Rear-Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarded ...

Fred J. Mifflin, (February 6, 1938 – October 5, 2013) was a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in the

Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...

and a politician. Mifflin was born in Bonavista,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, in 1938.

Naval career

Mifflin joined the RCN in 1954 after serving as a Sea Cadet and rose through the ranks as an officer: * Executive officer 1968–1969 * Command secretary, Maritime Command 1969–1970 * Commanding officer 1970–1972 * Captain, National Defence Headquarters Evaluation Branch 1973–1976 * Commander, First Canadian Destroyer Squadron 1976–1978 * Director of Maritime Requirements 1978–1979 * Director, National Defence Headquarters Secretariat 1979–1981 * Chief of staff, Maritime Command Headquarters, Plans and Ops 1981–1984 * Chief of staff, Maritime Command Headquarters, Personnel 1984–1985 * Rear admiral and deputy commander, Maritime Command 1985–1987

Political career

After retiring from 32 years of service in the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...

, Mifflin entered politics and was elected to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

in the 1988 election. Mifflin became the

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 ...

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 ...

(MP) for the

riding of Bonavista-Trinity-Conception. After the Liberals came to power under the leadership of

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...

in the 1993 election, Mifflin was appointed parliamentary secretary to the ministers of national defence and veterans affairs. In 1996, he was appointed to the

Canadian Cabinet The Cabinet of Canada (french: Cabinet du Canada) is a body of ministers of the Crown that, along with the Canadian monarch, and within the tenets of the Westminster system, forms the government of Canada. Chaired by the prime minister, the Ca ...

Minister of Fisheries and Oceans The minister of fisheries, oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard () is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet responsible for supervising the fishing industry, administrating all navigable waterways in the country, and overseeing the o ...

. In a 1997

cabinet shuffle A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parlia ...

, he was appointed Minister of Veterans Affairs and Secretary of State for the

Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency In Canada, the Regional Development Agencies (RDA) are the seven federal government agencies responsible for addressing key economic challenges and furthering economic development, diversification, and job creation specific to their respective regio ...

. Mifflin decided that he wasn't going to run in the next general election, and was dropped from Cabinet in August 1999. He did not run for re-election in the 2000 election. He supported

Stéphane Dion Stéphane Maurice Dion (born 28 September 1955) is a Canadian diplomat, academic and former politician who has been the Canadian ambassador to France and Monaco since 2022 and special envoy to the European Union since 2017. Dion was Leader of ...

for the leadership of the Liberal Party. Mifflin died on October 5, 2013, with his wife at his side.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mifflin, Fred 1938 births 2013 deaths Canadian military personnel from Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian admirals Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Newfoundland and Labrador Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Members of the 26th Canadian Ministry