Long-time politician and current federal Liberal Party leader Bob Rae is inching closer to scaling back from the hot-house jousting of parliamentary politics to return to the place where he started.
Mr. Rae has been cleared by Canada’s federal conflict-of-interest commissioner to take a job as a chief negotiator for First Nations in Ontario on sustainable development issues.
It’s a job Mr. Rae–while remaining a federal member of Parliament–will likely take up after he steps down as interim Liberal leader next month following the Liberals’ leadership campaign and convention.
Before being elected to Parliament, Mr. Rae, a lawyer, worked as a mediator and an arbitrator for a number of years.
Mr. Rae noted that he would be representing First Nations in negotiations with the Government of Ontario so there is no conflict of interest issue as he remains a federal MP.
There has been no formal offer as yet to take up the new position, but Mr. Rae says he has met with First Nations chiefs on the matter.
It appears First Nations chiefs are eager to have him. Several of their leaders from northern Ontario told the Ontario government in a letter earlier this month that they wanted Mr. Rae to represent their interests. They stressed his experience as a former Ontario premier and as an advocate for aboriginal rights.
“He’s been around,” said Aroland First Nation Chief Sonny Gagnon.
Mr. Rae, who turns 65 in August, was a New Democratic Party Member of Parliament from 1978 to 1982.
He then moved to provincial politics, serving as leader of the Ontario NDP from 1982 to 1996. After leading his party to victory in the 1990 provincial election he served as the 21st Premier of Ontario from October 1, 1990 to June, 1995, and was the first person to have led a provincial NDP government east of Manitoba.
While in office, he brought forward a number of initiatives that were unpopular with many traditional NDP supporters, such as the Social Contract. Mr. Rae’s subsequent disagreement with the leftward direction of the NDP led him to resign his membership and join the Liberals.
In 2006, he was a candidate for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada, finishing in third place on the third ballot. He returned to the House of Commons in March, 2008 as a after winning a by-election. (th)
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