In December, Prime Minister Harper and President Obama announced an Action Plan on Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness. This Border Action Plan will have many benefits for job creation and economic growth – especially in Canada’s largest province and biggest city. Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird will outline the measures contained in this new agreement and its many benefits for Toronto, Ontario and Canada, and will then take questions from Canadian Club members.
John Baird was first elected to the House of Commons in 2006 and re-elected in 2008 and 2011. In February 2006, Mr. Baird was sworn in as President of the Treasury Board. In this role, he introduced and successfully steered the new Federal Accountability Act through both Houses of Parliament. In January 2007, he was named Minister of the Environment and, in October 2008, he became Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, where he spearheaded the design, negotiation and delivery of some 12,000 infrastructure stimulus projects across the country. In August 2010, he was named Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. From November 2010 to January 2011, he undertook additional responsibilities as Minister of the Environment. He was named Foreign Affairs Minister in May 2011.
Prior to entering federal politics, Mr. Baird was a member of Ontario’s provincial legislature, where he represented the constituency of Nepean-Carleton from 1995 to 2005. During that time, he served as Minister of Community and Social Services, Energy, Francophone Affairs, Children and Youth Services, and as Government House Leader.
Mr. Baird is a long-time member of the Royal Canadian Legion, an honorary member of the Kiwanis Club of Nepean, and a lifetime member of Canada’s largest Association for Community Living. In 2008, he was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Maclean’s Magazine and the Historica-Dominion Institute named him 2010 Parliamentarian of the Year, after a vote by his colleagues in all parties in the House of Commons.
Mr. Baird holds a Bachelor of Arts in political studies from Queen’s University.
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