Ben Stewart
| Ben Stewart | |
|---|---|
| Member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly for Westside-Kelowna |
|
|
In office May 12, 2009 – June 5, 2013 |
|
| Preceded by | Riding Established |
| Succeeded by | Christy Clark |
| Minister of Citizens' Services and Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism and the Public Affairs Bureau of British Columbia | |
|
In office June 10, 2009 – June 11, 2010 |
|
| Premier | Gordon Campbell |
| Preceded by | Wally Oppal |
| Succeeded by | Mary McNeil |
| Minister of Community and Rural Development of British Columbia | |
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In office June 11, 2010 – October 25, 2010 |
|
| Premier | Gordon Campbell |
| Preceded by | Bill Bennett |
| Succeeded by | Stephanie Cadieux |
| Minister of Agriculture of British Columbia | |
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In office October 25, 2010 – March 14, 2011 |
|
| Premier | Gordon Campbell |
| Preceded by | Steve Thomson |
| Succeeded by | Don McRae |
| Minister of Citizens' Services and Open Government of British Columbia | |
| Premier | Christy Clark |
| Preceded by | Margaret MacDiarmid |
| Succeeded by | Andrew Wilkinson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Kelowna, British Columbia |
| Political party |
Conservative (federal) BC Liberal (provincial) |
| Residence | West Kelowna, British Columbia |
| Occupation | vintner |
Benjamin Richard Stewart is a Canadian politician, who represented the riding of Westside-Kelowna in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 2009 to 2013 as a member of the British Columbia Liberal Party.
He was first elected in the 2009 provincial election. In the 39th Parliament, as a member of the provincial government he worked as Minister of Citizens' Services (June 2009 - June 2010), Minister of Community and Rural Development (June 2010 - October 2010), and Minister of Agriculture (October 2010 - March 2011). On September 5, 2012, he was reappointed to cabinet as Minister of Citizens' Services and Open Government.
In the 2011 BC Liberal Party leadership election he endorsed Kevin Falcon; following Christy Clark's victory, she made Stewart government whip. Stewart also served as a member of the cabinet priorities and planning committee and the legislative review committee.
After re-election in the 2013 provincial election, he announced on June 5, 2013 resignation of his seat so that Clark, who was defeated in her own riding of Vancouver-Point Grey despite the party's victory provincewide, could contest the seat in a by-election.
In October 2013, Premier Clark appointed Stewart as BC Special Representative in Asia, a position based in Beijing.
Stewart was born and raised in Kelowna, British Columbia. His father, Dick, had moved to the Okanagan in 1911 where he started a nursery growing fruit and shade trees. Dick purchased a West Kelowna vineyard in 1956 which Ben would later incorporate as Quails' Gate Estate Winery. Along with his wife, Ruth, and brother, Tony, they began making their own wine in 1989, with bottling beginning in 1990. In the first couple of years, they were producing about 4,000 cases of wine. Sufficient demand allowed them to expand numerous times so that in 1997 they produced 28,000 cases. A $4 million expansion in 1998 increased their production to 60,000 cases. The winery specialized in pinot noirs. Their tasting room and wine shop was located in an historical building, built by one of the first white settlers in the area, before being replaced with a more modern facility during their 2007 expansion.
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