Don Cousens
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W. Donald Cousens (20 July 1938 – 23 February 2017) was a
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
in
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...
from 1981 to 1994, and briefly served as a
cabinet minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ' prime minister', ' p ...
in the government of
Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book artist, comic book writer, and screenwriter known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'', for which he created the character Elektra, and ...
. From 1994 to 2006, Cousens was the
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of
Markham, Ontario Markham () is a city in Regional Municipality of York, York Region, Ontario, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Downtown Toronto. In the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Census, Markham had a population of 338,503, which ranked it the largest in ...
.


Background

Cousens was educated at Queen's University and Knox College at the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
. An ordained
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...
Minister (he served 1966 to 1968 in
Penetanguishene Penetanguishene (, sometimes shortened to Penetang) is a town in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the southeasterly tip of Georgian Bay. Incorporated on February 22, 1882, this bilingual ( French and English) community has a popu ...
,
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
) and interim minister at St. Andrews Presbyterian, Markham. He was also an officer in the
Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
(Commandant in the
Fort Henry Guard The Fort Henry Guard (FHG) is a historical heritage interpretation, interpretation and exhibition drill organization based at Fort Henry, Ontario, Fort Henry, a National Historic Site of Canada, national historic site in Kingston, Ontario, Kingsto ...
), he then served as an executive from 1967 to 1992 (firstly with Honeywell Ltd.) before entering political life, and later became a chair of the York Technology Association. From 1965 to 1967 he was a trustee for
Penetanguishene Penetanguishene (, sometimes shortened to Penetang) is a town in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the southeasterly tip of Georgian Bay. Incorporated on February 22, 1882, this bilingual ( French and English) community has a popu ...
. He was a member of the then York Region Board of Education from 1972 to 1979, eventually serving as chair in 1979. Cousens died in hospital on Thursday February 23, 2017 at aged 78.


Provincial politics

Cousens was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1981 provincial election, defeating Liberal Alf Stong in the riding of York Centre. He served as a backbench supporter of
Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Behind Oliver Mowat, Davis was the List of premiers of Ontario by time in office, second-longes ...
's government for four years. Cousens initially supported
Dennis Timbrell Dennis Roy Timbrell (born November 13, 1946) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) from 1971 to 1987, and was a Cabinet minister in the Progressive Conservative governments of Bill Davis and Frank M ...
to succeed Davis in the Progressive Conservative Party's 1985 leadership convention, but crossed over to Frank Miller on the last ballot. He was named
parliamentary assistant In British politics and some Commonwealth nations, a parliamentary assistant is an unelected partisan staff member employed by a Member of Parliament (MP) to assist them with their parliamentary duties. Parliamentary assistants usually work ...
to the Minister of Citizenship and Culture on February 25, 1985, shortly after Miller was sworn in as
Premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario () is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly; as such, the premier typically sits as a member of Provincia ...
. Cousens was re-elected in the 1985 provincial election, but the Progressive Conservatives were reduced to an unstable
minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in ...
. He was appointed Minister of Correctional Services on May 17, but accomplished little of consequence before the Miller government was defeated in the house in June. Along with other members of the
Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...
caucus, he moved to the opposition benches as Liberal leader
David Peterson David Robert Peterson (born December 28, 1943) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th premier of Ontario from 1985 to 1990. He was the first Liberal officeholder in 42 years, ending the so-called Tory dynasty. Back ...
became Premier. The Progressive Conservatives were reduced to only 16 seats in the 1987 provincial election. Cousens defeated Liberal candidate Gail Newall by fewer than 1,000 votes in the new riding of
Markham Markham may refer to: Biology * Markham's storm-petrel (''Oceanodroma markhami''), a seabird species found in Chile and Colombia * Markham's grass mouse (''Abrothrix olivaceus markhami''), a rodent subspecies found on Wellington Island and the ne ...
. In the 1990 provincial elections, Cousens scored a victory over Liberal
Frank Scarpitti Frank Scarpitti (born 1960) is a Canadian politician who has served as the 7th and current mayor of Markham since 2006. Early life Scarpitti was born in Ontario in 1960. He is the son of Italian immigrants, Lucia and Antonio. He is married to ...
, winning by more than 10,000 votes. The Progressive Conservatives as a whole managed only a modest recovery, however, increased their caucus size from sixteen to twenty. He served as his party's critic for Environment, Finance, and Citizenship, Race Relations and Human Rights at various times in next parliament. Interviewed by the CBC in 1988, he spoke against voting rights for people who lived in mental health facilities. He criticized Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP)
John Sola Domagoj Ivan "John" Šola (born April 15, 1944) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1987 to 1995. Originally a Ontario Liberal Party, Liberal, he was forced to leave his ...
in 1991, after Sola made comments about Canadian Serbs that were generally regarded as racist. Sola was later expelled from the Liberal Party. Cousens once brought forward a private member's bill to outlaw smoking in public places. A
Red Tory A Red Tory is an adherent of a Centre-right politics, centre-right or Paternalistic conservatism, paternalistic-conservative political philosophy derived from the Tory tradition. It is most predominant in Canada; however, it is also found in the ...
by inclination, Cousens played little role in the party's drift to the right under
Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. Taking the PC ...
. He resigned his seat in the legislature on September 30, 1994 to campaign for mayor of Markham.


Cabinet positions


Municipal politics

Markham is considered a diverse community with a thriving economy, and grew significantly under Cousens's watch. During that time, the town was debt free and gained many jobs in the software field. Unlike Mike Harris's provincial government, Cousens was a supporter of photo radar to discourage speeding in the
Greater Toronto Area The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the Toronto, City of Toronto and the regional municipality, regional municipalities of Regional Municipality of Durham, Durham, Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton, Regional ...
. There is a Don Cousens Charitable Foundation within Markham. In 2003, he was award a
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal was ...
. On June 1, 2006 Cousens announced that he would not seek re-election as Mayor of Markham due to on-going health problems related to the need for a
kidney transplant Kidney transplant or renal transplant is the organ transplant of a kidney into a patient with end-stage kidney disease (ESRD). Kidney transplant is typically classified as deceased-donor (formerly known as cadaveric) or living-donor transplantat ...
.
Donald Cousens Parkway Donald Cousens Parkway or York Regional Road 48, also referred to historically as the Markham Bypass or Markham Bypass Extension, is a regionally-maintained arterial bypass of Markham in the Canadian province of Ontario. Named for former M ...
in Markham is named after him. There is also a public school in Markham, Donald Cousens Public School, named after him.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cousens, Don 1938 births 2017 deaths Canadian people of Danish descent Mayors of Markham, Ontario Members of the Executive Council of Ontario People from the United Counties of Prescott and Russell Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs University of Toronto alumni 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario 20th-century mayors of places in Ontario 21st-century mayors of places in Ontario