Shirley Jean Collins (born October 7, 1952) is a former politician in Ontario,

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. She served in the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

as a

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 ...

from 1987 to 1990, and was a

Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

in the government of

David Peterson David Robert Peterson (born December 28, 1943) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th premier of Ontario from 1985 to 1990. He was the first Liberal officeholder in 42 years, ending the so-called Tory dynasty. Backgro ...

Background

Collins was educated at

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...

. She was a special assistant to federal

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Hon. John Munro from 1979 to 1981, and a constituency assistant to Member of Provincial Parliament

Sheila Copps Sheila Maureen Copps (born November 27, 1952) is a former Canadian politician who also served as the sixth deputy prime minister of Canada from November 4, 1993, to April 30, 1996, and June 19, 1996, to June 11, 1997. Her father, Victor Copps, ...

from 1981 to 1982. From 1982 to 1987, Collins served as an

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

and regional councillor for

Hamilton, Ontario City Council Hamilton City Council is the governing body of the City of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Since 21 November 1960, Council has met at Hamilton City Hall at 71 Main Street West. The current council consists of the mayor In many countries, a mayor ...

. Her husband, Robert Rankin, is a retired staff sergeant with Hamilton Police Services. Her son

Chad Collins Chad Steven Collins (born September 20, 1978) is an American professional golfer. Collins was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. He graduated from Methodist College in 2001 with a degree in Business Administration. While at Methodist, he won the ...

was a member of

for many years, until being elected to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

in the

2021 Canadian federal election The 2021 Canadian federal election was held on September 20, 2021, to elect members of the House of Commons to the 44th Canadian Parliament. The writs of election were issued by Governor General Mary Simon on August 15, 2021, when Prime Minist ...

.Samantha Craggs
"Chad Collins takes on Hamilton's affordable housing shortage"

CBC Hamilton CBC Hamilton is the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's digital-only local news operation serving the city of Hamilton, Ontario, which launched on May 9, 2012. The operation currently consists of a Hamilton-focused section within the national CBC.c ...

, February 12, 2016.

Politics

Collins ran for the Ontario Legislature in the 1985 provincial election, losing to incumbent

New Democrat New Democrats, also known as centrist Democrats, Clinton Democrats, or moderate Democrats, are a centrist ideological faction within the Democratic Party in the United States. As the Third Way faction of the party, they are seen as culturall ...

Robert W. Mackenzie by 1,600 votes in the Hamilton East constituency. In the 1987 election, she was handily elected in the neighbouring riding of

Wentworth East Wentworth East was a provincial riding in Ontario, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering ...

. Collins served as the Parliamentary Assistant to Hon. Greg Sorbara, Minister of Labour and Women’s Issues. On August 2, 1989, Collins was named a

Minister without Portfolio A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...

Responsible for People with Disabilities. She held this position until the September 1990 election. The Liberals were defeated by the New Democratic Party in the 1990 provincial election, and Collins lost her seat to NDP candidate

Mark Morrow Mark Morrow (born April 2, 1960) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a New Democratic Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1995. Background Morrow graduated High School from Scott Park Secondary, he then procee ...

by 3,147 votes in the NDP sweep led by Bob Rae. She ran again in the 1995 election, but lost to Progressive Conservative Ed Doyle by 3,606 votes when the Progressive Conservatives formed a government.

Later life

After leaving the Ontario Legislature, Collins became the owner and operator of a private investigation agency, Collins Investigation Services, in Hamilton, Ontario. She was appointed to the appeal division of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada in 2003. In 2006 she worked in the professional development department of the same board until she became a member of the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board from 2009 to 2014 when she retired at the end of her term.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Shirley 1952 births Living people Hamilton, Ontario city councillors Members of the Executive Council of Ontario Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Politicians from Toronto Women government ministers of Canada Women MPPs in Ontario