The (CAP) is a
Canadian Federal Political Party founded in 1997. It promotes Canadian
Nationalism ,
Monetary Reform and
Electoral Reform , and opposes
Globalization and
Free Trade Agreements .
The Canadian Action Party was founded by
Paul Hellyer , a former
Liberal minister of defence in the
Cabinet of
Lester Pearson . Hellyer ran unsuccessfully for the leadership of the Liberal Party in 1968, and for the leadership of the
Progressive Conservative Party in 1976.
It nominated candidates for the first time in the
1997 Federal Election .
After the 1997 election, it absorbed the
Canada Party , another minor party concerned about monetary reform that was formed by former members of the
Social Credit Party Of Canada . Former Canada Party leader
Claire Foss served as vice president of CAP until November 2003.
Hellyer resigned as CAP leader in 2003 after the
New Democratic Party failed to agree to a merger proposal, under which the NDP would change its name. In 2004,
Connie Fogal , an activist lawyer, was acclaimed party leader after
David Orchard failed to respond to an invitation to take over the leadership.
A number of CAP members also belong to the
Committee On Monetary And Economic Reform (COMER) and have been influential in developing CAP's monetary policy, particularly its position that the
Bank Of Canada , rather than chartered banks, should provide loans to the government, if required, to fund public spending.
CAP also argues for the abrogation of NAFTA rather than the current government initiatives leading to the FTAA and integration with the United States and Mexico into the North American Union.
- Claire Foss , ? - 2003
- Connie Fogal 2003 - 2004
- Catherine Whelan Costen , November 2005 - present
