Glen Clark

Glen Clark (2011)

Glen David Clark (born November 22, 1957 in Nanaimo ) is a Canadian politician . He was from February 22, 1996 to August 25, 1999 Prime Minister of the Province of British Columbia and Chairman of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (NDP).

biography

Clark studied political science at Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia . Professionally, he was a union activist in the Lower Mainland . In the elections to the British Columbia Legislative Assembly in September 1986, he was elected as an MP for the Vancouver East constituency. After the NDP's election victory in October 1991, Prime Minister Michael Harcourt appointed him Minister of Finance. In 1993 he moved to the Ministry of Labor and Investment.

On February 22, 1996, Harcourt resigned: although he was not involved, he assumed responsibility for the "Bingogate" affair, in which a party member had the proceeds of a charity bingo flow into the party fund . Clark was chosen as the new party leader and took over the office of Prime Minister. The NDP won the elections in May 1996 very narrowly: it received fewer votes overall than the British Columbia Liberal Party , but was able to win six more seats and thus maintain a narrow majority.

In Clark's reign the "fast ferry fiasco" falls. To promote the shipbuilding industry, the government commissioned the state-owned ferry company BC Ferries to build new catamarans . Massive cost overruns and numerous technical problems overshadowed the construction of the ships. Clark's refusal to cancel the investment program led to public criticism and a massive loss of popularity for the NDP. Another scandal concerned the budget. Shortly after the 1996 election, the media revealed that the numbers had been manipulated to show a small surplus during the campaign. After the elections, the government admitted that the province had actually run a large deficit. In addition, British Columbia was in an economic crisis.

Clark unexpectedly resigned on August 25, 1999 after being accused of accepting a $ 10,000 free renovation from his neighbor, Dimitrios Pilarinos, in exchange for being granted a casino license. The criminal investigation that followed caused a media hype , with the live broadcast of a search of Clark's house by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as an inglorious climax. On August 29, 2002, the British Columbia Supreme Court acquitted him of all charges for lack of evidence.

Since retiring from politics, Clark has held various managerial positions at the Jim Pattison Group media company .

Web links

• Glen Clark ( English, French ) In: The Canadian Encyclopedia .
• British Columbia Supreme Court ruling on Clark-Pilarinos