Hugh McFadyen
Encyclopedia
Hugh Daniel McFadyen is a lawyer
and politician
in Manitoba
, Canada
. Since 2006, he has been leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
and Leader of the Opposition
in the Manitoba legislature
. Following his party's loss in the 2011 election
he announced that he would resign as leader as soon as a new leader is appointed.
. His aunt Linda McIntosh
was a cabinet minister in the provincial government of Gary Filmon
, and his great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather were also members of the Manitoba legislature. He has said that former Manitoba Premier
Duff Roblin is his political hero.
McFadyen was a successful curler in his youth, and skipped his team to a Canadian Junior Championship
in 1986. This win qualified them for the 1987 World Junior Curling Championships
where they won a silver medal, losing to Scotland
's Douglas Dryburgh
. McFadyen's third, Jon Mead
, would go on to play for Jeff Stoughton
, while his second, Norman Gould, went on to curling success in Japan
followed by coaching the 1996 Jeff Stoughton World Championship Curling Team.
McFadyen holds Bachelor of Arts
(1990) and Bachelor of Laws
(1993) degrees from the University of Manitoba
. He was a researcher for the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in the mid-1990s, and was appointed principal secretary to Premier
Gary Filmon
following Taras Sokolyk
's resignation in September 1998 following the Aboriginal vote splitting scandal. McFadyen represented Filmon as an observer to the federal United Alternative
convention, and was deputy campaign manager for the Progressive Conservatives in the 1999 provincial election
.
The Progressive Conservatives lost the 1999 election, and McFadyen's position in the Office of the Premier ended with the Filmon government's resignation shortly thereafter. He subsequently practiced law for two years in London
, UK
with Clifford Chance LLP, did post-graduate work at University College London
, and worked for a consulting firm in Toronto
. He returned to Manitoba in 2003, and joined the firm Aikins, MacAulay & Thorvaldson. In early 2004, he became the Manitoba chair of Belinda Stronach
's bid to lead the newly-formed Conservative Party of Canada
.
McFadyen managed Sam Katz
's successful campaign to become Mayor of Winnipeg in mid-2004, in a municipal by-election
that followed the resignation of Glen Murray. Katz later appointed McFadyen as his senior political advisor.
. He defeated rival candidate Rod Bruinooge
by only twelve votes at the nomination meeting. When the federal election was deferred, McFadyen was hired by provincial Progressive Conservative leader Stuart Murray
as a consultant on urban issues. The Progressive Conservatives were the Official Opposition party in this period, having lost a second election to the New Democratic Party
under Gary Doer
in 2003
.
Later in 2005, McFadyen resigned his federal nomination to seek the Progressive Conservative nomination for a provincial by-election
in Fort Whyte. He was supported by Gary Filmon, and again defeated Bruinooge for the nomination. Fort Whyte is a safe Progressive Conservative seat, and McFadyen was elected without difficulty in December.
Stuart Murray announced his resignation as Progressive Conservative leader in November 2005, after receiving a lukewarm endorsement at the party's annual convention. McFadyen was soon mentioned as a possible successor, even before his election to the legislature. In February 2006, he became the first candidate to officially declare for the party leadership. His campaign was supported by fourteen MLAs, including Jack Reimer
, Kelvin Goertzen
and Cliff Cullen
, as well as former cabinet ministers Rosemary Vodrey
, David Newman
, Jim Downey and Shirley Render
. He defeated rival candidates Ron Schuler
and Ken Waddell
on April 29, 2006.
, and launched a party task force into the matter headed by former cabinet minister Don Orchard. He also advocated fixed provincial election dates, and accused Doer of failing to keep an earlier pledge to end "hallway medicine" in the province.
In late 2006, McFadyen reversed his party's former position and promised to continue Manitoba's tuition freeze if elected as Premier. He also promised compensation for investors in the Crocus fund and financial incentives for Manitobans buying energy-efficient cars, raised the prospect of sharing the provincial sales tax with cities, and argued that parents who allow their children to wander the streets at night should be held responsible if their children commit crimes.
During a speech in September 2006, McFadyen described the former New Democratic Party government of Howard Pawley
as having been influenced by communism
. This statement was widely criticized, and Pawley described it as "fallacious and ridiculous". McFadyen initially refused to withdraw the accusation, and said that there had been card-carrying members of the Communist Party
in Pawley's government. (This was undoubtedly a reference to Roland Penner
, a former member of the Labour Progressive Party of Canada who served in Pawley's cabinet during the 1980s. Penner indicated that he had left the LPP in 1960, several years before he ran as an NDP candidate.)
In March 2007, McFadyen introduced a ten-point plan designed to make Manitoba Hydro
a major player in the clean energy sector. The proposal was dismissed by the NDP as a thinly-veiled plan to privatize the utility, a charge that McFadyen denied.
for May 22, 2007. McFadyen's campaign was centred on five themes: better health care, a cleaner environment, law and order, improving Winnipeg's image, and keeping younger Manitobans in the province. He also promised to cut the provincial sales tax from 7% to 6%, cut the education portion of property taxes by half within six years, and introduce other tax cuts amounting to $172 million. On criminal justice, McFadyen promised to fund 350 new police officers and non-uniformed "crimefighters", give the police a direct role in choosing judges. He also promised to deny legal aid to persons previously convicted of drug trafficking, benefiting from the proceeds of crime, or being part of a criminal organization. Provincial Justice Minister Dave Chomiak described the latter promise as a "publicity stunt" that would ultimately cost the province money, while the Winnipeg Free Press
described it as "bizarre". McFadyen also promised to bring the Jets
hockey
team back to Winnipeg, in order to convince younger Manitobans to remain in the province. This was generally regarded as unrealistic in newspaper coverage.
Support for the Progressive Conservatives fell significantly in the last days of the campaign, particularly among female voters. Doer's New Democrats won a third consecutive majority government, while McFadyen's Progressive Conservatives retained Official Opposition status with nineteen seats, down one from the previous election. McFadyen was personally returned for Fort Whyte without difficulty.
Conservative Party
by newly-elected leader David Cameron
.
In September 2007, McFadyen took part in an all-party delegation to Ottawa
, calling on the federal government to increase penalties for car thieves, young offenders and criminal gangs. McFadyen recommended changes to the Child and Family Services Act in late 2007, arguing that child safety should be the sole consideration when determining if a child should be assigned to the care of social workers. He argued that the existing act was confusing, and allowed for too many other considerations.
In late 2007, McFadyen criticized the Doer government for its decision to construct a hydroelectric transmission line on the west rather than the east side of Lake Winnipeg
. The east side route would be less expensive, but was rejected on the grounds that it was opposed by local indigenous groups and would threaten pristine boreal forest lands. McFadyen described the west side line as the greatest policy blunder in Manitoba history, and said that some indigenous leaders have been given effective veto power over development. Ron Evans
, Grand Chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs
and a former Progressive Conservative candidate, responded that McFadyen's comments threaten to damage years of work between his party and the indigenous community.
McFadyen led the Progressive Conservatives in the 2011 general election
, in which the party failed to make any gains, ending up with nineteen seats for the second election in a row. He announced his resignation as party leader in his concession speech.
. Provincial expenditures refer to candidate expenses.
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
in Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada
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...
. Since 2006, he has been leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba is the only right wing political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is also the official opposition party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.-Origins and early years:...
and Leader of the Opposition
Leader of the Opposition (Manitoba)
A list of parliamentary opposition leaders in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, Canada, from 1870 to the present.William Alexander Macdonald was the first officially recognized Leader of the Opposition in Manitoba although Rodmond Roblin is considered to have been the de facto opposition leader...
in the Manitoba legislature
Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba and the lieutenant governor form the Legislature of Manitoba, the legislature of the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly in provincial general elections, all in single-member constituencies with first-past-the-post...
. Following his party's loss in the 2011 election
Manitoba general election, 2011
The 40th general election of Manitoba was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. It took place on October 4, 2011, due to the new fixed-date election laws...
he announced that he would resign as leader as soon as a new leader is appointed.
Early life and career
McFadyen was born in Selkirk, ManitobaSelkirk, Manitoba
Selkirk is a city in the western Canadian province of Manitoba, located about 22 km northeast of the provincial capital Winnipeg on the Red River, near . As of the 2006 census, Selkirk had a population of 9,515....
. His aunt Linda McIntosh
Linda McIntosh
Linda Laughlin McIntosh is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1990 to 1999, and a cabinet minister for most of this period.-Early life:...
was a cabinet minister in the provincial government of Gary Filmon
Gary Filmon
Gary Albert Filmon, PC, OC, OM is a Manitoba politician. He was the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba from 1983 to 2000, and served as the 19th Premier from 1988 to 1999.-Early life and municipal career:...
, and his great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather were also members of the Manitoba legislature. He has said that former Manitoba Premier
Premier of Manitoba
The Premier of Manitoba is the first minister for the Canadian province of Manitoba. He or she is the province's head of government and de facto chief executive. Until the early 1970s, the title "Prime Minister of Manitoba" was used frequently. Afterwards, the word Premier, derived from the French...
Duff Roblin is his political hero.
McFadyen was a successful curler in his youth, and skipped his team to a Canadian Junior Championship
Canadian Junior Curling Championships
The Canadian Junior Curling Championships is an annual curling tournament held to determine the best junior-level curling team in Canada. Junior level curlers must be under the age of 20 as of December 31 in the year prior to the tournament....
in 1986. This win qualified them for the 1987 World Junior Curling Championships
World Junior Curling Championships
The World Junior Curling Championships is an annual curling tournament featuring the world's best curlers who are 21 years old or younger. The competition for both men and women occur at the same venue. The men's tournament has occurred since 1975 and the women's 1988...
where they won a silver medal, losing to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
's Douglas Dryburgh
Douglas Dryburgh
Douglas Dryburgh is an Irish curler.Dryburgh was a successful junior curler in his native Scotland. In his first international tournament, Dryburgh and his Scottish team claimed a gold medal at the 1987 World Junior Curling Championships...
. McFadyen's third, Jon Mead
Jon Mead
Jonathan Mead is a Canadian curler from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Mead played third for Wayne Middaugh's rink until the end of the 2009-10 curling season...
, would go on to play for Jeff Stoughton
Jeff Stoughton
Jeff Stoughton is a Canadian curler. Stoughton is a three-time Brier champion and two-time World champion as skip.-Career:...
, while his second, Norman Gould, went on to curling success in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
followed by coaching the 1996 Jeff Stoughton World Championship Curling Team.
McFadyen holds Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
(1990) and Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
(1993) degrees from the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
. He was a researcher for the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in the mid-1990s, and was appointed principal secretary to Premier
Premier of Manitoba
The Premier of Manitoba is the first minister for the Canadian province of Manitoba. He or she is the province's head of government and de facto chief executive. Until the early 1970s, the title "Prime Minister of Manitoba" was used frequently. Afterwards, the word Premier, derived from the French...
Gary Filmon
Gary Filmon
Gary Albert Filmon, PC, OC, OM is a Manitoba politician. He was the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba from 1983 to 2000, and served as the 19th Premier from 1988 to 1999.-Early life and municipal career:...
following Taras Sokolyk
Taras Sokolyk
Taras Sokolyk is a former political organizer and currently the Chief Executive Officer of CanadInns in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He played a prominent role in the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba's 1995 election campaign, in which the party won a majority government.Once a political organizer...
's resignation in September 1998 following the Aboriginal vote splitting scandal. McFadyen represented Filmon as an observer to the federal United Alternative
Unite the Right
The Unite the Right movement was a Canadian political movement which existed from around 1996 to 2003. The movement came into being when it became clear that neither of Canada's two main right-of-center political parties: the Reform Party of Canada or the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada...
convention, and was deputy campaign manager for the Progressive Conservatives in the 1999 provincial election
Manitoba general election, 1999
The Manitoba general election of September 21, 1999 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada....
.
The Progressive Conservatives lost the 1999 election, and McFadyen's position in the Office of the Premier ended with the Filmon government's resignation shortly thereafter. He subsequently practiced law for two years in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
with Clifford Chance LLP, did post-graduate work at University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
, and worked for a consulting firm in 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 returned to Manitoba in 2003, and joined the firm Aikins, MacAulay & Thorvaldson. In early 2004, he became the Manitoba chair of Belinda Stronach
Belinda Stronach
Belinda Caroline Stronach, PC is a Canadian businessperson, philanthropist and former politician. She was a Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2008. Originally elected as a Conservative, she later crossed the floor to join the Liberals...
's bid to lead the newly-formed Conservative Party of Canada
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...
.
McFadyen managed Sam Katz
Sam Katz
Samuel Michael Katz, OM is the 42nd mayor of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He is also a businessperson and a member of the Order of Manitoba.- Life before mayorship :...
's successful campaign to become Mayor of Winnipeg in mid-2004, in a municipal by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
that followed the resignation of Glen Murray. Katz later appointed McFadyen as his senior political advisor.
Member of the Legislative Assembly
McFadyen resigned as advisor to the mayor in May 2005, in order to seek the federal Conservative Party nomination for Winnipeg SouthWinnipeg South
Winnipeg South is a Canadian federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 to 1979, and since 1988. It covers the south of the city of Winnipeg...
. He defeated rival candidate Rod Bruinooge
Rod Bruinooge
Rod E. Bruinooge is a Canadian politician, businessman, and filmmaker. He was elected as the Member of Parliament for Winnipeg South in the 2006 federal election, and was the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the Federal Interlocutor for Métis...
by only twelve votes at the nomination meeting. When the federal election was deferred, McFadyen was hired by provincial Progressive Conservative leader Stuart Murray
Stuart Murray
Stuart Murray is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba and leader of the opposition in the Manitoba legislature from 2000 to 2006.-Early life and career:...
as a consultant on urban issues. The Progressive Conservatives were the Official Opposition party in this period, having lost a second election to the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party of Manitoba
The New Democratic Party of Manitoba is a social-democratic political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is the provincial wing of the federal New Democratic Party, and is a successor to the Manitoba Co-operative Commonwealth Federation...
under Gary Doer
Gary Doer
Gary Albert Doer, OM is a Canadian diplomat and politician from Manitoba, Canada. Since October 19, 2009, he has served as Canada's Ambassador to the United States...
in 2003
Manitoba general election, 2003
The Manitoba general election held on June 3, 2003 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the New Democratic Party, which won 35 seats out of 57. The Progressive Conservative Party finished second with twenty seats...
.
Later in 2005, McFadyen resigned his federal nomination to seek the Progressive Conservative nomination for a provincial by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
in Fort Whyte. He was supported by Gary Filmon, and again defeated Bruinooge for the nomination. Fort Whyte is a safe Progressive Conservative seat, and McFadyen was elected without difficulty in December.
Stuart Murray announced his resignation as Progressive Conservative leader in November 2005, after receiving a lukewarm endorsement at the party's annual convention. McFadyen was soon mentioned as a possible successor, even before his election to the legislature. In February 2006, he became the first candidate to officially declare for the party leadership. His campaign was supported by fourteen MLAs, including Jack Reimer
Jack Reimer
Jack Reimer is a Progressive Conservative politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1990 to 2007, and served in the government of Gary Filmon....
, Kelvin Goertzen
Kelvin Goertzen
Kelvin Goertzen is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He is currently a member of the Manitoba legislature. He was first elected in the 2003 provincial election, and was re-elected in the 2007 and 2011 elections....
and Cliff Cullen
Cliff Cullen
Cliff Cullen is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was elected to the Manitoba legislature in a by-election, held in the summer of 2004....
, as well as former cabinet ministers Rosemary Vodrey
Rosemary Vodrey
Rosemary Vodrey is a former politician in Manitoba, Canada. She was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1990 to 1999, and was a senior cabinet minister of the government of Gary Filmon.-Early life and career:...
, David Newman
David Newman (politician)
David Gerald Newman is a politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1995 to 1999, and was a cabinet minister under Gary Filmon from 1997 to 1999...
, Jim Downey and Shirley Render
Shirley Render
Shirley Render is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1990 to 1999, and was briefly a cabinet minister in the government of Gary Filmon.-Early life:...
. He defeated rival candidates Ron Schuler
Ron Schuler
Ron Schuler is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He is currently a member of the Manitoba Legislature and a representative of the Progressive Conservative Party. He was first elected in the 1999 provincial election and was re-elected in the 2003 and 2007 elections.-Personal life and...
and Ken Waddell
Ken Waddell
Ken Waddell is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was the Mayor of Neepawa from 1998 to 2002, and sought the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in its 2006 leadership election...
on April 29, 2006.
Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party
McFadyen's first months as party leader were successful. The Progressive Conservatives surpassed the NDP in public opinion polls in June 2006, for the first time since 1999. McFadyen strongly criticized the Doer government over its alleged failure to protect investors from the failure of the Crocus Investment FundCrocus Investment Fund
The Crocus Investment Fund was a Labour Sponsored Venture Capital Corporation in Manitoba, Canada.In 2004-05, the company stopped trading and was forced into receivership following allegations that it misled shareholders and overvalued its assets...
, and launched a party task force into the matter headed by former cabinet minister Don Orchard. He also advocated fixed provincial election dates, and accused Doer of failing to keep an earlier pledge to end "hallway medicine" in the province.
In late 2006, McFadyen reversed his party's former position and promised to continue Manitoba's tuition freeze if elected as Premier. He also promised compensation for investors in the Crocus fund and financial incentives for Manitobans buying energy-efficient cars, raised the prospect of sharing the provincial sales tax with cities, and argued that parents who allow their children to wander the streets at night should be held responsible if their children commit crimes.
During a speech in September 2006, McFadyen described the former New Democratic Party government of Howard Pawley
Howard Pawley
Howard Russell Pawley, PC, OC, OM is a Canadian politician and professor who was the 18th Premier of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988.-Personal life:...
as having been influenced by communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
. This statement was widely criticized, and Pawley described it as "fallacious and ridiculous". McFadyen initially refused to withdraw the accusation, and said that there had been card-carrying members of the Communist Party
Communist Party of Canada
The Communist Party of Canada is a communist political party in Canada. Although is it currently a minor or small political party without representation in the Federal Parliament or in provincial legislatures, historically the Party has elected representatives in Federal Parliament, Ontario...
in Pawley's government. (This was undoubtedly a reference to Roland Penner
Roland Penner
Roland Penner was Dean of Law at the University of Manitoba and a is a former politician and Manitoba Cabinet minister.Penner was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the son of Winnipeg alderman Jacob Penner...
, a former member of the Labour Progressive Party of Canada who served in Pawley's cabinet during the 1980s. Penner indicated that he had left the LPP in 1960, several years before he ran as an NDP candidate.)
In March 2007, McFadyen introduced a ten-point plan designed to make Manitoba Hydro
Manitoba Hydro
Manitoba Hydro is the electric power and natural gas utility in the province of Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1961, it is a provincial Crown Corporation, governed by the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board and the Manitoba Hydro Act. Today the company operates 15 interconnected generating stations. It has...
a major player in the clean energy sector. The proposal was dismissed by the NDP as a thinly-veiled plan to privatize the utility, a charge that McFadyen denied.
2007 election
The Doer government called a new electionManitoba general election, 2007
The Manitoba general election held on May 22, 2007 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the New Democratic Party, which won 36 seats out of 57. The Progressive Conservative Party finished second with nineteen seats. The Liberal...
for May 22, 2007. McFadyen's campaign was centred on five themes: better health care, a cleaner environment, law and order, improving Winnipeg's image, and keeping younger Manitobans in the province. He also promised to cut the provincial sales tax from 7% to 6%, cut the education portion of property taxes by half within six years, and introduce other tax cuts amounting to $172 million. On criminal justice, McFadyen promised to fund 350 new police officers and non-uniformed "crimefighters", give the police a direct role in choosing judges. He also promised to deny legal aid to persons previously convicted of drug trafficking, benefiting from the proceeds of crime, or being part of a criminal organization. Provincial Justice Minister Dave Chomiak described the latter promise as a "publicity stunt" that would ultimately cost the province money, while the Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg Free Press
The Winnipeg Free Press is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Founded in 1872, as the Manitoba Free Press, it is the oldest newspaper in western Canada. It is the newspaper with the largest readership in the province....
described it as "bizarre". McFadyen also promised to bring the Jets
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets were a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They began play in the World Hockey Association in 1972, moving to the National Hockey League in 1979 following the collapse of the WHA...
hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team back to Winnipeg, in order to convince younger Manitobans to remain in the province. This was generally regarded as unrealistic in newspaper coverage.
Support for the Progressive Conservatives fell significantly in the last days of the campaign, particularly among female voters. Doer's New Democrats won a third consecutive majority government, while McFadyen's Progressive Conservatives retained Official Opposition status with nineteen seats, down one from the previous election. McFadyen was personally returned for Fort Whyte without difficulty.
Post-election
After the election, rumours surfaced that McFadyen would be pressured to stand down as party leader. He rejected the suggestion, and observed that the Progressive Conservatives would need to make significant changes to regain their former status as Manitoba's governing party. In early 2008, he said that his party should emulate the changes brought to the UKUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
by newly-elected leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
.
In September 2007, McFadyen took part in an all-party delegation to Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, calling on the federal government to increase penalties for car thieves, young offenders and criminal gangs. McFadyen recommended changes to the Child and Family Services Act in late 2007, arguing that child safety should be the sole consideration when determining if a child should be assigned to the care of social workers. He argued that the existing act was confusing, and allowed for too many other considerations.
In late 2007, McFadyen criticized the Doer government for its decision to construct a hydroelectric transmission line on the west rather than the east side of Lake Winnipeg
Lake Winnipeg
Lake Winnipeg is a large, lake in central North America, in the province of Manitoba, Canada, with its southern tip about north of the city of Winnipeg...
. The east side route would be less expensive, but was rejected on the grounds that it was opposed by local indigenous groups and would threaten pristine boreal forest lands. McFadyen described the west side line as the greatest policy blunder in Manitoba history, and said that some indigenous leaders have been given effective veto power over development. Ron Evans
Ron Evans (politician)
Ron Evans is a clergyman and politician in Manitoba, Canada. He is currently the Grand Chief for the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs . A priest in the Anglican Church of Canada, Evans is also a prominent figure in the Aboriginal community of northern Manitoba...
, Grand Chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs
Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs
The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs is an organization of First Nations leaders in Manitoba, Canada. Its current Grand Chief is Ron Evans of the Norway House Cree Nation.-External links:*...
and a former Progressive Conservative candidate, responded that McFadyen's comments threaten to damage years of work between his party and the indigenous community.
McFadyen led the Progressive Conservatives in the 2011 general election
Manitoba general election, 2011
The 40th general election of Manitoba was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. It took place on October 4, 2011, due to the new fixed-date election laws...
, in which the party failed to make any gains, ending up with nineteen seats for the second election in a row. He announced his resignation as party leader in his concession speech.
Electoral record
All electoral information is taken from Elections ManitobaElections Manitoba
Elections Manitoba is the non-partisan agency of the Government of Manitoba, responsible for the conduct of provincial elections....
. Provincial expenditures refer to candidate expenses.