Leonard Goucher (born September 19, 1947) 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 ...
politician, who represented the electoral district of
Bedford
Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...
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 2006 to 2009. He is a member of the
Progressive Conservatives.
A town councilor in
Bedford, Nova Scotia
Bedford is a community of the Halifax Regional Municipality, in Nova Scotia, Canada.
History
The area of Bedford has evidence of Indigenous peoples dating back thousands of years. Petroglyphs are found at Bedford Petroglyphs National Historic ...
from 1988 to 1996, Goucher was elected to
Halifax Regional Council
Halifax Regional Council (french: Conseil régional d'Halifax) is the governing body of Halifax, known as the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM). Halifax is governed by a mayor-council system, where councillors are elected from sixteen geographi ...
in 2000. He was re-elected in 2004 and served as Deputy Mayor of the
Halifax Regional Municipality
Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...
. He entered provincial politics in the
2006 election, defeating Liberal leader
Francis MacKenzie
Francis MacKenzie (born May 7, 1960) is a former leader of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party. He won the leadership for the party on October 23, 2004.
Early life
Following graduation from St. Francis Xavier University in 1982, MacKenzie worked in On ...
in the Bedford riding. In June 2006, Goucher 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 ...
as Minister of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. In October 2007, Goucher was shuffled to Minister of Immigration. In January 2009, he was given two additional roles in cabinet, becoming Minister of the Public Service Commission, and Minister of Seniors. In the
2009 election, Goucher was defeated by Liberal
Kelly Regan
Kelly Maureen Regan (née Smith) MLA (born 4 February 1961) is a Canadian politician who has served in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly since 2009, most recently as the MLA for Bedford Basin. She was first elected as the Member for Bedford-Bi ...
.
In February 2010, he became embroiled in a
spending scandal involving inappropriate expenses charged to the public by a number of Nova Scotia MLAs. Goucher was singled out by the
Canadian Taxpayers Federation
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF; french: Fédération canadienne des contribuables, link=no) is a federally incorporated, non-profit organization in Canada. It claimed 30,517 donors and 215,009 supporters in 2018–19. Voting membership, h ...
when they highlighted Nova Scotian politicians for their "outrageous" expense claims, naming him the all-star of the scandal and giving him the nickname Len "the master of multi-tasking" Goucher.
On February 14, 2011 the RCMP released its investigation results and he was cleared of any wrongdoing.
References
1947 births
Living people
Progressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia MLAs
People from Bedford, Nova Scotia
Members of the Executive Council of Nova Scotia
Halifax Regional Municipality councillors
21st-century Canadian politicians
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