René John Soetens (born 7 September 1948) was a member of the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

from 1988 to 1993. His background was in business and sales. Rene was elected to Town of Ajax Council in 1980 and re-elected 1982 and 1985. He was elected in the 1988 federal election at the

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 ...

for the Progressive Conservative party. He served in the

34th Canadian Parliament The 34th Canadian Parliament was in session from December 12, 1988, until September 8, 1993. The membership was set by the 1988 federal election on November 21, 1988, and it changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections until it w ...

but lost to

Dan McTeague Daniel P. McTeague, (born October 16, 1962) is a Canadian businessman and former politician. McTeague served for eighteen years as Member of Parliament for the Ontario riding of Pickering—Scarborough East. Early life Fluently bilingual, Mc ...

of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

in the 1993 federal election. Soetens also made an unsuccessful bid to return to national Parliament in the 2004 federal election at the

Ajax—Pickering Ajax—Pickering was a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that had been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2011 by Conservative MP Chris Alexander. Its population in 2001 was 100,215. The district included the to ...

electoral district An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

. He is president and owner of Con-Test, a national certification company specializing in the testing of controlled environments found in research facilities, hospitals, pharmaceutical drug manufacturing and associated cleanrooms.

External links

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René Soetens fonds – Library and Archives Canada
1948 births Living people Dutch emigrants to Canada Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs People from Eindhoven People from Ajax, Ontario Cleanroom technology 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada {{ProgressiveConservative-Ontario-MP-stub