Don McRae (politician)
|
The Honourable Don McRae |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly for Comox Valley |
|
|
In office May 12, 2009 – May 9, 2017 |
|
| Preceded by | Stan Hagen |
| Minister of Agriculture of British Columbia | |
|
In office March 14, 2011 – September 5, 2012 |
|
| Premier | Christy Clark |
| Preceded by | Ben Stewart |
| Succeeded by | Norm Letnick |
| Minister of Education of British Columbia | |
|
In office September 5, 2012 – April 2013 |
|
| Premier | Christy Clark |
| Preceded by | George Abbott |
| Succeeded by | Peter Fassbender |
| Minister of Social Development and Social Innovation of British Columbia | |
|
In office June 10, 2013 – February 2, 2015 |
|
| Premier | Christy Clark |
| Succeeded by | Michelle Stilwell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1969/1970 (age 47–48) Comox Valley, British Columbia |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) | Deanne |
| Children | Gracie, Chloe |
| Occupation | Secondary school teacher |
Don McRae (born 1969 or 1970) is a Former Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada, and a member of the BC Liberal Party. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly from the riding of Comox Valley in the 2009 provincial election. After serving nearly 2 years on the backbenches he was appointed Minister of Agriculture on March 14, 2011, in Premier Christy Clark's first cabinet. On September 5, 2012, he was appointed as the Minister of Education. In addition to his ministerial roles, he sat on the Environment and Land Use Committee and the Cabinet Committee on Open Government and Engagement. He introduced one piece of legislation, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Amendment Act, 2011.
Prior to working in the provincial government, McRae worked as a secondary school teacher at Georges P. Vanier Secondary School. He spent seven years on Courtenay's city council, having successfully run in the 2002, 2005, and 2008 municipal elections. He was appointed as a director to the Comox-Strathcona Regional District and later the Comox Valley Regional District.
Don McRae was born and raised in the Comox Valley. He graduated from Georges P. Vanier Secondary School and went to the University of British Columbia where he graduated specializing in education and international relations. He moved back to Courtenay and worked as a teacher at Georges P. Vanier Secondary School from the mid-1990s until his election as a Member of the Legislative Assembly in 2009. Shortly after moving to Courtenay, he married a woman named Deanne. Together they had two daughters, one born 2004 and the second in 2009.
McRae spent seven years on Courtenay city council. He was first elected in November 2002, and was re-elected in 2005 and 2008. While on council he voted against allowing business to stay open late-night, supported surveillance cameras in public areas, and led an initiative to rename streets after of specific, locally-significant people. He also supported work at establishing a walking/cycling trail across the Comox Valley, from the Town of Comox to Comox Lake. He was appointed to the Comox-Strathcona Regional District board of directors in 2006. As one of Courtenay's two Regional Directors, he supported the Vancouver Island Health Authority's controversial attempt to build a new regional hospital near Dove Creek, but he later supported a compromised position that would see a new hospital built in the Comox Valley with the Campbell River hospital remaining open for emergency and acute care. McRae disliked how the Comox-Strathcona Regional District operated, calling the urban-rural voting blocks "dysfunctional". He favoured an amalgamation of Courtenay, Cumberland, Comox, and several electoral areas to form a new regional government. McRae welcomed the province's move to split the Regional District (creating the Comox Valley Regional District and the Strathcona Regional District), and even supported a proposal to include the Comox Indian Band on the Comox Valley Regional District's Board of Directors.
...
Wikipedia