Jack Layton

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The Honourable John Gilbert "Jack" Layton, PC , MP , Ph.D (born July 18, 1950, Hudson, Québec) is a social democratic Canadian politician, a former Toronto, Ontario city councillor, deputy mayor, and the current leader of Canada's New Democratic Party. On June 28, 2004, he was elected Member of Parliament for the constituency of Toronto—Danforth.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Toronto city council 3 Leader of the NDP 3.1 2004 election 3.2 Minority government 4 Bibliography 5 External links

Early life

Layton comes from a long line of politicians. His great-great-uncle, William Steeves, was a Father of Confederation. His great-grandfather was a blind activist who led a campaign for disability pensions in the 1930s. His grandfather, Gilbert Layton, was a cabinet minister in the Union Nationale government of Maurice Duplessis in Quebec, and resigned due to the provincial government's lack of support for Canadian participation in World War II. His father, Robert Layton, was a Liberal Party activist in the 1960s and 1970s, and served as a Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) and Cabinet minister in the 1980s.

Layton grew up in Hudson, Québec, a largely wealthy and anglophone community outside of Montreal. He was elected student council president of his high school, and his year book predicted he would become a politician. He studied political science at McGill University, and at age 19 he married Sally Holford, with whom he had two children.

In 1970, the family moved to Toronto where Layton went to York University to get his Ph.D. in political science. Layton then became a professor at Ryerson University. He also became a prominent activist for a variety of causes. He has written several books, including Homelessness: The Making and Unmaking of a Crisis and, more recently, a book on general public policy, Speaking Out.

Toronto city council

At York and Ryerson, Layton developed close links with a number of Toronto figures including John Sewell and David Crombie. He was first elected to Toronto City Council in 1982, in surprise upset against incumbent Gordon Chong. He quickly became one of the most outspoken members of council, and a leader of the left wing. He was one of the most vocal opponents of the massive SkyDome project, and an early advocate for rights for AIDS patients. In 1984, he was fined for trespassing when he handed out leaflet at the Eaton Centre during a strike by Eaton's staff, but the charge was later thrown out on freedom of speech grounds. Layton was also one of the few opponents to Toronto's bid for the 1996 Summer Olympics. In 1985, he moved to the Metro Toronto council, in the first direct elections for members of that body.

In July 1988, he married Hong Kong-born Toronto school board trustee Olivia Chow in a ceremony on Algonquin Island. Their whitewater rafting honeymoon plans had to be abandoned, however, when days after the wedding Layton collided with a newspaper box while bicycling. Chow later joined Layton on Toronto city council, and has also twice been a candidate for the federal New Democrats.

In the 1988 municipal elections, Layton traded places with city council ally Dale Martin, with Martin going to Metro and Layton returning to Toronto city council. Layton was easily elected in a contest with former high school teacher Lois MacMillan-Walker. The election was a major victory for Layton as the reformist coalition of which he was the de facto head gained control of city council. The first time in city history a coalition of New Democrats and independents controlled council.

Layton was also the subject of some dispute when rumors circulated that he and his wife had lived for many years in a federally subsidized housing cooperative. Layton and Chow lived in the building beginning in 1985, reportedly paying $800 a month in rent for their three-bedroom unit on a combined income of $120,000. According to the Vancouver Province newspaper, a comparable dwelling would have fetched $1,500, while average Toronto market rent in 1989, by comparison, was $782. In 1990, they increased their payments by $325, which they felt was the value of their unit’s Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation subsidy. Layton argued that having mixed-income tenants was crucial to the success of co-ops, and that the laws deliberately set aside apartments for those willing to pay market rates, such as himself. Eventually, Layton and Chow left the co-op and bought a house in Kensington Market.

Originally known for coming to council meetings in blue jeans with unkempt hair, Layton worked to change his image to run for mayor in 1991. He also started wearing contact lenses, abandoning his glasses. In February 1991, Layton became the first official NDP candidate for the mayoralty, pitting him against centrist incumbent Art Eggleton. In a move that surprised many, Eggleton elected not to run again. Layton was opposed by three right-of-centre candidates: Susan Fish, June Rowlands, and Betty Disero. Right wing support soon coalesced around former city councillor Rowlands, preventing the internal divisions Layton needed to win office. Layton was also hurt by the growing unpopularity of the provincial NDP government of Bob Rae, and by his earlier opposition to Toronto's Olympic bid. Bid organizers Paul Henderson accused Layton and his allies of costing Toronto the event. Despite this, October polls showed Layton only four points behind Rowlands, with 36% support. However on October 17, Fish, who had only 19% support, pulled out of the race, and many of her supporters moved to Rowlands. Layton lost the November 12 election by a considerable margin. However, in the same election Olivia Chow easily won a seat on city council.

After returning to academia and operating an environmental consulting business, he ran for the Canadian House of Commons in the riding of Rosedale for the NDP, but finished third in the generally conservative riding. In 1994, he returned to Metro Council, and resumed his high profile role in local politics. He also came to national attention as the leader of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

Leader of the NDP

Layton was elected leader of the NDP at the party's leadership convention in Toronto, on January 25, 2003. Layton won on the first ballot, with 53.5% of the vote. He was the first candidate for federal NDP leadership to win on the first ballot since Tommy Douglas, and the first to win without being either a Member of Parliament or a provincial premier. As he held no seat in the House of Commons, he delegated runner-up Bill Blaikie to act as parliamentary leader. Layton did not seek election to the House of Commons by running in a by-election, as is the tradition among new party leaders without a seat. Instead, he waited until the 2004 federal election, in which he sought and won a seat for the riding of Toronto-Danforth against Liberal Dennis Mills. Mills had defeated Layton by a wide margin in the 1997 election.

Although he had no parliamentary seat, Layton was noted for trying to draw considerable attention from the Canadian mass media. Much of his rhetoric has involved attacking the policies of Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin as conservative, and arguing the ideology of the Liberal Party of Canada has shifted in a more right wing direction.

Another contribution has been to increase the party's profile in Quebec, the province in which the NDP is the weakest. A native of the province, he has visited Quebec more times in the first year of his tenure than the previous leader, Alexa McDonough, did in her entire leadership, and has forged ties with various Quebec activist groups such as Montreal's Front d'action populaire en réaménagement urbain (FRAPRU). One of his opponents in the leadership race, Pierre Ducasse, was the first Québécois to run for leader of the NDP. After the race, Layton appointed Ducasse as his Quebec lieutenant and party spokesperson.

2004 election

During the 2004 federal election, controversy erupted over Layton's accusation that Liberal Prime Minister Paul Martin was responsible for the deaths of homeless people because he failed to provide funding for affordable housing. While rates of homelessness and homeless deaths skyrocketed during the eleven years of Liberal government, the Liberals argued that funding for affordable housing was cut under the government of Brian Mulroney. Some defended the charge, or Layton's place to make it, while others rejected it as negative campaigning. See also: Homelessness in Canada

Further controversy followed as Layton suggested the removal of the Clarity Act, a piece of legislation considered by some to be vital to keeping Quebec in Canada and seen by others as undemocratic, and promised to recognize any declaration of independence by Quebec after a referendum. This position was not part of the NDP's official party policy, leading some high-profile party members, such as NDP House Leader Bill Blaikie and former NDP leader Alexa McDonough, to publicly indicate that they did not share Layton's views.

Despite these problems, Layton led the NDP to its best popular vote in 16 years. The party won over 15% of the vote but only 19 seats in the House of Commons, short of the 21 won under Alexa McDonough in 1997.

Minority government

With the ruling Liberal Party being reduced to a minority government, revelations of the sponsorship scandal damaging its popularity to the point where both the Conservative Party and the Bloc Québécois were pressing their advantage for a snap election, the Prime Minister approached the NDP for its support. Layton demanded the cancellation of proposed corporate tax cuts and increased social spending. The ensuing compromise in the NDP's favor was protested by the other opposition parties who used it as a pretext to force a non-confidence vote. On May 19, two such votes were defeated and Layton's admendments went on to be passed on its final reading vote on June 23. As a result of this political coup and his apparent civil behaviour in a spitefully raucous parliament, many political analysts have noted that Layton has gained increased credibility as an effective leader of an important party, becoming the major second choice leader in many political polls - for example, polling second in Quebec after Gilles Duceppe, despite the low polls for his party as a whole in the province.

On March 21, 2005, Layton was sworn into the Queen's Privy Council for Canada allowing him to use the prefix The Honourable.

Bibliography

• Homelessness: The Making and Unmaking of a Crisis ISBN 0140288880
• Speaking Out: Ideas that Work For Canadians ISBN 1552635775

Preceded by: Alexa McDonough	Leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada 2003–present	Succeeded by: incumbent
Preceded by: Dennis Mills	Member of Parliament for Toronto—Danforth 2004–present	Succeeded by: incumbent

External links

• Jack Layton (NDP) - NDP official website
• Say Anything... Jack - A Liberal Party webpage about Layton