Bernard Valcourt

The Honourable

Bernard Valcourt

PC QC
The Honourable; Bernard Valcourt; PC QC
Member of Parliament for Madawaska—Restigouche
	In office; 2011 – 4 August 2015
Preceded by	Jean-Claude D'Amours
Succeeded by	René Arseneault
MLA for Edmundston
	In office; 1995–1999
Preceded by	Roland Beaulieu
Succeeded by	Madeleine Dubé
Member of Parliament for Madawaska—Victoria
	In office; September 4, 1984 – October 25, 1993
Preceded by	Eymard Corbin
Succeeded by	Pierrette Ringuette
Personal details
Born	February 18, 1952 (age 69); Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick
Political party	Conservative (2011–)
Other political; affiliations	Progressive Conservative (1984–1993)
Residence	Edmundston, New Brunswick
Profession	lawyer

Bernard Valcourt, PC QC (born February 18, 1952) is a Canadian politician and lawyer, who served as Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Madawaska—Restigouche, New Brunswick until he was defeated in the 2015 federal election.

Early federal political career and Mulroney cabinet[]

Valcourt was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the 1984 election that brought Brian Mulroney to power. He was appointed to the Cabinet of Canada in 1986 as a Minister of State. In January 1989, he was promoted to Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs,^[1] but was forced to resign from Cabinet in August when he was involved in a drunk driving motorcycle accident that cost him an eye.^[2]

He returned to Cabinet seven months later as Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.^[1] In 1991, he was promoted to Minister of Employment and Immigration,^[1] and held the position until the government of Mulroney's successor as Progressive Conservative Party leader and prime minister, Kim Campbell, was defeated in the 1993 election. Valcourt was defeated in that election, along with every Tory MP in Atlantic Canada except Elsie Wayne.

Provincial leader[]

In May 1995, Valcourt was elected leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick.^[3] While he won a seat in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick in the 1995 provincial election, his party only won six seats against 48 for Frank McKenna's Liberals. Valcourt resigned as leader in 1997 following a lukewarm endorsement of his leadership at a party convention, and was succeeded by Bernard Lord.^[4]

Return to federal politics[]

On March 28, 2011, Valcourt declared his candidacy in the 2011 federal election, running in the riding of Madawaska—Restigouche, which covers the bulk of the territory he'd represented two decades earlier.^[5]^[6] He was elected on May 2, 2011, defeating Liberal incumbent Jean-Claude D'Amours. He was subsequently appointed to cabinet as Minister of State for both the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and La Francophonie. His sister Martine Coulombe was elected to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick in the 2010 provincial election.^[7] On July 4, 2012, he was given the additional portfolio of Associate Minister of Defence.^[8] Valcourt was part of the AEG initiative, saying co-operation between both the federal and provincial governments, as well as utilities, is key. "The Atlantic Energy Gateway initiative has brought the critical players in the region's energy sector together to not only work toward an affordable, secure, clean energy future, but to also maximize the business and job growth potential of further developing our region's clean and renewable energy industries," said Valcourt in a release.^[9]

On February 22, 2013, Valcourt became Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development in a cabinet shuffle.^[10] Valcourt stirred controversy when he claimed that the high rates of suicide among aboriginal youths were "the responsibility of their parents".^[11]

In the 2015 federal election, Valcourt was defeated by Liberal René Arseneault finishing third with just over 16% of the vote.^[12]

Electoral record[]

hide2015 Canadian federal election: Madawaska—Restigouche
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	René Arseneault	20,778	55.70	+20.91	$66,315.47
	New Democratic	Rosaire L'Italien	9,670	25.92	+6.58	$92,730.82
	Conservative	Bernard Valcourt	6,151	16.49	-23.99	$101,364.85
	Green	Françoise Aubin	707	1.90	+0.10	–
Total valid votes/Expense limit			37,306	99.08		$199,271.58
Total rejected ballots			348	0.92	–
Turnout			37,654	74.02	–
Eligible voters			50,871
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing		+22.45
Source: Elections Canada^[13]^[14]

hide v t 2011 Canadian federal election: Madawaska—Restigouche
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Conservative	Bernard Valcourt	14,224	40.64	+7.41	$52,308.15
	Liberal	Jean-Claude D'Amours	12,309	35.17	-12.23	$60,570.18
	New Democratic	Wilder Jules	6,562	18.75	+3.13	$6,934.01
	Independent	Louis Bérubé	1,290	3.69	–	$113.00
	Green	Lynn Morrison	612	1.75	-2.00	$0.00
Total valid votes/Expense limit			34,997	100.0		$81,731.56
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots			577	1.62	+0.04
Turnout			35,574	69.80	+3.03
Eligible voters			50,966
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing		+9.82
Sources:^[15]^[16]

hide1995 New Brunswick general election: Edmundston
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Conservative	Bernard Valcourt	4,215	59.20	+38.41
	Liberal	Roland Beaulieu	2,803	39.37	−26.91
	New Democratic	Maureen Michaud	102	1.43	−11.50
Total valid votes			7,120	100.0
	Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing		+32.66

1993 Canadian federal election: Madawaska—Victoria
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Pierrette Ringuette	16,058	48.8	+5.0
	Progressive Conservative	Bernard Valcourt	15,045	45.7	−2.5
	Reform	Kimberly Spikings	955	2.9	+2.9
	New Democratic Party	Parise Martin	844	2.6	−5.4
Total			32,902

1988 Canadian federal election: Madawaska—Victoria
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Conservative	Bernard Valcourt	14,747	48.2	−3.7
	Liberal	Romeo Rossignol	13,385	43.8	+1.9
	New Democratic Party	Réal Couturier	2,441	8.0	+1.8
Total			30,573

1984 Canadian federal election: Madawaska—Victoria
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Conservative	Bernard Valcourt	16,411	51.9	+29.0
	Liberal	Gerald Clavette	13,245	41.9	−23.9
	New Democratic Party	Floranne McLaughlin-St-Amand	1,968	6.2	−5.1
Total			31,624

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c "Guide to Canadian Ministries since Confederation". Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2010.
^ "No more Mr. Nice Guys?". The Globe and Mail. May 21, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2021.
^ "New Brunswick's new top Tory set to make political sparks fly..." Toronto Star. May 15, 1995. Retrieved June 7, 2010. (subscription required)
^ "Valcourt resigns as leader of NB Tories Former high flyer had little..." Toronto Star. May 20, 1997. May 20, 1997. Retrieved June 7, 2010. (subscription required)
^ "Valcourt plans political comeback in N.B. riding". CBC News. March 28, 2011. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
^ "Former Mulroney Tory cabinet minister attempting comeback in N.B. riding". Winnipeg Free Press. March 28, 2011. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
^ "Valcourt's sister hopes to tap ex-MP's popularity". CBC News. September 9, 2010. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
^ Canadian Press (July 4, 2012). "Julian Fantino to replace Bev Oda as international co-operation minister". Toronto Star. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
^ "CBC news – Regional co-operation focus of energy meeting". CBC news. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
^ "Bernard Valcourt, new aboriginal affairs minister, a 'straight talker' who knows the file". Ottawa Citizen. February 22, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
^ "Canada's Aboriginal Minister Shrugs Off Responsibility for Youth Suicides on Reserves, Says It's Parents' Problem". VICE NEws. VICE News. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
^ "Madawaska-Restigouche elects Liberal René Arseneault". CBC News. October 19, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
^ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Madawaska—Restigouche, 30 September 2015
^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine
^ Elections Canada – Official voting results, Forty-first general election, 2011
^ Elections Canada – Candidate's electoral campaign return, 41st general election

External links[]

Bernard Valcourt official site
Profile at Parliament of Canada
Bernard Valcourt – Parliament of Canada biography
Speeches, votes and activity at OpenParliament.ca

Political offices
Preceded by Danny Cameron	Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick 1995–1997	Succeeded by Elvy Robichaud
Party political offices
Preceded by Dennis Cochrane	Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick 1995–1997	Succeeded by Bernard Lord
Party political offices
Preceded by James Moore	Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development 2013–2015	Succeeded by Carolyn Bennett

[PCO-1] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c "Guide to Canadian Ministries since Confederation". Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2010.

[2] "No more Mr. Nice Guys?". The Globe and Mail. May 21, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2021.

[3] "New Brunswick's new top Tory set to make political sparks fly..." Toronto Star. May 15, 1995. Retrieved June 7, 2010. (subscription required)

[4] "Valcourt resigns as leader of NB Tories Former high flyer had little..." Toronto Star. May 20, 1997. May 20, 1997. Retrieved June 7, 2010. (subscription required)

[5] "Valcourt plans political comeback in N.B. riding". CBC News. March 28, 2011. Retrieved June 26, 2015.

[6] "Former Mulroney Tory cabinet minister attempting comeback in N.B. riding". Winnipeg Free Press. March 28, 2011. Retrieved March 29, 2011.

[7] "Valcourt's sister hopes to tap ex-MP's popularity". CBC News. September 9, 2010. Retrieved June 26, 2015.

[8] Canadian Press (July 4, 2012). "Julian Fantino to replace Bev Oda as international co-operation minister". Toronto Star. Retrieved July 4, 2012.

[CBC_news-9] "CBC news – Regional co-operation focus of energy meeting". CBC news. Retrieved September 12, 2012.

[10] "Bernard Valcourt, new aboriginal affairs minister, a 'straight talker' who knows the file". Ottawa Citizen. February 22, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2015.

[11] "Canada's Aboriginal Minister Shrugs Off Responsibility for Youth Suicides on Reserves, Says It's Parents' Problem". VICE NEws. VICE News. Retrieved May 27, 2015.

[12] "Madawaska-Restigouche elects Liberal René Arseneault". CBC News. October 19, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2015.

[13] Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Madawaska—Restigouche, 30 September 2015

[14] Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine

[15] Elections Canada – Official voting results, Forty-first general election, 2011

[16] Elections Canada – Candidate's electoral campaign return, 41st general election

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show v t Ministers of Fisheries and Oceans
Ministers of Marine and Fisheries (1867–1930)¹	Mitchell Smith Pope McLelan Foster Tupper Costigan Davies Sutherland Préfontaine Laurier (acting) Brodeur Lemieux Hazen Ballantyne Lapointe Cardin Black (acting) Patenaude (acting) Cardin (acting)
Ministers of Fisheries (1930–69)	Macmillan Rhodes Duranleau (acting) Stirling (acting) Ernst Michaud Bertrand Bridges Bertrand (acting) Gregg MacKinnon Mayhew Sinclair MacLean Robichaud Davis
Minister of Fisheries and Forestry (1969–71)	Davis
Ministers of the Environment (1971–76)²	Davis Sauvé R. LeBlanc (acting) Marchand R. LeBlanc
Ministers of State (Fisheries) (1974–76)	R. LeBlanc
Minister of Fisheries and the Environment (1976–79)	R. LeBlanc
Ministers of Fisheries and Oceans (1979–2015)	R. LeBlanc McGrath R. LeBlanc de Bané Breau Fraser Nielsen Siddon Valcourt Crosbie Reid Tobin Dingwall (acting) Mifflin Anderson Dhaliwal Thibault Regan Hearn Shea Ashfield Shea
Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard (2015–)	Tootoo D. LeBlanc Wilkinson Jordan
¹The office of Minister of Marine and Fisheries was abolished and the offices of Minister of Fisheries and Minister of Marine were created in 1930. The Minister of Marine office was a precursor to the Minister of Transport. ²From 1971 to 1976 the Minister of the Environment was also the Minister of Fisheries.

show v t Ministers of Labour
Ministers of Labour (1900–96)	Mulock Aylesworth Lemieux¹ W. L. M. King Crothers Robertson Murdock J. H. King (acting) Elliott Manion (acting) Jones Heenan Robertson Gordon Rogers McLarty Mitchell Martin (acting) Gregg Starr MacEachen Nicholson Pépin Mackasey O'Connell Munro Ouellet (acting) O'Connell Alexander Regan Caccia Ouellet McKnight Cadieux Corbeil Danis Valcourt Axworthy Robillard
Ministers of Human Resources Development (1996–2005)²	Young Pettigrew Stewart Frulla Dryden
Ministers of Human Resources and Skills Development (2005–13)	Stronach Finley Solberg Finley
Ministers of Employment and Social Development (2013–15)	Kenney Poilievre
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development (2015–present)	Duclos
Ministers of Labour (1996–2015)	Robillard Gagliano MacAulay Bradshaw Fontana³ Blackburn Ambrose Raitt Leitch
Minister of Employment, Workforce and Labour (2015–present)	Mihychuk Hajdu Qualtrough
¹Until 1909, the office of the minister of Labour was a secondary function of the Postmaster-General of Canada. W. L. M. King was the first to hold the office independently. ²The office of Minister of Employment and Immigration, and Minister of Labour were abolished and the office of Minister of Human Resources Development went in force on July 12, 1996. Under the new provisions, a Minister of Labour may be appointed. However, when no Minister of Labour is appointed, the Minister of Human Resources Development shall exercise the powers and perform the duties and functions of the Minister of Labour. ³Styled "Minister of Labour and Housing".

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The Honourable Bernard Valcourt PC QC

Member of Parliament for Madawaska—Restigouche
In office 2011 – 4 August 2015
Preceded by	Jean-Claude D'Amours
Succeeded by	René Arseneault
MLA for Edmundston
In office 1995–1999
Preceded by	Roland Beaulieu
Succeeded by	Madeleine Dubé
Member of Parliament for Madawaska—Victoria
In office September 4, 1984 – October 25, 1993
Preceded by	Eymard Corbin
Succeeded by	Pierrette Ringuette

Personal details
Born	(1952-02-18) February 18, 1952 (age 69) Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick
Political party	Conservative (2011–)
Other political affiliations	Progressive Conservative (1984–1993)
Residence	Edmundston, New Brunswick
Profession	lawyer

show v t Ministers of Employment and Immigration
Cullen Atkey Axworthy Roberts MacDonald Bouchard McDougall Valcourt¹
The office of Minister of Employment and Immigration, and Minister of Labour were abolished and the office of Minister of Human Resources Development came in force July 12, 1996.