Robert Muir (10 November 1919 – 31 August 2011) was a Canadian Member of Parliament, first in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

and later in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. Muir sat in both chambers as a member of the

Progressive Conservative Party of Canada The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (PC; french: Parti progressiste-conservateur du Canada) was a centre-right federal political party in Canada that existed from 1942 to 2003. From Canadian Confederation in 1867 until 1942, the ...

. He was born in Scotland and raised on

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. Before he became a politician, he was also a miner, a union official, a salesman and a businessman during his career. He died at his home in the

Cape Breton Regional Municipality Cape Breton Regional Municipality (often referred to as simply "CBRM") is the Canadian province of Nova Scotia's second largest municipality and the economic heart of Cape Breton Island. As of 2016 the municipality has a population of 94,285. The ...

in 2011.

Early life

Muir was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

on 10 November 1919. After his father died in 1920, he and his mother immigrated to Canada. After leaving school in grade 8, he worked in the coal mines until injuries ended his ability to do so. Before he was injured for the final time, he was elected as the secretary of his

United Mine Workers of America The United Mine Workers of America (UMW or UMWA) is a North American Labor history of the United States, labor union best known for representing coal miners. Today, the Union also represents health care workers, truck drivers, manufacturing worke ...

(UMW) local. After recuperating from his injuries, he worked in insurance for London Life until he was elected to parliament. He later served as chair of the Miners' Hospital in Cape Breton.

Political career

Muir began politics as a member of the

Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia Sydney Mines (Scottish Gaelic: ''Mèinnean Shidni'') is a community and former town in Canada's Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Founded in 1784 and incorporated as a town in 1889, Sydney Mines has a rich history in coal producti ...

municipal council, where he served from 1948 to 1958. He entered federal politics in the 1957 Canadian general election, winning the Cape Breton North and Victoria electoral district in Nova Scotia. His old riding was abolished after the 1966 electoral district redistribution. Muir then ran in the newly created

Cape Breton—The Sydneys Cape Breton—The Sydneys was a federal electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1968 to 1997. This riding was created in 1966 from Cape Breton South. It consisted initially of part ...

electoral district in the 1968 Canadian general election and won the seat. Muir won election eight consecutive times, stepping down in 1979 after having served in the

30th Canadian Parliament The 30th Canadian Parliament was in session from September 30, 1974, until March 26, 1979. The membership was set by the 1974 election on July 8, 1974, and was only changed somewhat due to resignations and by-elections before it was dissolved pr ...

. On 28 March 1979, two-days after an election call,

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Prime Minister

Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada The prime mini ...

appointed Muir to the Senate. Muir sat in the self-designated Senate division of Cape Breton-The Sydneys. Muir retired from the Senate on 10 November 1994. He died at home, in

Coxheath, Nova Scotia Coxheath is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located north of the Sydney River in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality on Cape Breton Island. The community is home to Riverview Rural High School, a secondary school with ap ...

on 31 August 2011, aged 91, from respiratory failure.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Muir, Robert 1919 births 2011 deaths Canadian senators from Nova Scotia Liberal Party of Canada senators Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Nova Scotia Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs Politicians from Edinburgh Canadian people of Scottish descent People from the Cape Breton Regional Municipality Deaths from respiratory failure