Lindsay Blackett (born February 8, 1961) is a Canadian politician and was a Member of the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. The Legislative Assembly currently has 87 members, elected first past the post from sin ...

, representing the constituency of

Calgary-North West Calgary-North West is a provincial electoral district in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The district was created in 1979 and is mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. History The electoral district was created in ...

as a Progressive Conservative.

Early life

Blackett was born February 8, 1961, in

Oxford 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 the ...

, England. He studied criminology and

corrections In criminal justice, particularly in North America, correction, corrections, and correctional, are umbrella terms describing a variety of functions typically carried out by government agencies, and involving the punishment, treatment, and s ...

at Ottawa's

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning Wo ...

from 1979 to 1983 but did not graduate. Prior to his election as the MLA for

, Blackett worked as a Technical Sales Representative, providing

Original Equipment Manufacturer An original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is generally perceived as a company that produces non-aftermarket parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. It is a common industry term recognized and used by many professional or ...

(OEM) electronic component hardware and design.

Political career

Blackett has been involved in politics in varying capacities for many years. He has held the positions of Provincial Progressive Conservative Constituency Association Director for Calgary-West and

, President and vice-president of the Ottawa-Centre Federal Progressive Conservative Association, President of the Ottawa-Centre Federal Progressive Conservative Youth Association, Youth Convention Coordinator for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada's 1986 Annual General Meeting, and Special Assistant in the Prime Minister of Canada's Office. Blackett first sought public office in the 2008 provincial election in the constituency of

. In that election, he received 46% of the vote. On March 12, 2008, Blackett was appointed by the Premier as the Minister of Culture and Community Spirit. On June 14, 2010, Blackett spoke to a panel of people from the television industry at the Banff World Television Festival. He said, "I sit here as a government representative for film and television in the province of Alberta, and I look at what we produce, and if we're honest with ourselves … I look at it and say, 'Why do I produce so much shit? Why do I fund so much crap?'" His criticism was widely publicized. There were complaints about his choice of words, and also, since Blackett's portfolio includes responsibility for culture, opposition MLAs and others called for his resignation. Blackett apologized for his language but not the sentiment.

Personal life

Blackett is married to Jennifer and the couple has two children. He is an active community volunteer. In addition to his political volunteerism, Blackett has served as Director of the Tuscany Community Association, President of the Canadian Progress Club (which raises $500,000 annually for Big Brothers and Big Sisters and other charities that serve Calgary's less fortunate), Volunteer Coordinator for Henry Burris All-Star Weekend, Big Brother volunteer, and coach for both soccer and hockey.

Election results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackett, Lindsay 1961 births Living people Politicians from Oxford Politicians from Calgary Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta MLAs Black Canadian politicians Members of the Executive Council of Alberta 21st-century Canadian politicians Carleton University alumni