James Allison Glen, (December 18, 1877 – June 28, 1950) was 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 ...

parliamentarian and

Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada The speaker of the House of Commons (french: président de la Chambre des communes) is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. A member of Parliament (MP), they are elected at the beginning of each new parliament b ...

from 1940 to 1945.

Early life

Born in Renton,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, Glen graduated in law from the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

before immigrating to Canada in 1911 where he settled in

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 749,6 ...

. He later moved to

Russell, Manitoba Russell is an unincorporated urban community in the Municipality of Russell – Binscarth, Manitoba. It is located along PTH 16 and PTH 83, and is at the western terminus of PTH 45. Russell is approximately east of the Saskatchewan border and ...

, where he practised law and was elected to the school board.

Politics

A supporter of the

Progressive Party Progressive Party may refer to: Active parties * Progressive Party, Brazil * Progressive Party (Chile) * Progressive Party of Working People, Cyprus * Dominica Progressive Party * Progressive Party (Iceland) * Progressive Party (Sardinia), Ita ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, Glen had been the chief organizer for party leader

Thomas Crerar Thomas Alexander Crerar, (June 17, 1876 – April 11, 1975) was a western Canadian politician and a leader of the short-lived Progressive Party of Canada. He was born in Molesworth, Ontario, and moved to Manitoba at a young age. Early care ...

in the 1917 federal election when Crerar was a Liberal-Unionist candidate, and the 1921 election in which the

Progressives Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, techno ...

made their debut. Glen was first 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 1926 election as a

Liberal-Progressive Liberal-Progressive was a label used by a number of candidates in Canadian elections between 1925 and 1953. In federal and Ontario politics, there was no Liberal-Progressive party: it was an alliance between two parties. In Manitoba, a party existe ...

at a time when Manitoba Progressives, including the Manitoba Progressive Party provincial government, had decided to align with 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 ...

s in order to increase their influence. He lost his seat in the 1930 election, but re-elected to Parliament in the federal election of 1935. Glen was chosen as Speaker of the House following the 1940 election, and had to deal with issues of wartime security such as censoring

Hansard ''Hansard'' is the traditional name of the transcripts of parliamentary debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries. It is named after Thomas Curson Hansard (1776–1833), a London printer and publisher, who was the first official print ...

in order to remove sensitive military information. Due to the international situation and wartime mobilization, there was a greater degree of interparty cooperation during the war which assisted Glen in his role as Speaker. Glen remained a Liberal-Progressive in name until the 1945 election when he ran as a Liberal—immediately prior to the 1945 election, Mackenzie King appointed Glen 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 ...

as Minister of Mines and Resources. In practice, however, he and his fellow Liberal-Progressives were Liberals in every respect. Glen remained Minister of Mines and Resources until he retired from Cabinet following a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

in 1948. A few months later Glen resigned from the House of Commons in order to provide a seat for

Stuart Garson Stuart Sinclair Garson (December 1, 1898 – May 5, 1977) was a Canadian politician and lawyer. He served as the 12th premier of Manitoba from 1943 to 1948, and later became a Federal cabinet minister. Life and career Born in St. Catharine ...

, the

Premier of Manitoba The premier of Manitoba (french: premier ministre du Manitoba) is the first minister (i.e., head of government or chief executive) for the Canadian province of Manitoba—as well as the ''de facto'' President of the province's Executive Council ...

who had been enticed to join the federal Cabinet as Minister of Justice. Glen was appointed Canadian Co-Chairman of the

International Joint Commission The International Joint Commission (french: Commission mixte internationale) is a bi-national organization established by the governments of the United States and Canada under the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909. Its responsibilities were expa ...

. He died two years later.

References

Manitoba Historical Society biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Glen, James Allison 1877 births 1950 deaths Liberal-Progressive MPs Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Scottish emigrants to Canada Speakers of the House of Commons of Canada People from Renton, West Dunbartonshire