Robert Blaine Simpson (born October 12, 1943) is a former

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 ...

New Brunswick, Canada New Brunswick is a province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to the west. It is part of Eastern Cana ...

Education

Robert Simpson was born in

Chatham, New Brunswick Chatham () is an urban neighbourhood in the city of Miramichi, New Brunswick, Miramichi, New Brunswick, Canada. Prior to municipal amalgamation in 1995, Chatham was an incorporated town in Northumberland County, New Brunswick, Northumberland Co ...

, on October 12, 1943. He graduated from Chatham High School in 1962 and went on to obtain a BA,

BEd A bed is a piece of furniture that is used as a place to sleep, rest, and relax. Most modern beds consist of a soft, cushioned mattress on a bed frame. The mattress rests either on a solid base, often wood slats, or a sprung base. Many beds ...

, and

MEd MED or med may refer to: Healthcare * Medical extrication device, a device for extricating an injured patient from an accident site, such as the Kendrick extrication device * Medication, often used in the plural "meds" * Medicine (or medical) * ...

from the

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English language, English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universiti ...

Personal life

He is married to Rowena Simpson, a former mayor of

Nackawic Nackawic is a former town in New Brunswick, Canada. It held town status prior to 2023 and is now part of the rural community of Nackawic-Millville. It is approximately 65 km west of the city of Fredericton on the east bank of the Saint John ...

Career

He was a teacher, vice principal, and principal in the school systems of

and Canterbury, NB. He served as mayor of

from 1974 to 1983. During this time, the village, formed only in 1968, was formally incorporated as a town (1976). This rapid advancement in municipal status was a feat not accomplished by any municipality in New Brunswick before or since. He was the founding president of Western New Brunswick

Crimestoppers Crime Stoppers or Crimestoppers is a community program that assists people in providing anonymous information about criminal activity. Often managed by non-profit groups or the police, it operates separately from the emergency telephone number s ...

Association and served as the vice president of the Towns of New Brunswick Association. He was also a founding member of the Capital Region Development Corporation. In 1985, he contested the Liberal nomination for the provincial riding of

York North York North was a federal riding in Ontario, Canada, that was in the House of Commons of Canada from Confederation in 1867 until 2004. The federal riding was eliminated in 2003 when it was redistributed between two new ridings of Newmarket� ...

. Six candidates vied for the nomination, and the nomination convention held in

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River, ...

attracted 2,400 attendees - the largest individual riding nomination meeting in the history of elected politics in New Brunswick. He was elected as the Liberal member for York North in the 1987 electoral sweep by the Liberal Party, winning the seat for the Liberals with a plurality of over 3,500 votes in a traditionally Tory seat. All 58 seats in New Brunswick were captured by

Frank McKenna Francis Joseph McKenna (born January 19, 1948) is a Canadian businessman and former politician and diplomat. He is currently Chair of Brookfield Corporation and Deputy Chairman of the Toronto-Dominion Bank. He served as Canadian Ambassador ...

's Liberals in that historic election. Simpson became the first

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

elected in the riding of York North since 1953. He distinguished himself in the Legislative Assembly, serving as the Labour advocate and as the co-chair of the Select Committee on the

Meech Lake Accord The Meech Lake Accord () was a series of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and all 10 Canadian provincial Premier (Canada), premiers. It was intended to ...

. New Brunswick's stand on the Meech Lake Accord was one of the pivotal moments in the national debate on the Accord, which eventually met its demise following the failure of the Manitoba legislature to ratify it. He also served on the Law Amendments Committee and the Crown Corporations Committee, as well as serving as the Chair of the Economic Policy Development Committee. He was defeated in 1991 by

Greg Hargrove Gregory James Hargrove (born March 4, 1959) is a former politician in New Brunswick, Canada. He led the New Brunswick Confederation of Regions Party from 1995-1999. Born in Fredericton, New Brunswick in 1959, he was elected to the Legislative ...

, the candidate representing the anti-bilingualism Confederation of Regions Party (CoR), which opposed official bilingualism in New Brunswick. The Confederation of Regions Party won 8 seats in the 1991 election, primarily in the Fredericton area, and formed the Official Opposition. Simpson went on to serve as chair of the board of the Region 3 Health Corporation (later, River Valley Health) in New Brunswick. From 2001 to 2008, he was the executive director of the New Brunswick Healthcare Association, a federation of the province's eight regional health authorities. From 2008 to 2010, he served as the executive director of the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation, helping to establish a firm footing for funded health research in New Brunswick. In May, 2016, he was elected as a councillor in Nackawic, NB, winning re-election in 2020. In 2022, he was elected as one of two Ward 3 councillors in the newly formed municipality of

Nackawic-Millville Nackawic-Millville is a rural community in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. It was formed through the 2023 New Brunswick local governance reforms. History Nackawic-Millville was incorporated on January 1, 2023 via the amalgamation of ...

Rural Community, a new municipal entity consisting of the former Town of Nackawic, the former Village of Millville, and parts of several surrounding rural communities including Southampton, Dumfries, Queensbury, Temperance Vale, Springfield, Howland Ridge, Hawkins' Corner, and Maple Ridge.

Awards

He was a recipient of the

Canada 125 medal The 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal () is a commemorative medal struck by the Royal Canadian Mint to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Confederation of Canada and was awarded to Canadians who were deemed to have made ...

in 1992 and the

Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal may refer to: * Queen Victoria Golden Jubilee Medal (1887) * Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal creat ...

in 2002.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Simpson, Robert B. 1943 births Living people Canadian schoolteachers 20th-century mayors of places in New Brunswick New Brunswick Liberal Association MLAs People from Miramichi, New Brunswick University of New Brunswick alumni 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick