George Lyle Ashe (October 5, 1932 – August 3, 2014) was a Canadian politician based 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 ...

. He was a Progressive Conservative Party 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 1977 to 1987 who represented the Durham region riding of

Durham West Durham West was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1904. It was located in the province of Ontario. It was created by the British North America Act of 1867 which divided the county of Durham ...

. He 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 governments of

Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...

and

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on Daredevil (Marvel Comics ser ...

Background

Ashe was born in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, and educated in that city. He worked in agency management for Northern Life of Canada. He was a Separate School trustee for the Roman Catholic board in

Gloucester Township Gloucester Township is a township in Camden County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 64,634, reflecting an increase of 284 (+0.4%) from the 64,350 counted in the 2000 census. The township ranke ...

in the late 1950s. He and his wife Margo raised four children.

Politics

He was an alderman for

Nepean Township Nepean Township is a former incorporated and now geographic township in Eastern Ontario, Canada, now part of the City of Ottawa. Originally known as Township D, it was established in 1792. In 1800, it became part of Carleton County and was incorp ...

in the early 1960s. He was elected deputy reeve of Pickering in 1969, and became the city's first

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

four years later. Ashe served as mayor of Pickering until 1977, and was also a member of the

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county *Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in No ...

Regional Council. He was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1977 election, in the riding of

defeating

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

incumbent Charles Godfrey by 593 votes. He served as

parliamentary assistant In UK politics, a parliamentary assistant is an unelected partisan member of staff employed by a Member of Parliament (MP) to assist them with their parliamentary duties. Parliamentary assistants usually work at the House of Commons in the U ...

to three ministers, and was re-elected with an increased plurality in the 1981 election. Ashe was appointed to Bill Davis's cabinet on April 10, 1981, as Minister of Revenue. Following a cabinet shuffle on July 6, 1983, Ashe was named as Minister of Government Services. Ashe supported Frank Miller to succeed Davis in the Progressive Conservative Party's 1985 leadership convention, and was named Minister of Energy when Miller became in as

Premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario (french: premier ministre de l'Ontario) is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly of On ...

on February 8, 1985. Ashe was re-elected in the 1985 election, which reduced Miller's Conservatives to

minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...

status. He was appointed as Chair of the Management Board of Cabinet on May 17, 1985, but accomplished little before Miller's government was defeated in the house in June. In opposition, he served as his party's critic for Revenue, the Management Board, and Financial Institutions. He lost the Durham West constituency to

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 ...

Norah Stoner by 5,843 votes in the 1987 election, amid a Liberal sweep of the province. Ashe's son, Kevin is also a Regional Councillor and Deputy Mayor with the City of Pickering. During the 40th Ontario general election, Ashe was the

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur de l'Ontario), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada ...

Ajax—Pickering Ajax—Pickering was a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that had been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2011 by Conservative MP Chris Alexander. Its population in 2001 was 100,215. The district included the Town ...

but ultimately lost.

Cabinet positions

Later life

In 2003, Ashe was elected as a Trustee for the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington District School Board and he served one three-year term. He died in 2014 of Parkinson's disease.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashe, George 1932 births 2014 deaths Mayors of places in Ontario Members of the Executive Council of Ontario People from Clarington Politicians from Ottawa Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs Ontario school board trustees