Jeff Watson (politician)
| Jeffrey D. Watson | |
|---|---|
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| Member of Parliament for Essex |
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In office 2004–2015 |
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| Preceded by | Susan Whelan |
| Succeeded by | Tracey Ramsey |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
March 25, 1971 Windsor, Ontario |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | Sarah Anne Watson (Thomson) |
| Residence | Essex, Ontario |
| Profession | political analyst, marketing manager, autoworker |
| Religion | Christian |
Jeffrey D. Watson (born March 25, 1971 in Windsor, Ontario) is a Canadian politician. He is the former Member of Parliament for the Essex electoral district in Ontario.
Watson was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Essex in June 2004 and re-elected in January 2006 and October 2008 as a member of the Conservative Government led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Watson was the first centre-right MP elected in the riding of Essex in 46 years. He also had the distinction of being designated by the Library of Parliament as the first autoworker elected to the Parliament of Canada.
Watson was defeated in 2015 by the New Democratic Party, despite a Liberal Party majority elsewhere in the country, with the New Democrats picking up few new seats.
Watson served on the Standing Committee on the Environment & Sustainable Development and on the Standing Committee on Transportation, Infrastructure & Communities. He was also Chair of the Government Auto Caucus, a member of the All-Party border Caucus, and the Canada-UK, Canada-Italy Inter-Parliamentary Groups. As well he served as a member of the Executive and Vice-Chair respectively as a member of the Canada-Israel and Canada-US Inter-Parliamentary Groups.
In February 2007, Watson came under criticism for comments made at a hearing of the Special Legislative Committee on Canada's Clean Air Act that linked greenhouse gas reductions to a demise in the Canadian economy which could result in domestic violence and suicide. While in April 2007, the government tabled a report detailing how C-288 will plunge Canada into a recession costing 275,000 jobs, echoing the MPs concerns.
Following his studies in history and political science at the University of Windsor, Watson worked as an executive assistant and marketing director before joining the line at the Trim Division at Daimler Chrysler’s Windsor Assembly Plant, where he was employed for seven years.
In January 2007, the Windsor Star reported that Watson and his wife Sarah were involved in the filing of criminal charges against a campaign worker from Watson's 2004 campaign who became campaign manager for Windsor-Tecumseh Conservative Party candidate Rick Fuschi after a falling out with Watson. Testimony revealed that the Watsons invited crown witnesses to their home to review "time lines" and testimonies three days before the trial took place. The campaign worker charged was ultimately acquitted.
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