Leslie Gordon "Les" Benjamin (April 29, 1925 – June 16, 2003) was a Canadian politician who served in the House of Commons of Canada. Benjamin was first elected to the House of Commons in

1968 The year was highlighted by Protests of 1968, protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechos ...

as a

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * ...

MP from

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North ...

. In parliament, as the NDP's Transport critic, he often clashed with

Otto Lang :''see also Otto Lang (film producer) and Otto Lang (actor)'' Otto Emil Lang, (born May 14, 1932) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician. Life and career Lang was born in Handel, Saskatchewan. In 1961, he was appointed Dean of Law at th ...

over the Crow Rate that allowed subsidized rail transport for prairie farmers and was an opponent of

deregulation Deregulation is the process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere. It is the repeal of governmental regulation of the economy. It became common in advanced industrial economies in the 1970s and 1980s, as a r ...

. He retired from parliament in 1993. When Ronald Reagan addressed the Parliament of Canada in 1987, Benjamin heckled him by crying "he's mad!"http://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-73-676-3871/politics_economy/presidents/clip7 Benjamin was of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

heritage with his father's family coming to Canada from the Rumney Valley. Prior to entering politics, Benjamin worked variously as a railway station agent,

telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas ...

er and secretary.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Benjamin, Les 1925 births 2003 deaths Canadian people of Welsh descent Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Saskatchewan New Democratic Party MPs People from Medicine Hat Politicians from Regina, Saskatchewan