Pierre Corbeil, D.M.D. (born June 23, 1955 in

Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec Saint-Hyacinthe (; French: ) is a city in southwestern Quebec east of Montreal on the Yamaska River. The population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 57,239. The city is located in Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality of the Montérég ...

) is a

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the mouth, oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofaci ...

. He was the mayor of

Val-d'Or, Quebec Val-d'Or (, , ; "Golden Valley" or "Valley of Gold") is a city in Quebec, Canada with a population of 32,752 inhabitants according to the Canada 2021 Census. The city is located in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region near La Vérendrye Wildlife R ...

from 2013 to 2021. He was also a Member of

National Assembly of Quebec The National Assembly of Quebec (officially in french: link=no, Assemblée nationale du Québec) is the legislative body of the province of Quebec in Canada. Legislators are called MNAs (Members of the National Assembly; french: link=no, déput ...

(MNA) for

Abitibi-Est Abitibi-Est is a provincial electoral district in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec, Canada, that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The district notably includes eastern portions of the city of Rouyn-Noranda as well a ...

as a member of the

Quebec Liberal Party The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; french: Parti libéral du Québec, PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has always been associated with the colour red; e ...

and served as a cabinet minister in the government of Jean Charest. Corbeil went to the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (UdeM; ; translates to University of Montreal) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-de ...

and obtained a doctor's degree in dentistry in 1978 before becoming an associate at a local dental clinic. He would later become the manager and vice-president of the Quebec Association of Dental Surgeons. He would also be the president of the

Val-d'Or Val-d'Or (, , ; "Golden Valley" or "Valley of Gold") is a city in Quebec, Canada with a population of 32,752 inhabitants according to the Canada 2021 Census. The city is located in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region near La Vérendrye Wildlife R ...

Chamber of Commerce, a municipal councillor in Val-d'Or for nearly ten years and president of a local hockey league. Corbeil jumped into provincial politics in

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

when he was elected as MNA for Abitibi-Est as the Liberals under the leadership of Jean Charest. He would become the

Minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

of Forest, Wildlife and Parks in 2003 and during a

cabinet shuffle A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parlia ...

in 2005 would become Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife. His term was marked by several closures of plants and sawmills in the lumber sector, including Domtar, which cost several hundred jobs for regions such as the Outaouais,

Nord-du-Québec Nord-du-Québec (; en, Northern Quebec) is the largest, but the least populous, of the seventeen administrative regions of Quebec, Canada. With nearly of land area, and very extensive lakes and rivers, it covers much of the Labrador Peninsula ...

and

Abitibi-Témiscamingue Abitibi-Témiscamingue () is an List of regions of Quebec, administrative region located in western Québec, Canada, along the border with Ontario. It became part of the province in 1898. It has a land area of and its population was 146,717 peo ...

. Restructuring plans were tabled by the Minister in order to re-launch the economy of several towns affected by the closures due to the

softwood lumber dispute Scots Pine, a typical and well-known softwood Softwood is wood from gymnosperm trees such as conifers. The term is opposed to hardwood, which is the wood from angiosperm trees. The main differences between hardwoods and softwoods is that the s ...

. Corbeil was defeated in the 2007 election by the

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (; ; PQ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishin ...

aboriginal Aborigine, aborigine or aboriginal may refer to: *Aborigines (mythology), in Roman mythology * Indigenous peoples, general term for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area *One of several groups of indigenous peoples, see ...

candidate

Alexis Wawanoloath Alexis Wawanoloath (born July 15, 1982) is a Canadian politician. He was a member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Abitibi-Est, representing the Parti Québécois. He is a member of the Abenaki First Nation. The son of Christi ...

. He was re-elected in the

2008 election This electoral calendar 2008 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2008 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, even though they are not elections. By-elections are no ...

and named the minister responsible for Indian Affairs which was previously held by Benoit Pelletier who did not seek re-election.

External links

* 1955 births Canadian dentists French Quebecers Living people Members of the Executive Council of Quebec People from Saint-Hyacinthe People from Val-d'Or Quebec Liberal Party MNAs Quebec municipal councillors Université de Montréal alumni 21st-century Canadian politicians Mayors of places in Quebec {{Quebec-MNA-stub