Robert Edward John Layton (December 25, 1925 – May 9, 2002) was a Canadian politician who served as the

minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

from 1984 to 1986.

Early career

Robert Layton was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, the son of Norah Lestelle (née England) and former

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 ...

cabinet minister

Gilbert Layton Gilbert Layton (November 5, 1899 – May 29, 1961) was a Canadian politician and businessman in Quebec, Canada. Background Born in Montreal, Quebec, Layton, the son of Philip Edward David Layton and Alice Marion Gilbert, was a merchant a ...

. He graduated from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1947. He spent much of his professional career running an engineering consulting business in

. He became a political activist for the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' ...

, running unsuccessfully in 1972 for the party's nomination for the riding of Vaudreuil.

Member of Parliament

In the 1980s, he joined the Progressive Conservative Party, and was elected to the

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...

in the 1984 election from the Quebec riding of Lachine, covering suburban communities on the west end of the island of Montreal. He was re-elected in the 1988 election. Layton served as Minister of State for Mines in the federal cabinet of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political sci ...

from 1984 to 1986, after which he served as National Caucus Chairman until 1993 when he decided to retire from politics after being diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Family

Layton married Doris Elizabeth Steeves, a grand-niece of

Father of Confederation The Fathers of Confederation are the 36 people who attended at least one of the Charlottetown Conference of 1864 (23 attendees), the Quebec Conference of 1864 (33 attendees), and the London Conference of 1866 (16 attendees), preceding Canadian ...

William Steeves William Henry Steeves (May 20, 1814 – December 9, 1873) was a merchant, lumberman, politician and Father of Canadian Confederation. Life and career Born and raised in Hillsborough, New Brunswick, William Henry Steeves was a descendant of Hein ...

. Robert Layton had three sons and a daughter. His eldest son,

Jack Layton John Gilbert Layton (July 18, 1950 – August 22, 2011) was a Canadian academic and politician who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2003 to 2011 and leader of the Official Opposition in 2011. He previously sat on To ...

became a leader of the federal

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

and Leader of the Official Opposition in the House of Commons. He is the grandfather of

Toronto City Toronto City was a Canadian soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario. Between 1961 and 1967, teams using this name competed in both the Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League and the United Soccer Association. History ECPSL In 1961, along with ...

Councillor

Mike Layton Michael Layton (born November 26, 1980) is a Canadian politician who served on Toronto City Council from 2010 until 2022. Layton most recently represented Ward 11 University—Rosedale. He was first elected in the 2010 municipal election in W ...

. Layton died in

on May 9, 2002.

References

*
Robert Layton fonds, Library and Archives Canada
{{DEFAULTSORT:Layton, Robert 1925 births 2002 deaths Canadian monarchists Robert Layton McGill University alumni Members of the 24th Canadian Ministry Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Politicians from Montreal Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs