MP and Constituency Report:
Hon. Christian Paradis
Political Science 224
Dr. John Soroski
October 5, 2012
Biography
The Honourable Christian Paradis came on to the federal politics representing the constituency of Megantic–L’Érable, in 2006 when he was elected to the house of commons than again in both 2008 and 2011. During his federal tenure he has been appointed Security of State (agriculture), minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minster of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the regions of Quebec. Since the last election Mr. Paradis was appointed Minister of Natural Resources in addition to his other responsibilities (“The Honourable”,1).
He has integral role to play while sitting in the house commons representing the people of Canada and the constituency of Megantic–L’Érable.
Is tenure in politics has not been without controversy as he and his departments have been rocked with many scandals. One in particular occurred while Paradis was Minister of Public Works he faced the board of ethics in relation to giving special access to former Conservative MP Rahim Jaffer’s business interests. As Laura Payton wrote in her article, Mr. Paradis broke the rules set out in the Conflict of Interest Act when he told officials at Public Works and Government Services, the department he headed at the time, to talk with Jaffer about his company, Green Power Generation. Thus he was accused of giving preferential treatment to Mr. Jaffer in that he was treated more favourably than he might have treated others in similar circumstances. (Payton, 3).
The Essay on Public Works
Public Works Every city and town has a special organization or a department, responsible for public works. The main function of such institution is to provide the residents of the community with different public services, which may include street maintenance, wastewater management, recycling, traffic engineering and parking control, public security services, stormwater control and disposal, and a ...
Despite this setback he did not resign from his position a move that was ultimately supported by Prime Minister Harper
Before entering a career in federal politics, Mr. Paradis studied law and practised corporate law for a number of years within his hometown of Thetford Mines (Paradis, 2).When not representing his constituents on the federal stage Paradis plays an active role when in his community at the grassroots level, being involved in various organizations that include the Amiante chapter of the Management Club of Canada, the Rotary Club and the Amiante Chamber of Commerce and Industry (“Hon. Christian Paradis”, 4).
To round out his personal and life within the public spectrum he relies on the support of his wife and three children.
Constituency Report
Surrounded by the pertinent waters of the St. Lawrence River, lies the the electoral district of Megantic–L’Érable. As of the 2011 census the population is currently 86,851 people situated in this urban setting almost two thirds greater than the rest of Quebec the majority being french speaking Canadians (Statistics Canada, sec.1) From this data one can see that this region would be faced with the rising costs of the housing market as space is at a all time premium. As the census implies the population within this district are getting older and the median age of the people is 48.0 years old(Statistics Canada, sec.1) Thus one can infer that a major concern that will emerge for those living in this area is their accessibility to affordable healthcare, concerns related to their pensions and the ability to be able to enjoy life after exiting the work force.
The people within this riding rely heavily on their conservative ideologies opposing therefore they hold true to what they believe in. The people in his riding are hunters who do not like the firearms registry. They are the next-door neighbours to the United States who want amicable cross-border relations. And many among the older generation prefer the traditional definition of marriage(National Post, 3).
The demographics of this constituency is what makes it diverse amongst the rest of Quebec and Canada.
In 2004, the riding became known as Mégantic-L’Érable, combining 92 per cent of Frontenac-Mégantic with 35 per cent of Lotbinière-L’Érable. Previously in the 1996 redistribution, Mégantic-L’Érable riding was created from 66 per cent of Frontenac, 32 per cent of Mégantic-Compton-Stanstead and seven per cent of Richmond-Wolfe (“CBC”, 2).
The Essay on The Great Depression Canada People Men
The Great Depression was a period, which seemed to go out of control. The crashing of the stock markets left most Canadians unemployed and in debt, prairie farmers suffered immensely with the inability to produce valuable crops, and the Canadian Government and World War II became influential factors in the ending of the Great Depression. The 1920's meant prosperity for Canada. Canadians living in ...
Since its creation in 2004, the politic culture of Mégantic – L’Érable has only been represented by two parties the Bloc Quebecois and the Conservative party of Canada. For the first three years the people were represented by Marc Boulianne, soon after that a second election was called forcing the people of Mégantic-L’Érable to go to the polls for the second time since its creation this time they looked for change in the form or Christian Paradis who has held the seat ever since than. Most notably over the course of the next elections he would face opposition from only one other party the Bloc Québécois however they were not successful.
The district of Mégantic-L’Érable relies on many different components to be successful. Some of these different sectors include plastics processing, composites, metallurgy, agriculture and timber transportation which in turn plays a role in the regional economy. Emerging economic sectors, such as industrial oleochemistry, also contribute to the economic diversity of the riding (Paradis, 3).
It is important to note that manufacturing and retail trade are major aspects of the industry helping it to sustain lower unemployment rates.
Situated with the the riding of Mégantic-L’Érable lies the Thetford Mines. Which for the past 100 years deal with the mining of chrysotile a form of asbestos. For many in the region this industry has been able provide them with a secure place of employment and therefore they have had to stand up to the critics who believe that asbestos proves a risk to a persons health. As their livelihoods were on the line they worked together with the government and employees to develop a safe and controlled use for chrysotile something that could be sustainable.During his speech Paradis stated that “today, my constituents face a new challenge: an economy without chrysotile. This is a new fight that they must wage; it is a fight that they did not choose, despite being those most affected (“Christian Paradis on Asbestos”, 3) This is an issue that will continue to be fought in the riding of Mégantic-L’Érable for years to come looking for the government of Canada and its members to realize its importance.
The Essay on Brian Mulroney tied Canada closer to the United States
As the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, he developed a close relationship with U.S President Ronald Regan; both men shared a similar conservative philosophy. As Canada’s Prime Minister, Mulroney sought closer ties with the United States, on issues such as trade policies and North American Aerospace Defence Command system (NORAD). During the Mulroney era, Canada saw drastic ...
Works Cited
CBC News. “Ridings Mégantic-L’Érable.” CBC News Politics. 3 May 2011. CBC. Web. 02 October 2012..
National Post. “Quebec’s quiet right-wing revolution.” Canada.com. 30 January 2006. CanWest MediaWorks Publications Inc.Web.01 October 2012..
The Honourable Christian Paradis Minister of Industry and Minister of State (Agriculture).” Prime Minister of Canada-Stephen Harper. n.d.. Office of the Prime Minister. Web. 02 October 2012. .
Paradis, Christian. “Christian Paradis on Asbestos.” openparliament.ca. 27 September 2012.openparliment.ca. Web. 04 October 2012. .
Paradis, Christian. “Biography.” Hon. Christian Paradis. 2012. Office of Christian Paradis. Web. 02 Oct 2012. .
Paradis, Christian. “History.” Hon. Christian Paradis. 2012. Office of Christian Paradis. Web. 02 Oct 2012. .
Parliament of Canada. “History of Federal Ridings since 1867.” Parliament of Canada. 2012. Library of Parliament. Web. 04 October 2012. .
Payton, Laura. “Harper defends Paradis in Jaffer case ethics breach.” CBC News-Politics. 22 March 2012. CBC. Web. 02 October 2012..
Statistics Canada.“Mégantic – L’Érable , Quebec (Code 24042) and Quebec (Code 24) (table).
Census Profile. 2011” 19 September 2012 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no.98-316-XWE. Web. 04 October 2012. .
