Dennis Mills
Encyclopedia
Dennis Joseph Mills is a Canadian
businessman and former politician. He was a Liberal
Member of Parliament
for the riding of Toronto-Danforth in the east-end of downtown Toronto
. He now sits on the board of directors of Magna International
.
Mills has long conducted business in Toronto. His grandfather William J. Mills founded the event support company in 1911 Chair-man Mills, and was also an executive with auto-parts maker Magna International
. In the 1988
, 1993
, 1997
and 2000 general elections
, he won re-election to the House of Commons
in the Danforth area of Toronto.
Pierre Trudeau
from 1980 until 1984, when Trudeau was succeeded as Liberal leader and prime minister by John Turner. Mills ran as the Liberal candidate in Broadview-Greenwood in the 1988 election in which the Progressive Conservative
government of Brian Mulroney
was re-elected, defeating the New Democratic Party
incumbent over the issue of support for the Meech Lake Accord
, which Mills opposed.
With the Liberal Party in opposition, Mills served as parliamentary critic for entrepreneurship and small business. When the Liberal Party, under the leadership of Jean Chrétien
, formed the government following the 1993 election, he served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry from 1993 to 1996. He then served as Chair of the House of Commons Sub-Committee on Sports and Vice-Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.
In 1996, he briefly left the Liberal caucus to sit as a "Independent Liberal", protesting the government's failure to abolish the Goods and Service Tax
as it had promised in the 1993 campaign. Following Chrétien's resignation as Liberal leader, Mills publicly considered running to succeed Chrétien at the 2003 leadership convention and agitated against a "coronation" for frontrunner Paul Martin
, but he did not end up standing for the leadership.
He is best known for helping to organize large events in Toronto. These include World Youth Day
in 2002 that brought Pope John Paul II
to Toronto, and the post-SARS Rolling Stones concert in 2003. In 1989, Mills organized the Summit on the Environment in Toronto, which attracted approximately 50,000 people and performers such as John Denver
and Gordon Lightfoot
. In 2001, with the Assembly of First Nations
, Mills organized and co-chaired the Bala Summit on Water, attended by leading experts from Canada and the United States.
Starting in 1999, Mills initiated and continues to organize events for the Family Farm Tribute to recognize the contributions of Canadian family farms.
. He was responsible for the creation of the Toronto Port Authority
and is still one of its greatest proponents, though he opposes the proposed bridge to the island airport designed by the Port Authority. In 2004, Mills unveiled his plan for the Toronto Waterfront, which includes a campus of the United Nations University for Peace, as well as an aquarium, plenty of greenspace, affordable housing, and new sporting facilities. Funding for the University campus was promised on May 20, 2004 by the federal government, but only $3 million, which will not be sufficient. This was part of $125 million re-announced by Paul Martin
in funding for the other recommendations in the project. This is smaller than the $325 million promised in the 1997 election
and the $300 million promised in the 2000 election
, of which of less than $10 million was ever actually delivered.
He was considered by many to be an opponent of Toronto mayor David Miller. He was at first a supporter of John Nunziata
in the 2003 mayoral election
, but then switched his support to John Tory
, who had become one of the leading candidates.
In 2003, he promised in writing to resign in thirty days if an abandoned property known as the Gatekeeper Squat was not turned into community housing. This was, in Mills words, "to avoid a riot" between the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
and the police.
Shortly before the month's end, a compromise deal to convert the property into interim housing
was reached. Many protested that the house was not converted into public housing
by the end of the 30 days and thus felt the issue had been exploited, but supporters of Mills claim that it would have been impossible to do so much in so little time, and that the weather at the time, which went as low as -30 degrees Celsius, made conversion of a building impossible. The building is still set to be converted into social housing.
Mills was regularly labelled by opponents one of the most socially conservative
members of the Liberal caucus. He was opposed to same-sex marriage
, a position unpopular in the strongly left-wing riding of Toronto–Danforth. His defeat was a high priority of gay rights groups in the 2004 election
. That said, he did favour civil union
s, and stated he would respect any decision derived from a free vote on the issue in the House of Commons. He is personally opposed to abortion
rights, but does not and has never opposed or raised debate regarding the issue or abortion laws. These social views are commonly associated with his Roman Catholic faith.
Mills is noted for having advocated what opponents call a flat tax
, which he calls a "single tax", about which he wrote two books, A Life Less Taxingand The Single Tax. His other published book is Developing an Agenda for the 21st Century.
In 2001, he was criticized for spending $330,884 on travel and office expenses, more than any other Liberal Member of Parliament
(MP). Mills was always among the top of the MP rankings on office expenses, which he was sometimes congratulated and sometimes criticized for. In 2004, he was voted Best Constituency MP by the Ottawa Hill Times. Mills' constituency office on Danforth Avenue took thousands of constituent cases, in such matters as immigration and citizenship, and won numerous awards.
The name of the electoral district was changed in 2000 to "Toronto—Danforth" on the suggestion of Mills. The reasoning behind this was that Mills believed that "Broadview--Greenwood" was confusing on a federal scale, and because the NDP had registered a web address for Broadview--Greenwood. Many local citizens were upset at the name change, particularly due to the lack of public say in the matter.
, Mills was defeated in a close race by New Democratic Party
leader and former city councilor Jack Layton
in the Toronto--Danforth riding, placing a strong second with nearly 20,000 votes, ahead of Green Party
leader Jim Harris
and Conservative
candidate Loftus Cuddy. One of the major issues of the campaign was the fate of the Toronto waterfront
and Mills' public support for the highly controversial Toronto Port Authority
.
After the election, Mills was expected to, but did not, receive a spot on the Toronto Port Authority. Instead, he later accepted a spot on the Board of Directors of his former employer, Magna International
.
Mills is currently the Vice Chairman of MI Developments Inc. , Vice Chairman of Magna Entertainment Corp., and Executive Vice President of Magna International Inc.
Mills has a wife, Vicki, and four children, Jennifer, Craig, Stephanie, and Andrea. They continue to reside in the Toronto-Danforth riding.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
businessman and former politician. He was a Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for the riding of Toronto-Danforth in the east-end of downtown Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. He now sits on the board of directors of Magna International
Magna International
Magna International Inc. , is an automotive supplier headquartered in Aurora, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's largest automobile parts manufacturer, and one of the country's largest companies. It owns the Magna Steyr automobile production company of Austria....
.
Mills has long conducted business in Toronto. His grandfather William J. Mills founded the event support company in 1911 Chair-man Mills, and was also an executive with auto-parts maker Magna International
Magna International
Magna International Inc. , is an automotive supplier headquartered in Aurora, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's largest automobile parts manufacturer, and one of the country's largest companies. It owns the Magna Steyr automobile production company of Austria....
. In the 1988
Canadian federal election, 1988
The Canadian federal election of 1988 was held November 21, 1988, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 34th Parliament of Canada. It was an election largely fought on a single issue: the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ....
, 1993
Canadian federal election, 1993
The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...
, 1997
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
and 2000 general elections
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....
, he won re-election to the House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
in the Danforth area of Toronto.
The early years
Mills served on the personal staff of Prime MinisterPrime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Pierre Trudeau
Pierre Trudeau
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau, , usually known as Pierre Trudeau or Pierre Elliott Trudeau, was the 15th Prime Minister of Canada from April 20, 1968 to June 4, 1979, and again from March 3, 1980 to June 30, 1984.Trudeau began his political career campaigning for socialist ideals,...
from 1980 until 1984, when Trudeau was succeeded as Liberal leader and prime minister by John Turner. Mills ran as the Liberal candidate in Broadview-Greenwood in the 1988 election in which the Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
government of Brian Mulroney
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney, was the 18th Prime Minister of Canada from September 17, 1984, to June 25, 1993 and was leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1983 to 1993. His tenure as Prime Minister was marked by the introduction of major economic reforms, such as the Canada-U.S...
was re-elected, defeating the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
incumbent over the issue of support for the Meech Lake Accord
Meech Lake Accord
The Meech Lake Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and ten provincial premiers. It was intended to persuade the government of the Province of Quebec to endorse the 1982 Canadian Constitution and increase...
, which Mills opposed.
With the Liberal Party in opposition, Mills served as parliamentary critic for entrepreneurship and small business. When the Liberal Party, under the leadership of Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
, formed the government following the 1993 election, he served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry from 1993 to 1996. He then served as Chair of the House of Commons Sub-Committee on Sports and Vice-Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage.
In 1996, he briefly left the Liberal caucus to sit as a "Independent Liberal", protesting the government's failure to abolish the Goods and Service Tax
Goods and Services Tax (Canada)
The Goods and Services Tax is a multi-level value added tax introduced in Canada on January 1, 1991, by then Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and his finance minister Michael Wilson. The GST replaced a hidden 13.5% Manufacturers' Sales Tax ; Mulroney claimed the GST was implemented because the MST...
as it had promised in the 1993 campaign. Following Chrétien's resignation as Liberal leader, Mills publicly considered running to succeed Chrétien at the 2003 leadership convention and agitated against a "coronation" for frontrunner Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
, but he did not end up standing for the leadership.
He is best known for helping to organize large events in Toronto. These include World Youth Day
World Youth Day
World Youth Day is a youth-oriented Catholic Church event. While the event itself celebrates the Catholic faith, the invitation to attend extends to all youth, regardless of religious convictions....
in 2002 that brought Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
to Toronto, and the post-SARS Rolling Stones concert in 2003. In 1989, Mills organized the Summit on the Environment in Toronto, which attracted approximately 50,000 people and performers such as John Denver
John Denver
Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. , known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer/songwriter, activist, and humanitarian. After growing up in numerous locations with his military family, Denver began his music career in folk music groups in the late 1960s. His greatest commercial success...
and Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Meredith Lightfoot, Jr. is a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music, and has been credited for helping define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s...
. In 2001, with the Assembly of First Nations
Assembly of First Nations
The Assembly of First Nations , formerly known as the National Indian Brotherhood, is a body of First Nations leaders in Canada...
, Mills organized and co-chaired the Bala Summit on Water, attended by leading experts from Canada and the United States.
Starting in 1999, Mills initiated and continues to organize events for the Family Farm Tribute to recognize the contributions of Canadian family farms.
Waterfront dreams and failures
He has long been involved in the rebuilding plans for the Toronto waterfrontToronto waterfront
The Toronto waterfront is the lakeshore of Lake Ontario in the City of Toronto, Ontario in Canada. It spans 46 kilometres between the mouth of Etobicoke Creek in the west, and the Rouge River in the East. The entire lakeshore has been significantly altered from its natural glaciated state prior to...
. He was responsible for the creation of the Toronto Port Authority
Toronto Port Authority
The Toronto Port Authority is a Canadian port authority responsible for management of the harbour of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, including the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport...
and is still one of its greatest proponents, though he opposes the proposed bridge to the island airport designed by the Port Authority. In 2004, Mills unveiled his plan for the Toronto Waterfront, which includes a campus of the United Nations University for Peace, as well as an aquarium, plenty of greenspace, affordable housing, and new sporting facilities. Funding for the University campus was promised on May 20, 2004 by the federal government, but only $3 million, which will not be sufficient. This was part of $125 million re-announced by Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
in funding for the other recommendations in the project. This is smaller than the $325 million promised in the 1997 election
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
and the $300 million promised in the 2000 election
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....
, of which of less than $10 million was ever actually delivered.
He was considered by many to be an opponent of Toronto mayor David Miller. He was at first a supporter of John Nunziata
John Nunziata
John Nunziata is a Canadian politician. He served in the Canadian House of Commons from 1984 to 2000, initially as a Liberal and later as an independent member.-Background:...
in the 2003 mayoral election
Toronto municipal election, 2003
The Toronto municipal election of 2003 was held on November 10, 2003, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to elect the Mayor of Toronto, 44 city councillors, and school board trustees.David Miller was elected mayor ....
, but then switched his support to John Tory
John Tory
John Howard Tory is a Canadian businessman, political activist, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, former Member of Provincial Parliament and broadcaster...
, who had become one of the leading candidates.
In 2003, he promised in writing to resign in thirty days if an abandoned property known as the Gatekeeper Squat was not turned into community housing. This was, in Mills words, "to avoid a riot" between the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty is an anti-poverty group in Ontario, Canada, who promote the interests of the poor and homeless...
and the police.
Shortly before the month's end, a compromise deal to convert the property into interim housing
Interim Housing
Interim housing is temporary housing in Hong Kong for those not eligible for a flat in a public housing estate, but affected by disaster, fire, and redevelopment. It replaced Temporary Housing Area with buildings that are more resilient and space saving...
was reached. Many protested that the house was not converted into public housing
Public housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is owned by a government authority, which may be central or local. Social housing is an umbrella term referring to rental housing which may be owned and managed by the state, by non-profit organizations, or by a combination of the...
by the end of the 30 days and thus felt the issue had been exploited, but supporters of Mills claim that it would have been impossible to do so much in so little time, and that the weather at the time, which went as low as -30 degrees Celsius, made conversion of a building impossible. The building is still set to be converted into social housing.
Mills was regularly labelled by opponents one of the most socially conservative
Social conservatism
Social Conservatism is primarily a political, and usually morally influenced, ideology that focuses on the preservation of what are seen as traditional values. Social conservatism is a form of authoritarianism often associated with the position that the federal government should have a greater role...
members of the Liberal caucus. He was opposed to same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
, a position unpopular in the strongly left-wing riding of Toronto–Danforth. His defeat was a high priority of gay rights groups in the 2004 election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
. That said, he did favour civil union
Civil union
A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...
s, and stated he would respect any decision derived from a free vote on the issue in the House of Commons. He is personally opposed to abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
rights, but does not and has never opposed or raised debate regarding the issue or abortion laws. These social views are commonly associated with his Roman Catholic faith.
Mills is noted for having advocated what opponents call a flat tax
Flat tax
A flat tax is a tax system with a constant marginal tax rate. Typically the term flat tax is applied in the context of an individual or corporate income that will be taxed at one marginal rate...
, which he calls a "single tax", about which he wrote two books, A Life Less Taxingand The Single Tax. His other published book is Developing an Agenda for the 21st Century.
In 2001, he was criticized for spending $330,884 on travel and office expenses, more than any other Liberal Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP). Mills was always among the top of the MP rankings on office expenses, which he was sometimes congratulated and sometimes criticized for. In 2004, he was voted Best Constituency MP by the Ottawa Hill Times. Mills' constituency office on Danforth Avenue took thousands of constituent cases, in such matters as immigration and citizenship, and won numerous awards.
The name of the electoral district was changed in 2000 to "Toronto—Danforth" on the suggestion of Mills. The reasoning behind this was that Mills believed that "Broadview--Greenwood" was confusing on a federal scale, and because the NDP had registered a web address for Broadview--Greenwood. Many local citizens were upset at the name change, particularly due to the lack of public say in the matter.
2004 election loss and retirement from public life
In the 2004 electionCanadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
, Mills was defeated in a close race by New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
leader and former city councilor Jack Layton
Jack Layton
John Gilbert "Jack" Layton, PC was a Canadian social democratic politician and the Leader of the Official Opposition. He was the leader of the New Democratic Party from 2003 to 2011, and previously sat on Toronto City Council, serving at times during that period as acting mayor and deputy mayor of...
in the Toronto--Danforth riding, placing a strong second with nearly 20,000 votes, ahead of Green Party
Green Party of Canada
The Green Party of Canada is a Canadian federal political party founded in 1983 with 10,000–12,000 registered members as of October 2008. The Greens advance a broad multi-issue political platform that reflects its core values of ecological wisdom, social justice, grassroots democracy and...
leader Jim Harris
Jim Harris (politician)
James R. M. "Jim" Harris is a Canadian author, environmentalist, and politician. He was leader of the Green Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006, when he was succeeded by Elizabeth May.-Early life and Green activism:...
and Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
candidate Loftus Cuddy. One of the major issues of the campaign was the fate of the Toronto waterfront
Toronto waterfront
The Toronto waterfront is the lakeshore of Lake Ontario in the City of Toronto, Ontario in Canada. It spans 46 kilometres between the mouth of Etobicoke Creek in the west, and the Rouge River in the East. The entire lakeshore has been significantly altered from its natural glaciated state prior to...
and Mills' public support for the highly controversial Toronto Port Authority
Toronto Port Authority
The Toronto Port Authority is a Canadian port authority responsible for management of the harbour of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, including the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport...
.
After the election, Mills was expected to, but did not, receive a spot on the Toronto Port Authority. Instead, he later accepted a spot on the Board of Directors of his former employer, Magna International
Magna International
Magna International Inc. , is an automotive supplier headquartered in Aurora, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's largest automobile parts manufacturer, and one of the country's largest companies. It owns the Magna Steyr automobile production company of Austria....
.
Mills is currently the Vice Chairman of MI Developments Inc. , Vice Chairman of Magna Entertainment Corp., and Executive Vice President of Magna International Inc.
Mills has a wife, Vicki, and four children, Jennifer, Craig, Stephanie, and Andrea. They continue to reside in the Toronto-Danforth riding.