Deborah Grey
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The Honourable Deborah Grey PC OC |
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| Leader of the Opposition | |
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In office March 27, 2000 – September 10, 2000 |
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| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | Preston Manning |
| Succeeded by | |
| Leader of the Canadian Alliance Interim |
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In office March 27, 2000 – July 8, 2000 |
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| Preceded by |
Preston Manning (as Leader of the Reform Party) |
| Succeeded by | |
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Edmonton North |
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In office June 2, 1997 – June 28, 2004 |
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| Preceded by | John Loney |
| Succeeded by | riding abolished |
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Beaver River |
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In office March 13, 1989 – June 2, 1997 |
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| Preceded by | John Dahmer |
| Succeeded by | riding abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
July 1, 1952 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Political party |
Reform (1989-2000) Canadian Alliance (2000-2001, 2002-2003) Democratic Representative Caucus (2001-2002) Conservative (2003-2004) |
| Profession | Teacher |
Deborah Cleland Grey, PC QC (born July 1, 1952) is a Canadian former Member of Parliament from Alberta for the Reform Party of Canada, the Canadian Alliance, and the Conservative Party of Canada. She was the first female Leader of the Opposition in Canadian history.
Born in Vancouver, Grey pursued studies in Sociology, English and Education at Burrard Inlet Bible Institute, Trinity Western College and the University of Alberta. She then worked as a teacher in a number of rural Alberta communities until 1989.
Grey's first run for office was in the 1988 election, when she ran as the Reform candidate in Beaver River, a mostly rural riding in northeastern Alberta. She finished a distant fourth behind Progressive Conservative John Dahmer. However, Dahmer died before he could be sworn in. Grey won a by-election in March 1989, almost tripling her vote total from the 1988 election to become Reform's first MP. It was only the second time the Progressive Conservatives had lost a seat in Alberta since 1968. Party leader Preston Manning immediately named her as Reform's deputy leader. The two were friends for many years; Grey calls him "Misterbrainiola". Her first legislative assistant was a young Stephen Harper.
Reform elected 52 MPs in the 1993 election, replacing the Progressive Conservatives as the main right-wing party in Canada. Grey won her first full term in this election. In addition to her duties as deputy leader, she also became chairwoman of the enlarged Reform caucus. In 1997, Beaver River was abolished and its territory split into two neighbouring ridings. Grey moved to Edmonton North at the request of several local conservatives dissatisfied with being represented by a Liberal, John Loney (elected in the 1993 landslide). Lomey retired ahead of the that year's election, and Grey won handily. She continued to represent this riding for the remainder of her career. Reform became the Official Opposition in that election.
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