Mark Parent

For the baseball player, see Mark Parent (baseball).
Mark Parent
Ph.D M.Div.
MLA for Kings North
In office
1999–2009
Preceded by George Archibald
Succeeded by Jim Morton
Minister of Environment and Labour
In office
June 26, 2006 – April 24, 2008
Preceded by Kerry Morash
Succeeded by David Morse
Minister of the Environment
In office
April 24, 2008 – January 8, 2009
Preceded by new department
Succeeded by Sterling Belliveau
Minister of Labour and Workplace Development
In office
April 24, 2008 – January 8, 2009
Preceded by new department
Succeeded by Marilyn More
Minister of Agriculture
In office
January 8, 2009 – June 9, 2009
Preceded by Brooke Taylor
Succeeded by John MacDonell
Personal details
Born August 25, 1954
Port Williams, Nova Scotia
Political party Progressive Conservative
Spouse(s) Cathy
Margie Jenkins
Occupation Pastor
Religion United Baptist

Mark Parent (born August 25, 1954, Port Williams, Nova Scotia) is a Canadian clergy, author, academic, and former politician in Nova Scotia.

Parent is the son of Baptist missionaries Hazen Coles Parent and Hazel Mildred Anderson. Parent was raised in Bolivia, South America before returning to Canada for post secondary studies. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from York University, a Master of Divinity from Acadia Divinity College, and a Doctor of Philosophy from McGill University.

Parent is married to his second wife Margie Jenkins and together they have five grown children. His first wife, Cathy, died in 1998.

Parent served in various churches in Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia before returning home in 1994 to serve as pastor of the Pereaux United Baptist Church. During the late 1990s he was an associate professor of Religious Studies at Mount Allison University.

Political career

"Politics is the art of doing the impossible, with the unwilling, for the ungrateful."

Mark Parent
The Daily News
October 2, 1999

In 1997, Parent volunteered as the Policy Chair for the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia.

In 1999 Parent successfully ran for the Progressive Conservative nomination in the riding of Kings North.[1] He was elected in the 1999 provincial election with 49.05% of the vote.[2]

As a legislator, Parent became known for speaking frankly both in the House of Assembly and to the media,[3][4] and expressed dissatisfaction with how the legislature conducted its business.[5]

Parent was re-elected in the 2003 provincial election with 50.2%.[6] In the 2006 election, Parent was re-elected with 50.07%.[7]

In 2006 Parent was appointed to the Executive Council of Nova Scotia where he served as Minister of Environment and Labour.[8][9] While Minister, Parent oversaw the division of the Department of Environment and Labour into two portfolios in April 2008, consisting of a separate Department of Environment and a separate Department of Labour and Workforce Development.[10] Parent served as Minister for those portfolios until January 2009, when he was appointed Minister of Agriculture,[11] just days before he was to release Nova Scotia's climate change plan.[12][13] During his time in cabinet, Parent was also responsible for Part II of the Gambling Control Act, the Workers' Compensation Act (except Part II) and the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualifications Act.

Parent was defeated in the 2009 provincial election, with 36.08% of the vote in his riding.[14][15][16]

Bibliography

References

  1. ↑ "Parent Tory choice in Kings North". The Chronicle Herald. June 30, 1999. Archived from the original on January 24, 2005. Retrieved October 20, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Election Returns, 1999 (Kings North)" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Parent contemplates quitting". CBC. November 2, 2000. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  4. ↑ "Teacher layoffs prompt debate in legislature". CBC. April 25, 2000. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  5. ↑ "MLA's "just bums in chairs," says politician". CBC. December 1, 2000. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  6. ↑ "Election Returns, 2003 (Kings North)" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Election Returns, 2006 (Kings North)" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Premier Announces New Cabinet Lineup". NS Government News Release. June 26, 2006. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  9. ↑ "MacDonald's expanded cabinet has 3 rookies". CBC. June 26, 2006. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  10. ↑ "Government Introduces New Department of Labour and Workforce Development". NS Government News Release. April 24, 2008. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  11. ↑ "Cabinet shuffled". Canadian Press. January 8, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  12. ↑ "Morse's environmental shakeup". The Coast. January 22, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  13. ↑ "Provincial cabinet gets long-awaited shuffle". Metro. January 7, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  14. ↑ "More than half of Tory cabinet defeated". CBC. June 9, 2009. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Nova Scotia Votes - Kings North". CBC. June 9, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2009.
  16. ↑ "Election Returns, 2009 (Kings North)" (PDF). Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved September 17, 2014.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, March 03, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.