Lyle Knute Oberg (born January 6, 1960) is an
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
n politician and former
member of the Legislative Assembly
A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...
. He is also a
physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
and business executive.
Life and career
Oberg was born near
Forestburg, Alberta
Forestburg is a village located in east-central Alberta, Canada. The rich farmland of the area was first settled in 1905. Soon after the first of many "gopher hole" mines, homesteaders were soon coal mining on the banks of the Battle River in 1 ...
in 1960. A
physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
by profession, Oberg was first elected to 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 singl ...
as a
Progressive Conservative in 1993. He was first appointed to the
Alberta Cabinet in 1997 and served numerous posts.
Oberg was appointed Minister of Family and Social Services in March 1997. Over the next two years, he oversaw the move of children's services and services for persons with developmental disabilities to community-based delivery. He launched a western Canadian initiative to address
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and implemented an interprovincial strategy to share resources and develop new and better approaches for addressing FAS. As part of the Alberta Children's Agenda, he introduced the Alberta Child Health Benefit Program and played a key role in the development of the Protection of Children Involved in Prostitution Act.
On May 26, 1999, Oberg was appointed Minister of Learning, a post he held until November 2004. During this appointment, he awarded a 14% increase to Alberta's teachers but only granted a 6% increase to the school boards. To cover this funding shortfall, Calgary school boards took funding from school maintenance leading to issues with school roofs collapsing During that time, he also served as a member of Treasury Board and as the Minister responsible for immigration. Oberg was an active member of the Canadian Ministers of Education and led the Canadian delegation to an International Group of Eight (
G8) Education Ministers meeting. He oversaw the creation of Alberta's Commission on Learning and implemented many of its recommendations, including the reduction of provincial class sizes. He began the second language initiative in Alberta schools to give students an edge in the world marketplace and initiated the development of the daily physical activity program to improve the health of Alberta students.
Following his re-election in the November 22, 2004 election, Oberg was appointed Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation.
On March 22, 2006, shortly after announcing his resignation from his ministerial position following a directive from Premier
Ralph Klein
Ralph Philip Klein (November 1, 1942 – March 29, 2013) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as the 12th premier of Alberta and leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta from 1992 until his retirement in 20 ...
to all ministers running to replace him, Oberg was removed from the Progressive Conservative
caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
after making comments at a
Strathmore-Brooks Constituency Association
annual general meeting urging the membership to vote their conscience in a crucial leadership vote at the March 2006 AGM of the party. He was re-admitted to caucus on July 25, 2006.
On June 19, 2006, Oberg entered the race for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party in Alberta. He failed to place in the top three in the November 25 first ballot (he placed fourth), and thus was not eligible for the second ballot to be held on December 2. Oberg's allegations of scandal on front runner
Jim Dinning
James Francis Dinning (born December 4, 1952) is a Canadian Progressive Conservative politician and businessman. He was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta (1986–1997), and now serves on the board of directors of a variety of Canad ...
in the summer of 2006 appeared to have had a negative effect on his campaign. He later threw his support to third-place finisher and eventual winner
Ed Stelmach
Edward Michael Stelmach (; born May 11, 1951) is a Canadian politician and served as the 13th premier of Alberta, from 2006 to 2011. The grandson of Ukrainian immigrants, Stelmach was born and raised on a farm near Lamont and fluently speaks ...
.
On December 15, 2006, Oberg was named Minister of Finance in Premier
Ed Stelmach
Edward Michael Stelmach (; born May 11, 1951) is a Canadian politician and served as the 13th premier of Alberta, from 2006 to 2011. The grandson of Ukrainian immigrants, Stelmach was born and raised on a farm near Lamont and fluently speaks ...
's cabinet.
Oberg announced in December 2007 that he would not seek re-election in the
next election in March 2008.
On June 2, 2010, Oberg opened C2DNA in Edmonton, the first private DNA testing facility in Canada. He founded the lab with his brother and other investors. He stepped down as president and CEO the following day to avoid any conflict over a medical doctor being involved with such a high tech company, but said he would remain an advisor.
On March 1, 2011, Oberg announced that he was joining the right-wing Wildrose Alliance Party. He said he would not be running for office but would participate in an advisory role to party leader Danielle Smith. He cited the Conservative government's decision to abolish the multiple health districts in Alberta and replace them with an Edmonton-based super board, and the recently announced deficit budget, the fourth in as many years, as his reason for the switch.
After politics
He is chief executive officer of
MYND Life Sciences Inc., a Canadian company that has developed biomarker test technology which will be used in a clinical trial of
psilocybin
Psilocybin ( , ) is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug compound produced by more than 200 species of fungi. The most potent are members of the genus ''Psilocybe'', such as '' P. azurescens'', '' P. semilanceata'', and '' P.&nbs ...
-assisted
psychotherapy
Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...
. He has also served on the boards of other companies.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oberg, Lyle
Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta MLAs
Independent Alberta MLAs
Living people
1960 births
Physicians from Alberta
Members of the Executive Council of Alberta
20th-century Canadian politicians
21st-century Canadian politicians
Canadian chief executives