Ted Menzies (born February 18, 1952) is a former

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. He represented the electoral district of Macleod 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 ...

and served as Minister of State for Finance before being replaced by Kevin Sorenson. He resigned from Parliament on November 6, 2013, in order to accept a position as president and CEO of CropLife Canada, a lobby group representing the

agricultural biotechnology Agricultural biotechnology, also known as agritech, is an area of agricultural science involving the use of scientific tools and techniques, including genetic engineering, molecular markers, molecular diagnostics, vaccines, and tissue culture, to ...

industry.

In opposition

A farmer born in Claresholm, Alberta, Menzies was elected into the

as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

in the 2004 federal election in the riding of Macleod. He was elected by over 27,000 votes more than the Liberal candidate, Chris Shade. During the 38th Canadian Parliament he served as the opposition critic for International Cooperation and the

Canadian International Development Agency The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA; in French: ''Agence canadienne de développement international''; ''ACDI'') was a federal Canadian organization that administered foreign aid programs in developing countries. The agency was me ...

(CIDA) and the opposition critic for International Trade and Internal Trade.

Portfolio in Conservative government

After the Conservative victory in the 2006 federal election, he was appointed as parliamentary secretary to Josée Verner, who was serving as the Minister for International Cooperation, Minister responsible for Official Languages, and Minister responsible for La Francophonie. On February 10, 2006, Menzies received some news coverage when it was revealed that despite being the parliamentary secretary responsible for La Francophonie, he did not speak French. His appointment was criticized by

New Democrat New Democrats may refer to: * New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada * New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party ** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United States H ...

Yvon Godin (an

Acadia Acadia (; ) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the The Maritimes, Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. The population of Acadia included the various ...

n). In his defence, Menzies replied that "we have two official languages in this country. Not just French. Not just English. We have two official languages." He argued that the best means of representing both languages was with a Francophone minister with an Anglophone parliamentary secretary. On October 10, 2007, Menzies was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to Jim Flaherty,

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

. On January 4, 2011, Menzies was promoted to

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 Finance and was sworn into the

Queen's Privy Council for Canada The King's Privy Council for Canada (), sometimes called His Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council (PC), is the full group of personal advisors to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs. Practically, ...

. On July 2, 2013 he announced he would not run for re-election in the next federal election and left Cabinet. On November 6, 2013 he resigned, effective immediately, in order to accept a position in the private sector.

Opposition to McTeague RESP bill

Supported by the three opposition parties, Dan McTeague's private member bill passed through the Commons on March 5, 2008. The bill would give parents substantial tax breaks for saving education money. Under McTeague's bill, taxpayers who deposit $5,000 into a registered education savings plan (RESP) for their children's post-secondary education will earn a $5,000 tax deduction, similar to the deduction allowed for contributions to an RRSP. Under the

savings plan, introduced in Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's February 26, 2008 budget, there is no deduction for annual contributions. Menzies lashed out at the proposal and suggested McTeague explain how the government will pay for it. "I'm going to suggest to the senators that this is an uncosted $900-million proposal that the Liberals have put forward," Menzies said. The paradox of the Tories approaching the Senate wasn't lost on McTeague, who said he was "disappointed but not surprised" that the Conservatives were thinking of stalling the bill in the upper house. However other MP's such as Garth Turner strongly support McTeague's bill and call it “the greatest financial tool in a generation.”

References

External links

Ted Menzies
official site * {{DEFAULTSORT:Menzies, Ted 1952 births Conservative Party of Canada MPs Farmers from Alberta Living people Members of the 28th Canadian Ministry Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Alberta Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada People from the Municipal District of Willow Creek No. 26 21st-century members of the House of Commons of Canada