Darrel Stinson

Darrel Stinson (born June 5, 1945) is a retired politician in British Columbia, Canada. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Okanagan—Shuswap from 1993 until the dissolution of the House of Commons of Canada for the 2006 federal election, and was a member of the Conservative Party of Canada parliamentary caucus.

He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, but grew up on a ranch. He left school at a young age to work, but returned later in life to get his high school diploma. He eventually became a local businessman in the BC interior and also worked as a mining consultant and prospector.

He was first elected as a Reform Party MP in the 1993 election. He became recognized for the large cowboy hat he normally wore and for his outspoken conservatism. In his first term, he was often the centre of controversy. He was criticized for suggesting the best way to prevent spousal abuse was to give women handguns. After opposition MP John Cannis allegedly called him a racist in the House of Commons, he replied "Do you have the fortitude or the gonads to stand up and come across here and say that to me, you son of a bitch?" Eventually the Speaker chided both men for unparliamentary language. Later that same year, after Progressive Conservative leader Jean Charest called him a bigot in a heated exchange, Stinson replied that Charest was a "fat little, chubby, little sucker." In 1999, he was accused of challenging Liberal MP Steve Mahoney to fight.

He was one of a handful of Reform MPs to oppose the idea of a United Alternative, being unwilling to sacrifice Reform principles to facilitate a merger with the PC Party. He eventually agreed to the creation of the Canadian Alliance (CA) with elements of the PC Party, and became a member of that party when it was created. He backed in the 2000 CA leadership election, and was given a number of critics positions when Day became leader.

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