Robert Douglas Nicholson (born April 29, 1952) 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 who represented the riding of

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York (s ...

in 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 ...

from 2004 to 2019 as a member of the Conservative Party. Under Prime Minister Stephen Harper, he served as Minister of National Defence,

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

Minister of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...

, and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. When the Harper Government ended, he was appointed Justice Critic in the

Official Opposition Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''t ...

shadow cabinet.

Early life

Nicholson was born 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 ...

. 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 Queen's University and a law degree from the

University of Windsor The University of Windsor (UWindsor, U of W, or UWin) is a public university, public research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has approximately 17,500 students. The university was incorporated by ...

. Nicholson practised law before entering politics, and is a member of the

Law Society of Ontario The Law Society of Ontario (LSO; ) is the law society responsible for the self-regulation of lawyers and paralegals in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Founded in 1797 as the Law Society of Upper Canada (LS ...

Political career

First terms in the House of Commons (1984–1993)

Nicholson was first elected to federal parliament in the federal election of 1984 as a Progressive Conservative, defeating New Democrat Richard Harrington and incumbent Liberal Al MacBain. He was re-elected by a narrower margin in the 1988 election, defeating Liberal Gary Pillitteri by fewer than 2,000 votes. During the 33rd Canadian Parliament, he served on the standing committees responsible for justice (vice-chairman), foreign affairs, national defence and transport. Nicholson also served on the special committee on child care. During the 34th Canadian Parliament, he continued to serve on the justice committee and was also named a parliamentary secretary, supporting the Government House Leader (1989-1990) and the

Attorney General of Canada The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as st ...

(1989-1993) in

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney (March 20, 1939 – February 29, 2024) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studi ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

. Following Kim Campbell's appointment as prime minister, Nicholson joined the cabinet as Minister for Science and Minister responsible for Small Business. As with all of his caucus colleagues, save for Jean Charest and Elsie Wayne, he was defeated in the 1993 election, finishing third behind Pillitteri and Mel Grunstein of the Reform Party.

Municipal politics

Nicholson was elected as a trustee for the Niagara Catholic District School Board in 1994. He was elected to the

Niagara Regional Council The Niagara Regional Council is the governing body of the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of ...

later in 1997, and was re-elected in 2000, and 2003. He ran for Chairman of the

Regional Municipality of Niagara The Regional Municipality of Niagara, also colloquially known as the Niagara Region or Region of Niagara, is a regional municipality in southern Ontario, Canada, which occupies most of the Niagara Peninsula. As of 2024, the region had an estimate ...

in late 2003, but lost to

St. Catharines St. Catharines is the most populous city in Canada's Niagara Region, the eighth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2021, St. Catharines has an area of and 136,803 residents. It lies in Southern Ontario, south of Toronto ac ...

Regional Councillor Peter Partington. He attempted to regain his old Commons seat in the 1997 election, but again finished third. He did not seek election to the Commons in the 2000 election.

Return to Opposition in 38th Parliament

The Progressive Conservatives merged with the Canadian Alliance as the

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC; , ), sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a Government of Canada, federal List of political parties in Canada, political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main Right-wing ...

in early 2004, and Nicholson joined the new party. He was narrowly returned to parliament in the 2004 election, defeating Liberal Victor Pietrangelo by more than 1,000 votes. Nicholson served as Shadow Transportation Critic from July 2004 to January 2005. He was appointed Chief Opposition

Whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

on January 28, 2005. During the 38th Canadian Parliament, he was one of only two members of the 99-member Conservative caucus in the Commons who had previously served in the federal cabinet.

Harper government (2005-2015)

Nicholson was re-elected in the 2006 election and appointed to the Harper cabinet as Government House Leader.

Minister of Justice (2007-2013)

Nicholson was appointed as

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada The minister of justice and attorney general of Canada () is a dual-role portfolio in the Cabinet of Canada, Canadian Cabinet. The officeholder in the role of Minister of Justice () serves as the minister of the Crown responsible for the Depar ...

in early 2007. He replaced Vic Toews as Justice Minister during a Cabinet shuffle on January 4, 2007. Peter Van Loan replaced Nicholson as Government House Leader. On March 13, 2010, Nicholson released the terms of reference for the appointment of

Frank Iacobucci Frank Iacobucci (born June 29, 1937) is a former Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada from 1991 until he retires from the bench in 2004. He was the first Italian-Canadian judge on the court. Iacobucci was also the first judge on the ...

as an Independent Adviser. Iacobucci will conduct an independent review of documents related to the transfer of detainees by the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan. This statement comes after Richard Colvin spoke before a parliamentary committee stating that he warned for a full year that detainees Canadian troops handed over to Afghan forces faced torture before the government began to monitor them. “London, The Hague and Canberra ustraliaare deeply concerned about the absence of solid legal protections for detainees, which – in the age of Gitmo and Abu Ghraib – imperils domestic support for the Afghanistan mission,” said the memo of December 4, 2006, written by diplomat Richard Colvin. Amir Attaran also brought forward testimony in stark contrast to then Canadian Ambassador to Afghanistan David Sproule's. Afgan prisoners testified that after capture by Canadians, they were subsequently handed to the custody of the

Afghan National Army The Islamic National Army (, ), also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Army and the Afghan Army, is the army, land force branch of the Afghan Armed Forces. The roots of an army in Afghanistan can be traced back to the early 18th century when th ...

(ANA), claiming they were later abused by the ANA.

Minister of Defence (2013-2015)

In the July 15, 2013 cabinet shuffle, Nicholson switched portfolios with Peter Mackay and became the

Minister of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

Minister of Foreign Affairs (2015)

Because of John Baird's resignation, Harper was forced to reshuffle his Ministry on 9 February 2015. An unexpected beneficiary of the Baird defalcation was Nicholson, who was promoted to become

. Nicholson's time as head of the Canadian Foreign Service was cut short when he was ejected from office on 4 November 2015 as Harper lost the 2015 election.

Back in opposition (2015-2019)

While the Conservatives were relegated to the

after the 2015 election, Nicholson was re-elected and announced his intention to run for the interim leadership of the party. He was defeated by Rona Ambrose, and was subsequently named as the Conservative Justice Critic. Nicholson did not run for re-election in the 2019 federal election.

Election results

Note: Conservative vote is compared to the total of the Canadian Alliance vote and Progressive Conservative vote in 2000 election.

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Rob 1952 births Attorneys general of Canada Ministers of foreign affairs of Canada Canadian lawyers Canadian Roman Catholics Conservative Party of Canada MPs Ministers of national defence of Canada Lawyers in Ontario Living people Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada People from Niagara Falls, Ontario Queen's University at Kingston alumni University of Windsor alumni Members of the 25th Canadian Ministry Members of the 28th Canadian Ministry University of Windsor Faculty of Law alumni 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada 21st-century members of the House of Commons of Canada