Ellen Fairclough
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The Right Honourable Ellen Louks Fairclough PC, CC, OOnt |
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| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Hamilton West |
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In office 1950–1963 |
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| Preceded by | Colin Gibson |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Macaluso |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
January 28, 1905 Hamilton, Ontario |
| Died | November 13, 2004 (aged 99) Hamilton, Ontario |
| Political party | Progressive Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | Gordon Fairclough (1905-1997) |
| Children | Howard Fairclough (1931-1986) |
| Occupation | accountant |
| Cabinet | Postmaster General, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Secretary of State for Canada |
| Religion | Anglican |
Ellen Louks Fairclough, PC CC OOnt (January 28, 1905 – November 13, 2004) was a Canadian politician. A member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1950 to 1963, she was the first woman ever to serve in the Canadian Cabinet.
Born Ellen Louks Cook in Hamilton, Ontario to Norman Ellsworth Cook and Nellie Bell (Loucks) Cook, Fairclough was a chartered accountant by training, and ran an accounting firm prior to entering politics. She was a member of Hamilton, Ontario City Council from 1945 to 1950.
Fairclough first ran for federal office as a Progressive Conservative in the 1949 federal election, in which she was defeated by incumbent Liberal MP Colin Gibson in Hamilton West. When Gibson was appointed to the Supreme Court of Ontario the following year, however, Fairclough ran in and won the resulting by-election.
As a Member of Parliament, she advocated women's rights including equal pay for equal work.
When the PC Party took power as a result of the 1957 federal election, Prime Minister John Diefenbaker appointed her to the position of Secretary of State for Canada. In 1958, she became Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, and from 1962 until her defeat in 1963, she was Postmaster General. As Immigration Minister in 1962, Fairclough introduced new regulations that mostly eliminated racial discrimination in immigration policy. She also introduced a more liberal policy on refugees, and increased the number of immigrants allowed into Canada.
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