Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...
,
Manitoba
, image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg
, map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada
, Label_map = yes
, coordinates =
, capital = Winn ...
) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
lawyer, author, and former politician, having represented the constituency of
Halifax Fairview
Halifax Armdale is a provincial electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that elects one member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. This Halifax district covers the growing population of the Fairmount, Armdale and Cowie Hill areas. The north ...
in the
Nova Scotia House of Assembly
The Nova Scotia House of Assembly (french: Assemblée législative de la Nouvelle-Écosse; gd, Taigh Seanaidh Alba Nuadh), or Legislative Assembly, is the deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia of the province of Nova Scotia ...
from 2001-2013 for the
Nova Scotia New Democratic Party
The Nova Scotia New Democratic Party is a social-democratic, progressive provincial party in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the provincial entity of the federal New Democratic Party (NDP). It was founded as the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (C ...
. In January 2021, he began service as the Information and Privacy Commissioner for Nunavut.
Early life and education
A native of Winnipeg, Steele graduated with a BA from the
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.Governor General's Silver Medal. Steele received a Rhodes Scholarship and attended St Edmund Hall,
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...
Dalhousie Law School
, mottoeng = "Law is the source of light"
, endowment =
, staff =
, faculty = 119
, dean = Camille Cameron
, head_label =
, head =
, doctoral =
, students = 500
, city ...
and graduated with an LLB in 1989.
Legal career
Steele practised law with Stewart McKelvey Stirling Scales in Halifax from 1989-1993 and was
General Counsel
A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department.
In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...
to the Nova Scotia Workers Compensation Board from 1993–1998. Steele was Research Director for the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party's caucus office from 1998–2001.
Steele has done workshops in
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
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, capital = Podgorica
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, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
,
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
,
Kosovo
Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
and the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...
for the
National Democratic Institute for International Affairs
The National Democratic Institute (NDI), or National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, is a non-profit American NGO that works with partners in developing countries to increase the effectiveness of democratic institutions. The NDI's ...
.
Political career
In 2001 Steele successfully ran for the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party nomination in the riding of Halifax Fairview. He was elected in a
by-election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...
in March 2001, winning the seat with 58.17% of the vote. Steele was re-elected in the 2003, (45.85%) 2006 (58.51%) and 2009 provincial elections (63.71%).
While in official opposition, Steele served as the NDP's critic for Finance, Environment, Acadian Affairs, Insurance Act, and Treasury and Policy Board. He also served as Deputy House Leader. During this time, Steele also served on the Select Committee on Democratic Participation and was Chair of the Public Accounts Committee.
On June 19, 2009, Steele was appointed to the
Executive Council of Nova Scotia
The Executive Council of Nova Scotia (informally and more commonly, the Cabinet of Nova Scotia) is the cabinet of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia.
Almost always made up of members of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, the Cabinet is sim ...
where he served as Minister of Finance as well as Minister of Acadian Affairs. On May 30, 2012, Steele resigned from cabinet and announced that he would not be re-offering in the next election. Steele was appointed an honorary member of the Executive Council of Nova Scotia on May 31, 2012.
Steele was re-appointed to the Executive Council of Nova Scotia on May 10, 2013 where he took over as Minister of Economic and Rural Development and Tourism, as well as Minister of African Nova Scotian Affairs following the resignation of
Percy Paris
Percy Alonzo Paris is a Canadian former politician from Nova Scotia. He represented the constituency of Waverley-Fall River-Beaver Bank in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly for the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party between 2006-2013.
A native ...
. Steele served in the Executive Council of Nova Scotia until October 22, 2013.
Life after politics
He became a broadcaster on CBC
Information Morning
Information Morning is CBC Radio One's local morning show program for mainland Nova Scotia. It is produced out of the studios of CBHA-FM in Halifax and is simulcast on all CBC Radio One transmitters on mainland Nova Scotia.
History
''Informat ...
, providing a weekly political commentary. In September 2014, he released a memoir called ''What I Learned About Politics: Inside the Rise — and Collapse – of Nova Scotia’s NDP Government''. The book was a shortlisted nominee for the 2015
Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing
The Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing is a Canadian literary award, presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada to the best nonfiction book on Canadian political and social issues. It has been presented annually in Ottawa at the Writer ...
Steele is an Esperantist, having offered part of his legislative website in Esperanto, and has commemorated Nova Scotia Esperantists in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. He is married to Tilly Pillay and they have two children.Stainless Steele Atlantic Business Magazine