PC ,
LL.B ,
BA (born
December 28 ,
1943 in
Toronto ,
Ontario ) was the twentieth
Premier of the Province of Ontario,
Canada , from
June 26 ,
1985 to
October 1 ,
1990 . He was the first
Liberal premier of Ontario in 42 years.
Peterson is married to actress
Shelley Peterson , and is the younger brother of
Jim Peterson , currently a federal Liberal MP and former
Cabinet Minister in the government of
Paul Martin . Both his sister-in-law
Deb Matthews and
Tim Peterson , a third brother, were elected to the Ontario legislature in the
2003 Provincial Election .
Peterson earned his
Bachelor Of Arts degree from the
University Of Western Ontario and his
LL.B from the
University Of Toronto . He was called to the bar in
1969 . Despite his legal background, most of Peterson's early career was spent in the world of private enterprise. He became president of C.M. Peterson Company Limited, a wholesale electronics firm founded by his father, at age twenty-six, and joined the Chamber of Commerce's Young Presidents Club in the same period.
Peterson was first elected as the Liberal
Member Of Provincial Parliament for
London Centre in the
1975 Provincial Election . Less than one year later, he campaigned for the
Leadership Of The Party following
Robert Nixon 's resignation. Considered by some to be inexperienced, Peterson nevertheless came within 45 votes of defeating
Stuart Smith on the third and final ballot of a delegated convention held on
January 25 ,
1976 . Smith represented the left-wing of the party, while Peterson was seen as representing its right-wing. Some blamed Peterson's loss on the banal delivery of his convention speech.
Peterson was re-elected in the provincial elections of
1977 and
1981 , and ran for the Liberal leadership a second time after Smith's resignation in 1982. Again considered to be on the right of the party, he defeated the more left-leaning
Sheila Copps on the second ballot of a convention vote, held on
February 21 ,
1982 . One of his most prominent supporters in this period was
Keith Davey .
Peterson was not initially regarded as a strong challenger to the Progressive Conservative government of
Bill Davis . The Liberals lost two seats to the NDP in late
1984 by-elections, and another caucus member defected to the Progressive Conservatives that same year, claiming that Peterson was an ineffective leader. Polling in late 1984 showed Peterson's Liberals in third place, behind the Progressive Conservatives and
New Democratic Party .
Peterson's fortunes improved when Davis retired as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party in early
1985 . His successor,
Frank Miller , took the party further to the right, and was unable to convince the electorate of his leadership abilities. Though Miller's Tories began the
Election In 1985 with a significant lead, Peterson's Liberals gradually increased their support throughout the campaign. To the surprise of many, Peterson won a narrow plurality of the popular vote and came within four seats of defeating Miller's government. The Progressive Conservatives won 52 seats and the Liberals 48, leaving the NDP holding the balance of power with 25.
Following the election, NDP leader
Bob Rae entered negotiations with both the Liberals and Progressive Conservatives, seeking a formal accord in which the NDP would pledge not to defeat the government in return for the passage of certain progressive legislation. Miller's Tories attempted to win the NDP's support, but were unable to agree to Rae's terms. Negotiations with the Liberals were more fruitiful, and the two parties signed an accord allowing the Liberals to govern for a two-year period. (The NDP did not receive any
Cabinet seats, and the accord was not a formal coalition.)
The Liberals and NDP defeated Miller's government on
June 18 ,
1985 on a motion of non-confidence, and Peterson was sworn in as Premier of Ontario eight days later. After the expiration of the Liberal-NDP Accord in
1987 , the Liberals called another
Provincial Election , and were returned with a
Majority in the legislature, taking 95 seats out of 130.
Peterson's government introduced several pieces of progressive legislation. It eliminated "extra billing" by doctors, brought in pay equity provisions, and reformed the province's rent review and labour negotiation laws. His government also brought in pension reform, expanded housing construction, and resolved a long-standing provincial controversy by extended full funding to Catholic secondary schools. Peterson was also a vocal opponent of
Free Trade with the
United States in
1988 . His administration was less activist in its later years, though it still introduced progressive measures on environmental protection, eliminated health insurance premiums, and brought in no-fault automobile insurance for the province.
The Peterson administration also developed a reputation for fiscal prudence, under the management of
Treasurer Robert Nixon. The Liberal government was able to introduce a balanced budget for 1989-90 following several years of deficit spending in Ontario, at a time when deficit spending was commonplace in most of North America.
Peterson remained personally popular during his time in power, and some spoke of him as a future
Prime Minister Of Canada . Peterson improved his public speaking abilities in the early 1980s, and projected the image of an active, charismatic figure when in office. Some believed his image was perfectly suited to the young, urban professional demographic of the 1980s.
Both Peterson and his government were still popular at the beginning of 1990. The end of his career in politics came suddenly, and was the result of several factors.
The first was Peterson's prominent role in creating and promoting the
"Meech Lake" Constitutional Accord . While initially popular, this attempt at revising Canada's constitution proved extremely divisive in most of English-speaking Canada. Many believed that it gave too many concessions to
Quebec , while others believed that it weakened the federal government's authority in relation to the provinces. Peterson's continued support for the accord, in the face of increased opposition, damaged his personal popularity in Ontario. (The accord was not endorsed by
Manitoba and
Newfoundland , and did not pass.)
The second reason for Peterson's downfall was the controversy resulting from the
Patti Starr scandal. Starr, a prominent Liberal fundraiser, was found to have improperly diverted money from land-development and charitable organizations to the provincial Liberal Party. She was eventually sentenced to six months jail time. Although no-one in Peterson's administration was accused of criminal activity, the scandal eroded public confidence in the integrity of the ministry.
The third reason was the weakening North American economy. Productivity levels were falling throughout the
United States and Canada during this period, and were likely worsened in Ontario and other jurisdictions by the recent passage of a Free Trade Accord involving the two countries. While there was little that Peterson, or any other Ontario Premier, could have done to prevent this downturn, it weakened his government's reputation for fiscal competence. (Indeed, the government's projected surplus budget for 1990-91 ultimately yielded a deficit of at least three billion dollars.)
Notwithstanding all of this, Peterson's Liberal Party still retained a comfortable lead over the Progressive Conservatives and NDP in mid-1990 public opinion polls. As a result, Peterson decided to call an early election, less than three years into his mandate. This proved to be his greatest mistake.
Many voters saw the early election as a mark of arrogance, and a sign that Peterson's Liberals had become detached from the electorate. There was no
Defining Issue behind the campaign, and many believed that Peterson was simply trying to win re-election before the economic downturn reached its worst phase. Some Liberal cabinet ministers, most notably
Greg Sorbara , were strongly opposed to the early election call.
Sean Conway , a member of Peterson's inner circle, would later acknowledge that most backbench MPPs also opposed the timing of the campaign.
The
Election Of 1990 began with the Liberals holding at 50% popular support, and a 54% approval rating for Peterson. However, his luck turned immediately upon calling the election. Disappointed by high expectations, groups representing several interests (such as teachers, doctors, and environmentalists), came out against Peterson on television, radio, in print, and at Liberal campaign events. The public regarded the election call as cynical, and the party appeared desperate when they unexpectedly proposed to cut the provincial sales tax halfway through the campign.
The campaign also took place at a time when the federal
New Democratic Party was performing well in the polls. This trend carried over to the provincial level; the provincial NDP under Bob Rae ran a strong campaign, and saw its fortunes gradually increase in the time leading up to election day. Some voters believed that Peterson deserved to be reduced to a minority government, while others believed the NDP should be given a chance to govern. On
September 5 , 1990, the NDP won one of the greatest upsets in Canadian political history, outpolling the Liberals 38% to 34% and forming a majority government.
David Peterson even lost his own seat, having been resoundingly defeated by NDP candidate
Marion Boyd in London Centre. The loss ended Peterson's career as a politician. He announced his resignation as party leader on the night of the election, and formally resigned as premier on October 1, 1990.
In
1992 , Peterson endorsed former
Minister Of Health Murray Elston as the next leader of the Ontario Liberal Party. Elston was narrowly defeated, in part because many party delegates saw him as a throwback to the Peterson years.
David Peterson was the founding chairman of the
Toronto Raptors Basketball Club of the
National Basketball Association , and was a member of Toronto's
Olympics Bid Committee. Since leaving politics, he has been a professor at
York University in Toronto, a senior partner and chairman of the Toronto law firm
Cassels, Brock & Blackwell , and has been director or member of several charitable, cultural, and environmental organizations. He is or has been a member on several corporate boards, being particularly associated with the Rogers family of businesses. In his legal practice he provides international advice to a wide range of clients about public policy issues and government affairs in Canada.
In report from the ''
Globe And Mail '' newspaper notes that Peterson was chastened by this experience, and has become "a cautious and more conscientious director" since this time.
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Since 2003, Peterson has been contracted by the federal government to be its Chief Negotiator, in talks with the government of the Northwest Territories and Aboriginal leaders, to transfer federal powers over lands and resources to the territory. Mr. Peterson has been quoted as noting this as an opportunity to try again and play a part in nation-building.
Peterson has continued over the years as a powerful organizer and fundraiser for the federal and Ontario provincial Liberals. In May
2005 , he played the central role in helping
Belinda Stronach , a federal
Conservative MP, to
Cross The Floor to the ruling
Liberal Party , days before a crucial confidence motion on the federal budget of
Paul Martin 's Liberal
Minority Government . The defection proved critical to the survival of Martin's government, with the final outcome of the budget vote 153-152 in favour of the government.
Peterson will become chancellor at the
University Of Toronto effective July 1, 2006.
