Home > Jack Layton

Layton grew up in Hudson, Québec, and studied at McGill and York Universities; he holds a Ph.D. in political science from York.

Layton comes from a long line of politicians. His great-great-grandfather, William Steeves, was a Father of Confederation. His great-grandfather was a blindBlindness can be defined physiologically as the condition of lacking sight. The definition as it applies to people thus legally classified is, however, more complex. The term "blindness" also applies to partial visual impairment: In North America and most activist who lead a campaign for disability pensionDisability pension is a form of pension given to those people who are permanently or teporarily unable to work due to a disability. An example of a disability pension is the Canada Pension Plan.s in the 19301930 is the common year starting on Wednesday. see link for calendar) Events January-February January 6 The first diesel-engine automobile trip is completed ( Indianapolis, Indiana, to New York City). January 27 Miguel Primo de Rivera resigns January 30 Gs. His grandfather, Gilbert LaytonGilbert Layton ( November 5, 1899 May 29, 1961) was a Quebec businessman and politician. Layton was a merchant and business executive in the family firm of Layton Brothers from 1918 to 1932. He was elected to Quebec's legislative assembly in 1936 as a mem, was a cabinetAlternate meanings in cabinet (disambiguation A Cabinet is a body of high-ranking members of government, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers . In some countries, particularly those minister in the Union NationaleThe Union Nationale was a political party in Quebec, Canada that identified with conservative French-Canadian nationalism. It notably held power in Quebec uninterrupted from 1944 to 1960, under Maurice Duplessis. The party was created when a group of nati government of Maurice DuplessisMaurice Le Noblet Duplessis ( 20 April, 1890 7 September, 1959) served as the Prime Minister of the Canadian province of Quebec from 1936 to 1939 and 1944 to 1959). He was a founder of and leader of the conservative Union Nationale party, and a strong sup in Quebec, and resigned due to the provincial government's lack of support for Canadian participation in World War IIWorld War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the world's nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. The war was fough. His father, Robert Layton was a Liberal Party activist in the 1960s and 1970s and served as a Progressive Conservative MP and Cabinet minister in the 1980s.

Jack Layton has been an activist for over 30 years in a variety of causes and has written several books, including Homelessness: The Making and Unmaking of a Crisis and, more recently, a book on general public policy, Speaking Out. He was first elected to Toronto City Council in 1982 and ran unsuccessfully for the position of Mayor of Toronto in 1991. After returning to academe and operating an environmental consulting business he returned to city council in 1994 and led the Federation of Canadian Municipalities for a term before running for the leadership of the Federal NDP in 2003.

He is married to Hong Kong-born Toronto city councillor and fellow NDPer Olivia Chow.

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 the legendary Tommy Douglas. As he held no seat in the House of Commons, he delegated runner-up Bill Blaikie to act as parliamentary leader. Layton indicated that his intention was to run in the next general election in the riding of Toronto%97Danforth against Liberal Dennis Mills, who he lost to by a wide margin in the 1997 election, as opposed to running in a by-election after a fellow party member resigns, the traditional approach among new party leaders without a seat. He won the seat from Mills in the 2004 Canadian federal election.

Jack Layton addresses the 2003 NDP convention in Toronto, where he was elected leader

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 fiscally conservative , and arguing the ideology of the Liberal Party of Canada is being shifted in to become more right wing.

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 his Quebec lieutenant and party spokesperson.

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 due to the lack of 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 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 Canadian House of Commons, short of the 21 won under Alexa McDonough in 1997. Layton's NDP is expected to play an enhanced role due to the fact that the ruling Liberals have been reduced to a minority government.