Gordon Howlett Dean (July 23, 1922 – April 19, 2008) was a politician in
Ontario, Canada. He was a
Progressive Conservative member in 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 1981 to 1987 and was 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’, â ...
in the governments of
Bill Davis and
Frank Miller.
Background
Dean was born in
Fruitland, Ontario
Fruitland, Ontario ''(Census Tract 5370085.03)'' (Canada 2006 Census, 2006 Population 2,824) is a community in the eastern end of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Its adjacent communities includes Winona, Ontario, Winona, Beamsville, Ontario, Beamsville ...
and educated at
McMaster University in
Hamilton where he received his Masters of Science degree. He worked as a fruit farmer, but he worked, for a short period of time, in Chalk River at the
AECL facility. Married for 58 years, he and his wife, Mary, had three daughters.
Politics
He was
reeve
Reeve may refer to:
Titles
*Reeve (Canada), an elected chief executive of some counties, townships, and equivalents
*Reeve (England), an official elected annually by the serfs to supervise lands for a lord
*High-reeve, a title taken by some Englis ...
and deputy reeve of
Saltfleet from 1965 to 1973, a warden in
Wentworth County
Wentworth County is one of the 141 Cadastral divisions of New South Wales. The Murray River is the boundary to the south, and the Anabranch of the Darling River is the western boundary. It includes the area where the Darling River joins the Mu ...
in 1972, and
mayor of
Stoney Creek from 1974 to 1980. Dean served as president of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario in 1977-78.
He ran for the provincial legislature in a
by-election for the riding of
Wentworth held on April 5, 1979. He lost to
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 ...
candidate
Colin Isaacs
Colin Francis Weeber Isaacs (born 3rd quarter 1948) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a New Democratic Party member in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario representing the riding of Wentworth from 1979 to 1981. He works as an envi ...
by 543 votes.
Two years later, he defeated Isaacs by 260 votes in the
1981 provincial election.
Dean was named a
minister without portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...
in Davis's government on July 6, 1983.
He was appointed
Provincial Secretary for Social Development on December 23 of the same year.
He supported
Dennis Timbrell to succeed Davis in the Progressive Conservative Party's 1985 leadership convention, and was retained in his portfolio when Frank Miller replaced Davis 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.
Dean was re-elected by an increased margin in the
1985 provincial election, which saw the Progressive Conservatives reduced to a fragile
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 ...
.
He was appointed
Minister of Revenue on May 17, 1985, but accomplished little in this position before Miller's government was defeated in the house the following month.
In opposition, Dean served as his party's critic for Revenue and Senior Citizen's Affairs. He did not run for re-election in 1987.
Cabinet
Later life
He served on the Board of Directors of St. Joseph's Healthcare and the
Royal Botanical Gardens in Hamilton, Ontario. He remained an active member of the Progressive Conservative Party, the McMaster Alumni Association, and the
United Church of Canada until his death.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dean, Gordon Howlett
1922 births
2008 deaths
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs
Members of the United Church of Canada
Members of the Executive Council of Ontario