currently the warden of Pontiac Regional County Municipality, Quebec. Ba ...

in her bid to become mayor of Toronto.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saunderson, Bill 1934 births Living people Members of the Executive Council of Ontario Politicians from Toronto Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs Trinity College (Canada) alumni University of Ottawa alumni University of Toronto alumni