Thomas A. Hockin, (born March 5, 1938) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

academic, businessman and former politician. Hockin was born and went to public school in

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

. He graduated from the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...

with a degree in business, and later attended

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, where he graduated with a master's degree in public administration and Ph.D. in political science. Hockin subsequently joined the political science faculty at fledgling

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

, where he rose to full professor teaching Canadian politics. In later years, prior to 1981, he was also head master at St. Andrew's College in Aurora, Ontario. and had a business affiliation with Sotheby's auction house. In addition, he was a member of the

Ontario Police Commission The Ontario Civilian Police Commission (OCPC; French: ''Commission civile de l’Ontario sur la police''), previously known as the Ontario Police Commission and the Ontario Civilian Commission on Police Services, is an independent quasi-judicial ...

. Hockin, who has authored over 30 books, chapters and articles, produced two leading textbooks on Canadian politics in the 1970s: two editions of ''Apex of Power'', first published in 1971, describing the position of the Prime Minister and central agencies in Canadian government, and ''Government in Canada'', published in 1976, an historical overview and political analysis of national political institutions in Canada. Hockin was also a specialist in Canadian parliamentary organization and Canadian foreign policy. Hockin was the unsuccessful Progressive Conservative candidate in the 1981

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

held in London West, coming in 900 votes behind the

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 ...

candidate. Thereafter, he taught in the business school at the University of Western Ontario and moved his residence to London. He won the riding in the 1984 general election that brought the Tories to power under

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 ...

. He was a government

backbench In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...

er for two years before being appointed to

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for Finance. He served in that position until 1989 when he became Minister of State for Small Business and Tourism. In January 1993, Hockin became a full minister as Minister for Science, although he retained his other portfolio. When

Kim Campbell Avril Phaedra Douglas "Kim" Campbell (born March 10, 1947) is a Canadian politician, diplomat, lawyer, and writer who served as the 19th prime minister of Canada from June 25 to November 4, 1993. Campbell is the first and so far only female p ...

succeeded Mulroney as PC leader and

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 ...

in June 1993, she promoted Hockin to

Minister of International Trade The Minister of International Trade Diversification () was a minister of the Crown position in the Canadian Cabinet who was responsible for the federal government's international trade portfolio. Along with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and t ...

. The promotion was short-lived as both he and the Campbell government were defeated in the fall general election. Hockin was defeated by Liberal Sue Barnes. After leaving politics, Hockin was active as a lobbyist for the

mutual fund A mutual fund is a professionally managed investment fund that pools money from many investors to purchase securities. The term is typically used in the United States, Canada, and India, while similar structures across the globe include the SICAV i ...

industry as president and

Chief Executive Officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the Investment Funds Institute of Canada. On November 30, 2009, federal Finance Minister

Jim Flaherty James Michael Flaherty (December 30, 1949 – April 10, 2014) was a Canadian politician who served as the federal minister of finance from 2006 to 2014 under Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper. First elected to the Legislative Assembly ...

nominated Hockin to become the Executive Director of the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...

(IMF) representing Canada, Ireland and the Caribbean. Hockin succeeded Michael Horgan who became the Deputy Minister of Finance.

External links

Profile of Tom Hockin in his role as the public face of the mutual fund industry
''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', June 22, 2004
Inventory of the Thomas A. Hockin fonds
at

St Andrews College, Hockin Trophy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hockin, Tom 1938 births Living people Businesspeople from London, Ontario Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Politicians from London, Ontario Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs University of Western Ontario alumni Academic staff of the University of Western Ontario Academic staff of York University Members of the 24th Canadian Ministry Members of the 25th Canadian Ministry Harvard Kennedy School alumni