Randy Collins is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

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 ...

and a former

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Editors of ''Encyclopædia Britann ...

(NDP) member of the

Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly () is the Unicameralism, unicameral deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It meets in the Confederation Bu ...

. He represented the Labrador West riding until his resignation in early 2007 due to corruption charges.

Background

Randy Collins was born in

Gambo, Newfoundland and Labrador Gambo is a town and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Located in the northeastern portion of the island of Newfoundland on Freshwater Bay, it is in Division No. 7. Gambo is the closest town to Mint Brook, t ...

and graduated from Smallwood Academy. He moved to

Labrador City Labrador City is a town in western Labrador (part of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador), near the Quebec border. With a population of 7,412 as of 2021, it is the second-largest population cent ...

in 1972. He was employed by the

Iron Ore Company of Canada Iron Ore Company of Canada (often abbreviated to IOC) () is a Canadian-based producer of iron ore. The company was founded in 1949 from a partnership of Canadian and American firms, the largest being the M.A. Hanna Company. It is now owned by a c ...

for 25 years and has an interprovincial

millwright A millwright is a craftsman or skilled tradesman who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites. The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mechanic'') ...

certificate. He was elected to the executive of the

United Steelworkers of America The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, commonly known as the United Steelworkers (USW), is a general trade union with members across North America. Headqua ...

(USWA) Local 5795 from 1978 to 1991, and was president from 1985 to 1991. In 1991, Collins was elected as staff representative to the USWA. He was first elected to the legislature in the 1999 election, and was re-elected in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. He had previously been the federal NDP candidate in

Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...

in the 1997 federal election, where he finished a relatively close second.

Controversy

In September 2009, he pleaded guilty to charges of fraud over $5,000 and fraud on the government. At his sentencing hearing in December 2009, he said "What I did was wrong." He was sentenced to 21 months in prison.

References

Living people Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party MHAs United Steelworkers people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Labrador City People from Gambo, Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian politicians convicted of fraud 20th-century members of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly 21st-century members of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly {{NewfoundlandandLabrador-politician-stub