John Godfrey
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John Ferguson Godfrey (December 19, 1942 – December 18, 2023) was a Canadian educator, journalist and politician who served as a member of Parliament from 1993 to 2008.


Background

Godfrey was born in
Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
on December 19, 1942. His father, Senator John Morrow Godfrey (June 28, 1912 – March 8, 2001), was a Canadian pilot, lawyer and politician. John Godfrey graduated from
Upper Canada College Upper Canada College (UCC) is an independent day and boarding school for boys in Toronto, Ontario, operating under the International Baccalaureate program. The college is widely described as Canada's most prestigious preparatory school, and ha ...
in 1960. In 1961, he attended the Neuchâtel Junior College in
Neuchâtel Neuchâtel (, ; ; ) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the capital (political), capital of the cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Neuchâtel (canton), Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. In 1965, he received a
Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
degree from Trinity College,
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 ...
and in 1967, he received a
Master of Philosophy A Master of Philosophy (MPhil or PhM; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. The name of the degree is most often abbreviated MPhil (or, at times, as PhM in other countries). MPhil are awarded to postgraduate students after completing at leas ...
from
Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...
and Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) from
St Antony's College, Oxford St Antony's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1950 as the result of the gift of French merchant Sir Antonin Besse of Aden, St Antony's specialises in international relations, economics, politic ...
in 1975. He worked as an economist, historian and journalist. In the mid-1970s Godfrey was a history professor at
Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia, Canada, with three campuses in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, a fourth in Bible Hill, Nova Scotia, Bible Hill, and a second medical school campus ...
in
Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...
. He served as president of the
University of King's College The University of King's College is a public university, public Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia.Roper, Henry. "Aspects of the History of a Loyalist College: King's College, Windsor, and ...
from 1977 to 1987, and founded the university's prestigious Bachelor of Journalism program. From 1987 to 1991 he was editor of the ''
Financial Post The ''Financial Post'' is a financial news website, and business section of the ''National Post'', both publications of the Postmedia Network. It started as an English Canadian business newspaper, which published from 1907 to 1998. In 1998, the ...
''. Godfrey died at his home in Toronto on December 18, 2023, one day before his 81st birthday.


Politics

Godfrey was elected to the
House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...
as the Liberal member of Parliament for the Toronto area riding of Don Valley West in the 1993 election, and was re-elected in each subsequent vote until his retirement from federal politics in 2008. During the
1995 Quebec referendum The 1995 Quebec referendum was the second referendum to ask voters in the predominantly French-speaking Canadian province of Quebec whether Quebec should proclaim sovereignty and become an independent country, with the condition precedent of ...
, Godfrey had an acquaintance perform a psychiatric evaluation of separatist leader
Lucien Bouchard Lucien Bouchard (; born December 22, 1938) is a Canadian lawyer, diplomat and retired politician. A minister for two years in the 24th Canadian Ministry, Mulroney cabinet, Bouchard then founded and led the Bloc Québécois and became Leader ...
. In 1996, he and fellow Liberal MP Peter Milliken introduced the Godfrey–Milliken Bill a parody of the American Helms–Burton Act. The gesture received extensive media coverage including in the United States, where Godfrey was featured on the CBS program ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...
''. From 1996 to 2004, Godfrey served as a parliamentary secretary under
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a retired Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. He served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, leader of t ...
.


Minister of State for Infrastructure and Communities

In 2003, Paul Martin succeeded Chrétien as Liberal leader and prime minister. Following the subsequent 2004 election, Godfrey, among other key Martin allies, was appointed to the Cabinet in the role of
Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...
for Infrastructure and Communities. In this role, he was primarily responsible for overseeing the "New Deal for Cities",
Federation of Canadian Municipalities The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM, ''Fédération canadienne des municipalités'') is an advocacy group representing over 2000 Canadian municipalities. It is an organization with no formal power but significant ability to influence ...
relationship, and other initiatives in Canadian federal-municipal relations. This role was considered a keystone of Martin's industrial strategy.


Liberal leadership

On February 3, 2006, CBC Newsworld's Don Newman announced on air that Godfrey was planning a run for the Liberal Party leadership. Godfrey declared his candidacy on ''Goldhawk Live'' on March 19, shortly after the rules and convention date were set. Media reaction was positive, but competed with coverage of Ashley MacIsaac, who declared his intention to run to the '' Halifax Daily News'' the next day. In the early stages of the campaign he was recurrently cited as exemplar of intellectualism in the race, being one of three former university professors in the running. Name-recognition remained a challenge, but Godfrey received plaudits in the Canadian blogosphere for his performance in the first all-candidates meeting at the Liberal Party of Alberta convention on April 8. On April 12, 2006, Godfrey announced his withdrawal from the race, due to concerns about his health. On October 20, 2006, Godfrey announced his support for
Bob Rae Robert Keith Rae (born August 2, 1948) is a Canadian diplomat and former politician who is the current Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations since 2020. He previously served as the 21st premier of Ontario from 1990 to 1995, leader of the ...
for the federal Liberal leadership. He made the announcement at the National Press Club, on the occasion of a speech by Rae on the environment.


Leaving politics

Godfrey announced in November 2007 his intention to resign his parliamentary seat on July 1, 2008 and would leave earlier if an election were called before that date. He later delayed his resignation date until August 1. The Conservative Party alleged that the Liberals chose to delay the by-election for financial reasons though Godfrey's office stated that the delay was due to a private members bill Godfrey had worked on not being given
Royal Assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...
until June 26. On June 17, in a point of order following Question Period, Godfrey gave his resignation speech to the House of Commons.


Headmaster of the Toronto French School

John Godfrey left politics to become Headmaster of the Toronto French School, an independent school in the Lawrence Park area with two campuses in Toronto. He held the position from 2008 until resigning in June 2014. The Government of Ontario appointed John Godfrey Special Advisor for Climate Change and Chair of the Government's Climate Action Group in March 2015, positions he held until June 2018.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Godfrey, John 1942 births 2023 deaths Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Alumni of St Antony's College, Oxford 21st-century Canadian economists 20th-century Canadian historians Canadian male non-fiction writers Canadian newspaper editors Canadian male journalists Canadian university and college chief executives Journalists from Toronto Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the 27th Canadian Ministry Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the Order of Canada Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Politicians from Toronto Trinity College (Canada) alumni Academic staff of University of King's College University of Toronto alumni Upper Canada College alumni Writers from Toronto 20th-century Canadian journalists 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada Academic staff of Dalhousie University 21st-century members of the House of Commons of Canada