Geoff Regan

Geoffrey Paul Regan PC MP (born 22 November 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 36th Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Halifax West since 2000, previously holding the seat from 1993 to 1997. Under Paul Martin, he was Minister of Fisheries and Oceans from 2003 to 2006.

For the English author, see Geoffrey Regan.

The Honourable

Geoff Regan

PC MP
36th Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada
In office
3 December 2015 – 5 December 2019
MonarchElizabeth II
Governor General
Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau
Preceded byAndrew Scheer
Succeeded byAnthony Rota
Chairman of the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations
Assumed office
January 20, 2020
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
In office
12 December 2003 – 5 February 2006
Prime MinisterPaul Martin
Preceded byRobert Thibault
Succeeded byLoyola Hearn
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Halifax West
Assumed office
27 November 2000
Preceded byGordon Earle
In office
25 October 1993 – 2 June 1997
Preceded byHoward Crosby
Succeeded byGordon Earle
Personal details
Born
Geoffrey Paul Regan

(1959-11-22) 22 November 1959
Windsor, Nova Scotia, Canada
Political partyLiberal
Spouse(s)
​
(m. 1993)​
ResidenceBedford, Nova Scotia, Canada
ProfessionLawyer
Websitewww.geoffregan.ca

Early life and career

Regan was born in Windsor, Nova Scotia. Regan is the son of Gerald Regan, a former Premier of Nova Scotia and Cabinet Minister under Pierre Trudeau, and Carole Harrison, the daughter of John Harrison, a Member of Parliament from Saskatchewan.[1] Two of his sisters are also well-known: Nancy Regan was a well-known local television personality with ATV, Laura Regan is an actress.

Regan graduated from Sackville High School in 1977 and then earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from St. Francis Xavier University in 1980. Following university, Regan went on to earn a law degree from Dalhousie University, graduating in 1983. He was admitted to the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society in 1984 and practiced real estate and commercial law before entering public life.

Regan was a member of Toastmasters for almost ten years, in the late 1980s to early 1990s.[2]

Federal politics

Regan was first elected to the House of Commons as part of the Liberal landslide victory in the 1993 federal election under Jean Chrétien.[1][3] He was defeated in the 1997 election by NDP candidate Gordon Earle, mainly because of the federal government's changes to employment insurance.[1][4]

After regaining his seat in the 2000 federal election, Regan was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, a position then held by Don Boudria.[1][5] In 2003, Paul Martin appointed him as Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.[1]

Regan was the Regional Minister for Nova Scotia in the newly formed government of Paul Martin, sworn in on 12 December 2003. Regan was re-elected in the 2004 federal election.[6] He would keep position in cabinet in Martin’s minority government. In February 2004, Regan was appointed to act as Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, in matters related to Maher Arar.

In opposition
Regan with Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff during the 2011 federal election campaign

Upon the defeat of the Liberal government in the 2006 election, he was appointed by Bill Graham, Interim Leader of the Official Opposition, to the shadow cabinet as the Official Opposition Critic for Human Resources and Skills Development. During his time as critic, Regan introduced a private members’ bill to expand Canada Access Grants for disabled and low income students. In January 2007, he was appointed to the newly created Liberal Priorities and Planning Committee, which was chaired by then Liberal Opposition Leader Stéphane Dion. In March 2008, Regan was named Chair of the Caucus Committee on Environmental Sustainability. Regan also served as Vice-Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development.

Regan was re-elected in 2008, and 2011 federal elections,[7] despite significant Liberal losses in both. Regan won his seat by a few percentage points in the latter election as the Liberals finished in third place.[1] Under the leadership of Stephane Dion, Regan served as Opposition Critic for Human Resources and Skills Development. Under Michael Ignatieff, Regan served as Liberal Critic for Natural Resources, and later, Public Works and Government Services and also as the Liberal Natural Resources Critic under leader Justin Trudeau and the Vice-Chair of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources.

Speaker of the House of Commons
Regan as Speaker

Regan was re-elected in the 2015 federal election with 68% of the vote as the Liberal party swept all 32 Atlantic Canada seats and formed a majority government.[1] On 2 December 2015, Regan was selected as Speaker of the House of Commons in secret ballot by members of the 42nd Parliament over Liberals Denis Paradis and Yasmin Ratansi and Conservative Bruce Stanton.[1] Regan won on the first ballot and served as the first speaker from Atlantic Canada in almost a hundred years.[8] In December 2019, he ran for re-election for Speaker of the Commons but lost to fellow Liberal MP Anthony Rota.[9] Following Rota's win, the Conservatives said that he had them to thank for his new position. They had made the decision during a caucus meeting to unseat Regan as a show of strength to the Liberal minority government. They did so by ranking Regan further down on the ranked ballot.[10][11]

Awards and honours
  • Metro Food Bank Society Community Leadership Award (1992)
  • Halifax Board of Trade Certificate of Merit (1992)
  • Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002)
  • Appointed member of the Queens’s Privy Council for Canada (2003)
  • Elisabeth Mann Borgese Medal (2005) The International Ocean Institute awarded Regan then Minister of Fisheries and Oceans for his "exemplary leadership in the field of Ocean Governance."
  • Lebanese Community Recognition Award (2008)
  • Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012)

Personal life

Regan's wife, Kelly Regan, is a provincial MLA and Liberal cabinet minister in Nova Scotia.[1]

Electoral record
2019 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalGeoff Regan26,88549.46−19.19
ConservativeFred Shuman10,48819.29+3.64
New DemocraticJacob Wilson10,42919.19+7.42
GreenRichard Zurawski6,55512.06+8.12
Total valid votes/Expense limit 54,357100.0   $103,859.40
Total rejected ballots 4650.85+0.49
Turnout 54,82271.12−0.59
Eligible voters 77,083
Liberal hold Swing −11.42
Source: Elections Canada[12]
2015 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalGeoff Regan34,37768.65+31.38–
ConservativeMichael McGinnis7,83715.65–14.53–
New DemocraticJoanne Hussey5,89411.77–16.68–
GreenRichard Henryk Zurawski1,9713.94–0.16–
Total valid votes/Expense limit 50,079100.0   $201,968.89
Total rejected ballots 1810.36–0.17
Turnout 50,26071.71+9.37
Eligible voters 70,089
Liberal hold Swing +22.96
Source: Elections Canada[13][14]
2011 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalGeoff Regan16,23035.92-5.64$61,795.88
ConservativeBruce Pretty13,78230.50+9.37$51,236.29
New DemocraticGregor Ash13,23929.30-0.30$42,761.72
GreenThomas Trappenberg1,9314.27-2.81$860.31
Total valid votes/Expense limit 45,182100.0   $84,619.08
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 239 0.53+0.16
Turnout 45,42162.34+3.21
Eligible voters 72,862
Liberal hold Swing -7.47
Sources:[15][16]
2008 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalGeoff Regan17,12941.56-7.80$50,515.55
New DemocraticTamara Lorincz12,20129.60+5.17$25,480.72
ConservativeRakesh Khosla8,70821.13-1.91$29,390.36
GreenMichael Munday2,9207.08+3.90$2,823.08
Christian HeritageTrevor Ennis2570.62–$123.50
Total valid votes/Expense limit 41,215100.0   $81,056
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 1540.37+0.04
Turnout 41,36959.13-3.92
Eligible voters 69,960
Liberal hold Swing -6.48
2006 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalGeoff Regan21,81849.36+1.86$54,533.58
New DemocraticAlan Hill10,79824.43-3.52$15,656.30
ConservativeRakesh Khosla10,18423.04+2.10$46,536.45
GreenThomas Trappenberg1,4063.18-0.43$642.68
Total valid votes/Expense limit 44,206100.0   $75,552
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 1470.33-0.02
Turnout 44,35363.05-0.46
Eligible voters 70,349
Liberal hold Swing +2.69
2004 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalGeoff Regan19,08347.50+6.55$60,896.27
New DemocraticBill Carr11,22827.95-0.12$33,350.95
ConservativeKen MacPhee8,41320.94-9.26$32,442.47
GreenMartin Willison1,4523.61–$1,152.00
Total valid votes/Expense limit 40,176100.0   $71,525
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 1410.35
Turnout 40,31763.51+3.64
Eligible voters 63,479
Liberal notional hold Swing +3.34
Changes from 2000 are based on redistributed results. Conservative Party change is based on the combination of Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative Party totals.
2000 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalGeoff Regan18,32739.21+8.32
New DemocraticGordon Earle14,01629.99-4.64
Progressive ConservativeCharles Cirtwill9,70120.76-2.70
AllianceHilda Stevens4,5319.70-0.77
Marxist–LeninistTony Seed1600.34+0.19
Total valid votes 46,735 100.00
Liberal gain from New Democratic Swing +6.48
1997 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
New DemocraticGordon Earle16,01334.63+26.23
LiberalGeoff Regan14,28430.89-14.73
Progressive ConservativeHeather Foley10,84823.46-0.29
ReformStephen Oickle4,84310.47-8.93
Natural LawJohn Runkle1790.39-0.42
Marxist–LeninistGary Zatzman700.15
Total valid votes 46,237 100.00
New Democratic gain from Liberal Swing +20.48
1993 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalGeoff Regan26 90445.62+7.01
Progressive ConservativeJoel Matheson14 00523.75-21.00
ReformJim Donohue11,43919.40
New DemocraticSheila Richardson4,9528.40-7.85
NationalKirby Judge1,2012.04
Natural LawBernard Gormley4750.81
Total valid votes 58,976100.00
Liberal gain from Progressive Conservative Swing +14.01

References
  1. "Meet Geoff Regan, the new Speaker of the House of Commons". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  2. "Meet Geoff Regan, Canada's Speaker of the House of Commons". The Toastmaster (August 2016): 16–19. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  3. "Atlantic region hands Liberals near-clean sweep". The Chronicle Herald. 26 October 1993. Archived from the original on 21 November 2001. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  4. "NDP's Earle becomes first Black MP for N.S." The Chronicle Herald. 3 June 1997. Archived from the original on 22 May 2001. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  5. "Halifax West's Regan 'delighted' to be back". The Chronicle Herald. 28 November 2000. Archived from the original on 24 January 2005. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  6. "Geoff Regan: 'What a thrill'". The Chronicle Herald. 29 June 2004. Archived from the original on 6 September 2005. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  7. "Regan holds Halifax West for Liberals". CBC News. 3 May 2011. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  8. "Geoff Regan elected House Speaker as 42nd Parliament opens". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  9. Tunney, Catharine; Zimonjic, Peter; Harris, Kathleen (5 December 2019). "Liberal MP Anthony Rota elected Speaker of the House of Commons". CBC News. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  10. "Liberal MP Anthony Rota elected Speaker. You're welcome, Conservatives say". National Post. 5 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  11. "Liberal MP Anthony Rota upsets Regan to become Speaker in minority Parliament". Burnaby Now. 5 December 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  12. "Results Validated by the Returning Officer". Elections Canada. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
  13. "October 19, 2015 Election Results — Halifax West (Validated results)". Elections Canada. 21 October 2015. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
  14. Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived 15 August 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  15. Elections Canada – Official voting results, Forty-first general election, 2011
  16. Elections Canada – Candidate's electoral campaign return, 41st general election
Parliament of Canada
Preceded by
Howard Edward Crosby		 Member of Parliament for Halifax West
1993–1997		 Succeeded by
Gordon Earle
Preceded by
Gordon Earle		 Member of Parliament for Halifax West
2000–present		 Incumbent
Preceded by
Andrew Scheer		 Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada
2015–2019		 Succeeded by
Anthony Rota
Political offices
Preceded by
Robert Thibault		 Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
2003–2006		 Succeeded by
Loyola Hearn
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