Gordon James O'Connor, (born May 18, 1939) is a retired brigadier-general, businessman, and lobbyist, who served as

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2015. He served as Minister of National Defence (2006-2007) and then

Minister of National Revenue The minister responsible for the Canada Revenue Agency () is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), as well as the administration of taxation law and collection. The position is ...

(2007-2008) in the cabinet of

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. He is to date the only prime minister to have come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ser ...

. O'Connor was one of the few defence ministers to have served in the military, the most recent prior to O'Connor being

Gilles Lamontagne Joseph Georges Gilles Claude Lamontagne (; April 17, 1919 – June 14, 2016) was a Canadian politician who held a number of offices both in Quebec and federally. A Liberal, he was Mayor of Quebec City (1965–1977), Postmaster General of Can ...

. In 2008 he was demoted to

Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...

and Chief Government Whip and then dropped from cabinet entirely in 2013 and did not run for re-election in 2015.

Early life and family

Born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, he has a

B.Sc. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

in Mathematics and Physics from

Concordia University (Montreal) Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

and a BA in Philosophy from

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

. O'Connor is married and has two children. He resides in the Ottawa suburb of

Kanata, Ontario Kanata (, ) is a satellite city, satellite community and former city within Ottawa, Ontario. It is located about west of the city's Downtown Ottawa, downtown core. As of 2021, the former City of Kanata had a population of 98,938, with the ...

, where he has lived for over 25 years.

Military career

He served over 30 years in the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

, starting as a second lieutenant in the

Royal Canadian Armoured Corps The Royal Canadian Armoured Corps (RCAC; ) is the armoured corps within the Canadian Army, including 3 Regular and 18 Reserve Force regiments,The Regiments and Corps of the Canadian Army (Queen's Printer, 1964) as well as the Royal Canadian Armo ...

and retired at the rank of brigadier-general. O'Connor then entered the private sector as Vice-President of Business Development for a large facility management firm, and Vice-President of Operations for a vehicle testing centre. He was a Senior Associate with

Hill & Knowlton Hill & Knowlton is an American global public relations consulting company, headquartered in New York City. The firm has over 80 additional offices in more than 40 countries. The company was founded in Cleveland, in 1927 by John W. Hill and is no ...

Canada, a worldwide public relations, public affairs and strategic communications company. O'Connor has also been a

lobbyist Lobbying is a form of advocacy, which lawfully attempts to directly influence legislators or government officials, such as regulatory agencies or judiciary. Lobbying involves direct, face-to-face contact and is carried out by various entities, in ...

for several defence companies. These companies include:

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...

(1996 to 2004),

General Dynamics General Dynamics Corporation (GD) is an American publicly traded aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Reston, Virginia. As of 2020, it was the fifth largest defense contractor in the world by arms sales and fifth largest in the Unit ...

(1996 to 2001), Atlas Elektronik GmbH (1999 to 2004), and

Airbus Military Airbus Military was a business unit of Airbus, which was part of European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) from 2009 to 2013. The company was formally created in April 2009 by the integration of the former Military Transport Aircraft ...

(2001 to 2004).

Parliamentary career

He was elected in the 2004 elections as a

candidate in the

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

riding of Carleton—Mississippi Mills with slightly more than 50% of the vote. After winning he became Defence Critic for the Official Opposition. His vote share increased in the 2006 election and again in the 2008 election. He is an honorary member of the

Royal Military College of Canada The Royal Military College of Canada (), abbreviated in English as RMC and in French as CMR, is a Military academy#Canada, military academy and, since 1959, a List of universities in Canada#Ontario, degree-granting university of the Canadian ...

Club, S157. O'Connor was initially expected to contest Kanata—Carleton, essentially the Ottawa portion of his old riding, in the 2015 election. However, on May 20, 2014, O'Connor announced he would retire after the next election. According to his office manager, John Aris, O'Connor simply decided it was time to leave politics.

Cabinet selection

Though somewhat muted by the higher profile issues in the naming of David Emerson and Michael Fortier to the cabinet, the posting of O'Connor to the position of Minister of National Defence by

Prime Minister A prime minister 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. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Harper was met with controversy. Harkening back to ethics and accountability issues including a promised crackdown on lobbying and reforms to lobbying legislation that Harper raised during the 2006 federal election, O'Connor's employment as a lobbyist for several major defence industry companies including some of the world's largest military contractors, such as

and

Airbus Airbus SE ( ; ; ; ) is a Pan-European aerospace corporation. The company's primary business is the design and manufacturing of commercial aircraft but it also has separate Airbus Defence and Space, defence and space and Airbus Helicopters, he ...

as recently as 2004 was seen by many as peculiar. Some feared that with the posting the minister would often be dealing with the very companies for whom he advised and assisted in soliciting defence contracts; seemingly putting him in constant peril of conflict-of-interest issues. However, the aim of the Accountability Act is to prevent people from moving from government to lobbying, and not the opposite as was the case with O'Connor (at least not this time, although in the past he went from Brigadier General in the Canadian Forces to lobbyist). There were potential conflict-of-interest issues early in his term, as one of the first major issues the Conservatives pledged they would sort out was the replacement of the Forces' 'tactical airlift' fleet. One of the most prominent companies bidding for the contract to replace the present fleet of C-130 Hercules Turboprops is Airbus S.A.S. for whom O'Connor worked as a lobbyist until February 2004, lobbying the former Liberal government to purchase the airplane that would become the

Airbus A400M The Airbus A400M AtlasNamed after the Atlas (mythology), Greek mythological figure. is a European four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. It was designed by Airbus Military, now Airbus Defence and Space, as a tactical airlifter with ...

for its tactical airlift fleet.

Minister of National Defence

Within months of Gordon O'Connor becoming Minister of National Defence, the Canadian Government announced the purchase of 4

C-17 Globemaster III The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...

s, manufactured by

Boeing Integrated Defense Systems Boeing Defense, Space & Security (BDS) is a division of the Boeing Company based in Arlington, Virginia, near Washington, D.C. The division builds military airplanes, rotorcraft, and missiles, as well as space systems for both commercial and mili ...

for $3.4 billion,DND/CF News Release
, June 29, 2006, Retrieved on August 23, 2007 16

CH-47 Chinook The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a tandem-rotor helicopter originally developed by American rotorcraft company Piasecki Helicopter, Vertol and now manufactured by Boeing Defense, Space & Security. The Chinook is a Military transport helicopter, heav ...

medium lift helicopters, also from

, for $4.7 billion, 17

C-130J The Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. The C-130J is a comprehensive update of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, with new engines, flight deck, and other systems. The C-130J is th ...

s from

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

for $4.9 billion, 2300 Medium-Sized Logistics Trucks for $1.1 billion, and $2.9 billion for 3 Joint Support Ships, for a total of $17 billion. O'Connor announced on May 30, 2006, that the

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

would be restricting usage of the Mercedes G-Wagon to on-base operations only, after a number of Canadian soldiers were killed while travelling in the lightly armoured vehicle. However, three months later it was revealed that no such order was ever given, and the controversial vehicles were still being used in combat operations. In a major

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 parliam ...

on August 14, 2007, Prime Minister Harper moved O'Connor to the position of

, replacing him in the defence portfolio with former

Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

Peter MacKay Peter Gordon MacKay (born September 27, 1965), a Canadian lawyer and politician, served as Member of Parliament (Canada), Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2015 and as Minister of Justice (Canada), Minister of Justice and Attorney General (20 ...

Controversies

Afghanistan

In May 2005, Canada's practice of transferring persons detained by the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan to units of the Afghan police came under question when some prisoners said they were beaten and abused. O'Connor told Parliament that the

International Committee of the Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a humanitarian organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, and is a three-time Nobel Prize laureate. The organization has played an instrumental role in the development of rules of war and ...

: "The Red Cross or the Red Crescent is responsible to supervise their treatment once the prisoners are in the hands of the Afghan authorities. If there is something wrong with their treatment, the Red Cross or Red Crescent would inform us and we would take action." This statement was later denied by the ICRC, which stated that it was "informed of the agreement, but ... not a party to it and ... not monitoring the implementation of it." The ICRC also advised that, in accordance with its normal operating procedure, it would not notify any foreign government (Canada included) of abuse found in Afghan prisons. On March 13, O'Connor travelled to

Kandahar Kandahar is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city, after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118 in 2015. It is the capital of Kandahar Pro ...

to meet with Abdul Noorzai of the

Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) (Dari: کمیسیون مستقل حقوق بشر افغانستان, ) is a national human rights institution that was created during the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, dedicated to the promo ...

, "look the man in the eyes", and gain assurances that detainees were being supervised. O'Connor subsequently acknowledged in a
official release
that his statement in Parliament was not true, and that the ICRC was not monitoring detainees and not informing Canada as he claimed. Additional controversy was generated in the week of April 23 when ''The Globe and Mail'' reported that 30 Afghan men formerly under Canadian custody alleged they had been tortured by their Afghan captors. Two days later, another ''Globe'' story ran on a government report from which "negative references to acts such as torture, abuse, and extra judicial killings were blacked out without an explanation." The difficulties faced by O'Connor were exacerbated after various government ministers and Stephen Harper himself gave apparently conflicting testimony on the existence and nature of the agreement with Afghan forces to supervise detainees. Following these revelations, the opposition parties unanimously demanded O'Connor's resignation; a demand echoed by some press commentators such as

Andrew Coyne James Andrew Coyne (born December 23, 1960) is a Canadian columnist with ''The Globe and Mail'' and a member of the ''At Issue'' panel on CBC's '' The National''. Previously, he has been national editor for ''Maclean's'' and a columnist with ''Nat ...

. Stephen Harper resisted calls for O'Connor's dismissal. O'Connor also faced criticism for remarks that Canada was in Afghanistan as an act of retribution for

9/11 The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

Letter to Donald Rumsfeld

In December 2006, O'Connor wrote to outgoing

United States Secretary of Defense The United States secretary of defense (acronym: SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense (DoD), the United States federal executive departments, executive department of the United States Armed Forces, U.S. Armed Forces, a ...

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, businessman, and naval officer who served as United States Secretary of Defense, secretary of defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and again ...

praising his "vision", "many achievements", and "significant contribution", adding: "Here we have been privileged to benefit from your leadership" in "the campaign against terror." Some critics argued the letter was excessively flattering and went beyond the demands of courtesy.

Forgiving tax bills

As Minister of National Revenue, O'Connor issued a remission order forgiving the tax bills of 35 former SDL Optics Inc. employees. The employees had used

stock options In finance, an option is a contract which conveys to its owner, the ''holder'', the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a specific quantity of an underlying asset or instrument at a specified strike price on or before a specified dat ...

to buy shares in their company for a fraction of their market value. The options were taxable and the shareholders owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes. O'Connor's order was made against the advice of

Canada Revenue Agency The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA; ; ) is the revenue service of the Government of Canada, Canadian federal government, and most Provinces and territories of Canada, provincial and territorial governments. The CRA collects Taxation in Canada, taxes, ...

commissioner William Baker. Tax professionals called it favouritism and "purely political."Kathryn May
"Tories forgive huge JDS tax bills"
, The Ottawa Citizen,'' December 7, 2007. Retrieved on May 26, 2009. Most of the affected employees lived in the riding of fellow Conservative Cabinet Minister Gary Lunn.

Notes

External links

Gordon O'Connor
official site * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnor, Gordon 1939 births BAE Systems people Canadian Army officers Canadian generals Canadian people of Irish descent Concordia University alumni Conservative Party of Canada MPs Living people Ministers of national defence of Canada Members of the 28th Canadian Ministry Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Military personnel from Ottawa Military personnel from Toronto Politicians from Ottawa Politicians from Toronto Royal Military College of Canada people York University alumni Royal Canadian Dragoons officers 21st-century members of the House of Commons of Canada