{{infobox settlement |official name

Yellowknife |native_name Somba K'e |nickname The Knife, YK |settlement_type City |motto Multum In Parvo (Many things in a small place) |image_skyline Yellowknife.jpg |imagesize 250px |image_caption Skyline of Downtown Yellowknife |image_flag Flag of Yellowknife, NWT.svg |image_shield City of Yellowknife CoA.svg |pushpin_map Canada | subdivision_type Country | subdivision_name | subdivision_type1 Territory | subdivision_name1 |subdivision_type2 Region |subdivision_name2 North Slave Region | subdivision_type3 Constituencies | subdivision_name3 | subdivision_type4 Census division | subdivision_name4 Fort Smith Region | government_type Yellowknife City Council |leader_title Mayor |leader_name Gordon Van Tighem | leader_title1 City Administrator | leader_name1 Max Hall |leader_title2 MPs |leader_name2 Dennis Bevington |leader_title3 MLAs |leader_name3 |established_title Established |established_date 1936/1937 |established_title2 Incorporation (city) |established_date2 1 January 1970 |area_total_km2 136 |area_land_km2 105.22 |area_water_km2 30.78 |area_urban_km2 12.97 |population_as_of 2006 |population_footnotes |population 20,000 |population_density_km2 177.7 |population_urban 18,863 |population_density_urban_km2 2340.82 |timezone Mountain (MST) |utc_offset -7 |timezone_DST MDT |utc_offset_DST -6 |latd 62 |latm 26 |lats 32 |latNS N |longd114 |longm 23 |longs 51 |longEW W | coordinates_type type:city_scale:50000_region:CA-NT | coordinates_display inline,title |elevation_m 206 |elevation_ft 675 |postal_code_type Canadian Postal code |postal_code X1A |area_code 867 |blank_name Telephone Exchanges |blank_info 444 445 446 669 765 766 767 873 920 999 |blank2_name Prices |blank3_name - Living cost |blank3_info 117.5 |blank4_name GNBC Code |blank4_info LBAMG |blank5_name NTS Map |blank6_info 085J08 |website www.yellowknife.ca | footnotes Sources:Community Governance Data List2006 Canada CensusPrince of Wales Northern Heritage CentreYellowknife profile at the Legislative AssemblyCanada Flight Supplement2005 figure based on Edmonton 100 }}

Yellowknife () (2006 population: 18,700) is the capital and largest city of the Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada. It is located on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, approximately south of the Arctic Circle, on the west side of Yellowknife Bay near the outlet of the Yellowknife River. Yellowknife and its surrounding water bodies were named after the local Yellowknives Dene First Nation, who made tools from regional copper deposits. The current population is ethnically mixed. Of the eleven official languages of the Northwest Territories, five are spoken in significant numbers in Yellowknife: Dene Suline, Dogrib, South and North Slavey, English, and French. In the Dogrib language, the city is known as ''Somba K'e'' ("where the money is").

Yellowknife was first settled in 1935, after gold had been found in the area; Yellowknife soon became the centre of economic activity in the NWT, and became the capital of the Northwest Territories in 1967. As gold production began to wane, Yellowknife shifted from being a mining town to being a centre of government services in the 1980s. However, with the discovery of diamonds north of Yellowknife in 1991, this shift has begun to reverse.

History

Traditionally, First Nations people had occupied this region; by the 1930s they had a settlement on a point of land on the east side of Yellowknife Bay, Dettah. The current municipal area of Yellowknife was occupied by prospectors who ventured into the region in the mid-1930s.

A Klondike-bound prospector, B.A. Blakeney, made the first discovery of gold in the Yellowknife Bay area in the late 19th century. The discovery was viewed as unimportant in those days because of the Klondike Gold Rush and because Great Slave Lake was too far away to attract attention.

In the late 1920s, aircraft were first used to explore Canada's Arctic regions. Samples of uranium and silver were uncovered at Great Bear Lake in the early 1930s, and prospectors began fanning out to find additional metals. In 1933 two prospectors, Herb Dixon and Johnny Baker, canoed down the Yellowknife River from Great Bear Lake to survey for possible mineral deposits. They found gold samples at Quyta Lake, about up the Yellowknife River, and some additional samples at Homer Lake.

The following year, Johnny Baker returned as part of a larger crew to develop the previous gold finds and search for more. Gold was found on the east side of Yellowknife Bay in 1934 and the short-lived Burwash Mine was developed. When government geologists uncovered gold in more favourable geology on the west side of Yellowknife Bay in the fall of 1935, a small staking rush occurred. Con Mine was the most impressive gold deposit and its development created the excitement that led to the first settlement of Yellowknife in 1936–1937; the mine entered production on September 5, 1938. The population of Yellowknife quickly grew to 1,000 by 1940, and by 1942, five gold mines were in production in the Yellowknife region. However, by 1944, gold production had ground to a halt as men were needed for the war effort. An exploration program at the Giant Mine property on the north end of town had suggested a sizable gold deposit in 1944. This new find resulted in a massive post-war staking rush to Yellowknife. It also resulted in new discoveries at the Con Mine, greatly extending the life of the mine. The Yellowknife townsite expanded from the Old Town waterfront, and the new townsite was established during 1945–1946. The Discovery Mine, with its own townsite, operated to the north-northeast of Yellowknife from 1950 to 1969.

Between 1939 and 1953, Yellowknife was controlled by the Northern Affairs department (now Indian and Northern Affairs Canada) of the Government of Canada. A small council, partially elected and partially appointed, made decisions. By 1953, Yellowknife had grown so much that it was made a municipality, with its own council and town hall. The first mayor of Yellowknife was John "Jock" McNiven. In September 1967, Yellowknife officially became the capital of the Northwest Territories. This important new status sparked what has been coined as the third boom in Yellowknife. New sub-divisions were established to house an influx of government workers.

In 1978 the Soviet nuclear-powered satellite Kosmos 954 crashed to Earth near Yellowknife. There were no known casualties, although a small quantity of radioactive nuclear fuel was released into the environment, and Operation Morning Light—an attempt to retrieve it—was only partially successful. A new mining rush and fourth building boom for Yellowknife began with the discovery of diamonds north of the city in 1991. The last of the gold mines in Yellowknife closed in 2004. Today, Yellowknife is primarily a government town and a service centre for the diamond mines. On April 1, 1999, its purview as capital of the NWT was reduced when the territory of Nunavut was split from the NWT. As a result, jurisdiction for that region of Canada was transferred to the new capital city of Iqaluit. Consequently, Yellowknife lost its standing as the Canadian capital city with the smallest population.

Geography and climate

Yellowknife has a subarctic climate and averages less than of precipitation annually, as the city lies in the rain shadow of mountain ranges to the west. Thanks to its location on Great Slave Lake, Yellowknife has a frost-free growing season that averages slightly over 100 days. Most of the limited precipitation falls between June and October, with April being the driest month of the year and August being the wettest. Snow that falls in winter accumulates on the ground until the spring thaw.

Yellowknife is located on the Canadian Shield, which was scoured down to rock during the last ice age. The surrounding landscape is very rocky and slightly rolling, with many small lakes in addition to the larger Great Slave Lake. Trees such as pine and birch are abundant in the area, as are smaller bushes, but there are also many areas of relatively bare rock with lichen. Yellowknife's high latitude causes a large variation between day and night. Daylight Hours range from five hours of daylight in December to twenty hours in June. Twilight lasts all night from late May to early July.

Law and government

Yellowknife has a municipal government system and is governed by the Yellowknife City Council, which consists of an elected Mayor and eight Councillors. The Government of the Northwest Territories delegates powers to the municipality through legislative acts and regulations. Council meetings are held in the Council Chambers at City Hall on the second and fourth Monday of each month, and are open to the public. Municipal elections are held every three years. The current mayor of Yellowknife is Gordon Van Tighem.

Yellowknife is represented in the territorial government by seven of the 19 Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories (MLAs). These MLAs are elected every four years and sit in the Northwest Territories Legislative Building, located in Yellowknife. The MLAs elect the Speaker of the House as well as six Cabinet Ministers and the Premier, which forms the Cabinet. In addition, a Commissioner is appointed by the Federal Government to fulfill a similar role to that of the Lieutenant Governor. The Northwest Territories is one of only two federal, provincial or territorial jurisdictions in Canada that operates under a consensus system of government.

The Northwest Territories is in the federal electoral riding of the Western Arctic and has one Member of Parliament and one Senator, currently Dennis Bevington and Nick Sibbeston, respectively. Yellowknife is home to seven of the 19 electoral districts in the Northwest Territories, the Frame Lake, Great Slave, Kam Lake, Range Lake, Weledeh, Yellowknife Centre and Yellowknife South ridings.

Economy

As the largest city in the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife is the hub for mining, industry, transportation, communications, education, health, tourism, commerce, and government activity in the territory. Historically, Yellowknife's economic growth came from gold mining, and later government; however, because of falling gold prices and increased operating costs, the final gold mine closed in 2004, marking a turning point for Yellowknife's economy.

After a downturn in the 1990s during the closure of the gold mines and the downsizing of the government workforce in 1999, Yellowknife's economy has recovered, largely because of the diamond boom; the Ekati Diamond Mine, owned and operated by BHP Billiton, opened in 1998. A second mine, Diavik Diamond Mine, began production in 2003. Production from the two operating mines in 2004 was , valued at over C$2.1 billion. This ranked Canada third in world diamond production by value, and sixth by weight. A third mine, De Beers' Snap Lake Diamond Mine, received final approval and funding in 2005 and went into production in 2007. De Beers also applied in 2005 for a permit to open the Gahcho Kue Diamond Mine Project on the property formerly known as Kennady Lake. Upon receipt of approval, construction is expected to start in 2010 and the mine will reach full production by 2012. As well, growth and expansion in natural gas development and exploration sectors has contributed to this growth. Economic growth in the Northwest Territories was 10.6% in 2003.

The major employers in Yellowknife include: the Territorial Government, the Federal Government, Diavik Diamond Mines Incorporated (a subsidiary of Rio Tinto Group)/Harry Winston Diamond Corporation, BHP Billiton, First Air, NorthwesTel, RTL Robinson Trucking, and the City of Yellowknife. Government employment accounts for 7,644 jobs, a large percentage of those in Yellowknife.

During winter, the Tibbitt to Contwoyto Winter Road is opened for semi-trailer truck traffic to take supplies from Yellowknife north to various mines located in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. This ice road is usually open from the end of January through late March or early April, and Yellowknife becomes the dispatch point for the large number of truck drivers that come north to drive on the ice roads. During the 2007 ice road season, several drivers were featured on the History Channel TV series ''Ice Road Truckers''.

Tourism is the largest renewable industry in the NWT and Yellowknife is the main entry point for visitors. Many of these tourists are Japanese, and come to experience the Northern climate and traditional lifestyle, as well as to see the Northern Lights. In 2004-05, visitors to the territory spent C$100.5 million.

The City of Yellowknife raises 50% of its operating revenue through property taxation. Yellowknife School Districts also raise a portion of their operating revenue through property taxation. Property taxes in Yellowknife are calculated through property assessment and the municipal and education mill rates. Mill rates in 2005 were 13.84 (residential) and 19.87 (commercial).

Canadian North, a regional airline, is headquartered in Yellowknife.

Regional mines

Yellowknife was originally established as a supply centre for numerous gold mines operating in the region in the late 1930s and early 1940s. The following is a list of the major mines, all of which are now closed. There were also tungsten, tantalum and uranium mines in the vicinity. Most mines in the Yellowknife area are within the Kam Group, a part of the Yellowknife greenstone belt.

style="width:15em"	Mine	Years of Operation	Minerals Mined
Con Mine (includes Rycon)	1938–2003	gold
style="text-align:left"	Giant Mine	1948–2004	gold
style="text-align:left"	Ptarmigan and Tom Mine	1941–1942, 1985–1997	gold
style="text-align:left"	Negus Mine	1939–1952	gold
style="text-align:left"	Burwash Mine	1935	gold
style="text-align:left"	Thompson-Lundmark Mine	1941–1943, 1947–1949	gold
style="text-align:left"	Discovery Mine	1950–1969	gold
style="text-align:left"	Camlaren Mine	1962–1963, 1980–1981	gold
style="text-align:left"	Beaulieu Mine	1947–1948	gold
style="text-align:left"	Outpost Island Mine	1941–1942, 1951–1952	gold, copper, tungsten
style="text-align:left"	Ruth Mine	1942, 1959	gold
style="text-align:left"	Rayrock Mine	1957–1959	uranium
References:

Infrastructure

Emergency services

Policing in Yellowknife is provided by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; Yellowknife is the headquarters for G Division, and houses more than 30 officers. Municipal enforcement services are provided by bylaw enforcement officers, who are employed by the city. The Yellowknife Fire Department handles the city's fire, ambulance, rescue, and hazardous materials responses. A point of debate in recent years has been the implementation of 911 services in Yellowknife (currently one must dial one of two local numbers) through a partnership with five other Northwest Territories communities; the cost of installation is high (currently estimated at around $1 million a year), and there have been a number of incidents where emergency services have been either misdirected, or improperly dispatched. Health services are provided through the local Stanton Territorial Hospital.

Utilities and services

Electricity is provided to Yellowknife by Northland Utilities, serving 6,350 residential and 800 commercial customers. Yellowknife operates almost entirely on hydroelectricity from the Snare-Bluefish systems, provided by the Northwest Territories Power Corporation (NTPC). NTPC's local production capacity is 67.9 megawatts, 30.89MW from 10 generators at the Jackfish Diesel Plant, 28.8MW from Snare Lake, and 7.5MW from Miramar Bluefish. The City of Yellowknife provides pressurized potable water throughout the majority of the city, and has a network of gravity-fed sewage lines; trucked water and sewage is provided in areas not serviced by piped infrastructure. Sewage, with the aid of lift stations, is pumped to a series of lakes, referred to as Fiddler's Lake Lagoon, where it is held and allowed to naturally decompose. Water is obtained from the Yellowknife River and is disinfected with chlorine and liquid fluoride is added, but is not otherwise filtered or treated. Residential garbage removal is through a user pay system, in which residents are allowed three garbage bags per week; any additional bags must have a purchased tag. The City of Yellowknife Solid Waste Management Facility is located on the Ingraham Trail (Highway 4) north of the city; salvaging is encouraged, and the dump is infamous for the number of still useful items often found in it.

Transportation

Yellowknife, while isolated geographically, has a modern transportation system. The Yellowknife Airport is the busiest airport in northern Canada, having 70,699 aircraft movements in 2007 and handling over 400,000 passenger and 30,000 tonnes of cargo yearly. It has two asphalt runways, one strip and another of ; while the Yellowknife Airport is classified as an airport of entry by NAV CANADA and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency, it is certified for general aviation aircraft only. However the airport can accommodate 747s and other wide-body aircraft for emergency landings. Air traffic control services, ILS (Category 1), and radar services are provided by NAV CANADA.

Yellowknife Transit is the public transportation agency in the city, and is the only transit system in the Northwest Territories.

Road construction in Yellowknife is often a challenge due to the presence of permafrost, and roads often need to be leveled and resurfaced every 10 to 20 years. All roads in Yellowknife are paved, and road width varies from . During the winter, snow removal is done on a regular schedule by the City of Yellowknife. Speed limits are on most roads, in school zones, and on highways. School zones and Playground zones are in effect 24 hours per day 7 days per week. The highway system in the NWT is maintained by the Government of the Northwest Territories. Highway 4 (Ingraham Trail) and Highway 3 (Yellowknife Highway) both run through Yellowknife and are all-weather roads. One well-known, almost infamous, road in Yellowknife is Ragged Ass Road, after which Tom Cochrane named an album.

Layout

Yellowknife, like most other urban centres, has distinct commercial, industrial, and residential areas. Frame Lake, Niven Lake, Range Lake, and Old Town are the residential sectors, with some of the population living in high-rises in the downtown core. Niven Lake is the only area under active development and expansion. Downtown Yellowknife is home to most of the city's commercial activity, though some retail does exist in Range Lake. Industrial activity is limited to the Kam Lake and airport subdivisions.

Demographics

{| cellpadding="1" style="float:right; margin:0 1em 1em 0; border:1px #bbb solid; border-collapse:collapse; font-size:90%;" |- style="background:#ccc; text-align:center;" !Federal Census !Population |- style="text-align:right;" |1951 |2,724 |- style="text-align:right;" |1961 |3,245 |- style="text-align:right;" |1971 |6,122 |- style="text-align:right;" |1981 |9,483 |- style="text-align:right;" |1991 |15,179 |- style="text-align:right;" |2001 |16,541 |- style="text-align:right;" |2006 |18,700 |- style="text-align:right;"|} As of 2009, there were 19,711 people and 6,630 (2006) households in the city. The population density was 142.86 people/km² (369.85 people/sq. mi). The 2006 Census found that 22.2% of residents identified as aboriginal.

In Yellowknife, the population is slightly disproportionate in terms of age distribution compared to the national average; the average age is 32.2, compared to a Canada-wide average of 39.5. As of the 2009 figures, 13.8% of residents were 9 or under, 6.2% were from 10 to 14 years old, 15.9% were from 15 to 24, 35.2% were from 25 to 44, 22.5% were from 45 to 59, and 6.4% were 60 or older. From 1996 to 2009, the average annual growth rate was 0.6% for the total population; broken down by age, it was -1.3% for < 15 years, and 6.9% for 60 years and older.

In 2006, two-person households with a least one child were the most common size at 36.2%. Overall just over one quarter of all households had only two occupants with no children. The average income in the city was C$57,246, and the average income for a family was C$124,200, with 10.6% of all families earning less than $30,000. Minimum wage is C$9.00 in Yellowknife. Average household expenditures were C$103,762 in 2007. In 2004, the unemployment rate was at 5.0%, an all-time low, and as of 2006 5.7%; the employment rate for males was 81.7%, for females it was 76.7%.

The crime rate in Yellowknife for 2008 was 34.9 (per 1,000 persons) for violent crimes, and 47.2.5 (per 1,000 persons) for property crimes. There were 324 births and 51 deaths in 2006.

Almost 82% of residents spoke English as their mother tongue and almost 4% spoke French. More than 4% spoke an aboriginal language as their first language, including 1.3% who spoke Inuktitut, another 1.3% who spoke Dogrib, and 0.6% who spoke North Slavey, 0.5% who spoke Dene/Chipewyan, and 0.4% who spoke South Slavey. Other languages spoken in Yellowknife include Tagalog at 2.3%, Vietnamese at 1.6%, Chinese at 1.1%, German at 0.7% and Spanish at 0.4%.

Yellowknife is home to just over 500 recent immigrants (arriving between 2001 and 2006) who now make up just under 3% of the population; 36% of these immigrants came from the Philippines, while 18% came from Ghana, 9% from Vietnam, 7% from the United States, and 5% came from China.

Almost 73% of residents identified as Christian while 24% said they had no religious affiliation in 2001. For specific denominations Statistics Canada found that 36% of residents identified as Roman Catholic, 11% as Anglican, 10% for the United Church, about 2% each as Baptist, Lutheran, and Pentecostal, and more than 1% for The Salvation Army. There were also 135 Buddhists, 125 Muslims, and 15 Jews.

Culture

Events

Folk on the Rocks is a local music festival that has been an annual occurrence since 1980, and features a wide variety of musical acts, and is not limited to only Folk. In the past, it has drawn acts such as Buffy Sainte-Marie, the Trailer Park Boys, The Weakerthans, African Guitar Summit, Chirgilchin, The Odds, Stan Rogers, Gord Downie, Mad Bomber Society, Gob, Sam Roberts Band, Sloan, Great Lake Swimmers, and Hawksley Workman. The Midnight Sun Golf Tournament, with games played through the city's well-lit summer nights, is also a significant cultural event. In previous years, there was an annual summer festival known as Raven Mad Daze, a street festival celebrated as part of the summer solstice. The festival was not celebrated in 2007 because an organizer was not found for the event. During the winter, there is the Snowking Winter Festival, featuring a snow castle on Great Slave Lake, and Caribou Carnival, which is held every March on Frame Lake and has ice sculpting competitions, dogsled races, and a fireworks display. In 2008, Yellowknife hosted the Arctic Winter Games. In 2007 The White Stripes played in Yellowknife for their tour of Canada. The entire tour was recorded for a documentary called Under Great White Northern Lights.

Places

Some notable places to visit in Yellowknife include: The Wildcat Cafe, which first opened in 1937. The popular restaurant still operates in its original building during the summer, which was moved to its current location after being saved from demolition in the late 1970s. The Gold Range Bar, (Also known as The Strange Range and listed in the circa 1989 phonebook as such) one of the oldest and most colorful drinking establishments in the Northwest Territories and featured in Mordecai Richler's novel ''Solomon Gursky Was Here'' Downtown contains the Capital Area Park, a short but pleasant stroll by City Hall, the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, the Legislature, and the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre.

The Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre is a museum containing exhibits of the history and culture of Inuit, Inuvialuit, Dene, Métis and non-aboriginal peoples of the NWT. It's found just north of downtown on an attractive location overlooking Frame Lake.

Near the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, the Northwest Territories Legislative Building houses the territory's legislative assembly.

The Northern Arts and Cultural Centre, which is located in Sir John Franklin High School and is the city's largest indoor stage for theatre and musical presentations. Other notable attractions include the Ingraham Trail, local fishing lodges, bush plane tours, the unique architecture of Old Town with the Bush Pilots monument, and any of the numerous lakes surrounding Yellowknife, many of which include beaches.

Media

The ''Yellowknifer'', published by Northern News Services, is the major newspaper serving Yellowknife, published twice weekly on Wednesday and Friday. Northern News Services also publishes ''Northwest Territories News/North'' every Monday, which serves the entire NWT. As well, there is ''L'Aquilon'', a French language newspaper published weekly.

The major radio stations based in Yellowknife are: CFYK 1340, which broadcasts CBC Radio One network programs and locally produced programs; CFYK-FM 95.3, which broadcasts the programming of the CBC Radio 2 network from CBU-FM in Vancouver; CJCD-FM 100.1, which plays largely adult contemporary music; CKLB-FM 101.9, a community radio station; and CIVR-FM 103.5, a French-language community radio station.

Local broadcast television stations include: CFYK-TV channel 8 cable 10, which broadcasts CBC North, the northern feed of CBC Television; CHTY channel 11 cable 9, is the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network; CH4127 channel 13 cable 4, is the French feed of CBC, Télévision de Radio-Canada.

Two magazines are based in Yellowknife: ''Above & Beyond - Canada's Arctic Journal'' and ''Up Here Magazine'', both offering northern-related news and lifestyle articles.

Notable residents

Alex Debogorski, local truck driver and personality on ''Ice Road Truckers''.

Margot Kidder, film and television actress best known for playing Lois Lane in the Superman movies of the 1970s and 1980s.

Kevin Koe, World Champion Curler.

Tobias Mehler, film and television actor best known for his roles on ''Battlestar Galactica'' and ''Stargate SG-1.

Dustin Milligan, film and television actor; lead actor in the first season of the ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' spinoff.

John Sissons, politician and the first judge of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories.

Les Stroud, film maker and survival expert best known as the host of the television program ''Survivorman''.

Max Ward, pioneering bush pilot and founder of Wardair airlines (later sold to Canadian Airlines).

Sister cities

Reno, Nevada, United States Fairbanks, Alaska, United States Yakutsk, Sakha Republic, Russia

See also

History of Northwest Territories capital cities

Yellowknife Water Aerodrome

CFNA HQ Yellowknife

References

Further reading

External links

City of Yellowknife website

Entry about Yellowknife Airport on the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association's ''Places to Fly'' Airport Directory

Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre

Celebrating Yellowknife's 75th Anniversary at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre

* Category:Populated places established in 1936 Category:Mining communities in the Northwest Territories

af:Yellowknife ar:يلونايف zh-min-nan:Yellowknife be:Горад Елаўнайф bg:Йелоунайф ca:Yellowknife cs:Yellowknife da:Yellowknife de:Yellowknife et:Yellowknife es:Yellowknife eo:Yellowknife (NOT) eu:Yellowknife fr:Yellowknife ga:Yellowknife gd:Yellowknife gl:Yellowknife, Canadá ko:옐로나이프 hr:Yellowknife, Sjeverozapadni teritoriji id:Yellowknife, Wilayah Barat Laut os:Йеллоунайф it:Yellowknife he:ילונייף kl:Yellowknife ka:იელოუნაიფი sw:Yellowknife la:Cultellus Flavus lt:Jelounaifas mk:Јелоунајф nl:Yellowknife (stad) ja:イエローナイフ no:Yellowknife nn:Yellowknife pl:Yellowknife pt:Yellowknife ro:Yellowknife ru:Йеллоунайф sah:Йэллоунайф sco:Yellowknife simple:Yellowknife, Northwest Territories sk:Yellowknife sr:Јелоунајф fi:Yellowknife sv:Yellowknife tl:Yellowknife ta:யெலோனைஃப் tr:Yellowknife uk:Єллоунайф ur:یلو نائف war:Yellowknife zh:黃刀鎮

name	Northwest Territories
alternatename	Territoires du Nord-Ouest (French)Nunatsiaq (Inuinnaqtun)ᓄᓇᑦᓯᐊᖅ (Inuktitut)
fullname	the Northwest Territories
entityadjective	Territorial
flag	Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg
coatofarms	Coat_of_arms_of_Northwest_Territories.svg
map	Northwest Territories, Canada.svg
label map	no
motto	No official motto
officiallang	Chipewyan, Cree, English, French, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey, South Slavey, Tłįchǫ
demonym	Northwest Territorian
flower	Mountain avens
tree	Tamarack Larch
bird	Gyrfalcon
capital	Yellowknife
largestcity	Yellowknife
largestmetro	Yellowknife
premier	Floyd Roland
premierparty	Consensus government, no party affiliations
viceroy	George Tuccaro
viceroytype	Commissioner
legislature	Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories
postalabbreviation	NT
postalcodeprefix	X0, X1 (Yellowknife)
arearank	3rd
totalarea km2	1346106
landarea km2	1140835
waterarea km2	205271
percentwater	15.2
populationrank	11th
population	43,529 (est.)
populationyear	2010
densityrank	12th
density km2	0.037
gdp year	2006
gdp total	C$4.103 billion
gdp rank	11th
gdp per capita	C$76,000
gdp per capita rank	1st
admittanceorder	6th
admittancedate	July 15, 1870 (Hudson's Bay Company cedes territory to Canada)
timezone	UTC-7
houseseats	1
senateseats	1
isocode	CA-NT
website	www.gov.nt.ca }}

The Northwest Territories (NWT or NT; French, ''les Territoires du Nord-Ouest'', ''TNO'') is a federal territory of Canada.

Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south. It has a land area of and a population of 41,464 as of the 2006 census, an increase of 11.0% from 2001. In 1967 Yellowknife became the capital as a result of recommendations by the Carrothers Commission.

Geographical features include Great Bear Lake, the largest lake entirely within Canada, Keller Lake and Great Slave Lake, as well as the Mackenzie River and the canyons of the Nahanni National Park Reserve, a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Territorial islands in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago include Banks Island, Borden Island, Prince Patrick Island, and parts of Victoria Island and Melville Island. The highest point is Mount Nirvana near the border with Yukon at an elevation of .

While Nunavut is mostly Arctic tundra, the Northwest Territories has a ''slightly'' warmer climate and is mostly boreal forest. About half of the territory is above the tree line.

History

The present-day territory was created in June 1870, when the Hudson's Bay Company transferred Rupert's Land and North-Western Territory to the government of Canada. This immense region comprised all of non-confederation Canada except British Columbia, the coast of the Great Lakes, the Saint Lawrence River valley and the southern third of Quebec, the Maritimes, Newfoundland, and the Labrador coast. It also excluded the Arctic Islands except the southern half of Baffin Island; these remained under direct British claim until 1880.

After the transfer, the territories were gradually whittled away. The province of Manitoba was created on 15 July 1870, a tiny square around Winnipeg, and then enlarged in 1881 to a rectangular region composing the modern province's south. By the time British Columbia joined Confederation on July 20, 1871, it had already (1866) been granted the portion of North-Western Territory south of 60 degrees north and west of 120 degrees west, an area that had comprised most of the Stickeen Territories. In 1882, Regina in the District of Assiniboia became the territorial capital; after Alberta and Saskatchewan became provinces in 1905, Regina became the provincial capital of Saskatchewan.

In 1876, the District of Keewatin, at the centre of the territory, was separated from it. In 1882 and again in 1896, the remaining portion was divided into the following districts (corresponding to the following modern-day areas):

Alberta (southern Alberta);

Assiniboia (southern Saskatchewan);

Athabasca (northern Alberta and Saskatchewan);

Franklin (the Arctic islands and Boothia and Melville Peninsulas);

Mackenzie (mainland NWT and western Nunavut);

Saskatchewan (central Saskatchewan);

Ungava (modern-day northern Quebec and inland Labrador, as well as an offshore area in Hudson Bay);

Yukon (modern Yukon).

Keewatin was returned to the Northwest Territories in 1905.

In the meantime, the Province of Ontario was enlarged northwestward in 1882. Quebec was also extended northwards in 1898, and the Yukon was made a separate territory in that same year in order to deal with the Klondike Gold Rush, and also to remove the NWT's government from the burden of administering the sudden boom of population, economic activity, and the influx of non-Canadians.

The provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were created in 1905, and Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec acquired the last of their modern territories from the NWT in 1912. This left only the districts of Mackenzie, Franklin (which absorbed the remnants of Ungava in 1920), and Keewatin. In 1925, the boundaries of the NWT were extended all the way to the North Pole on the sector principle, vastly expanding its territory onto the northern ice cap. The reduced Northwest Territories was not represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1907 until 1947, when the electoral district of Yukon—Mackenzie River was created. This riding only included the District of Mackenzie. The rest of the Northwest Territories had no representation in the House of Commons until 1962, when the Northwest Territories electoral district was created in recognition of the Inuit having been given the right to vote in 1953.

In 1912, the Parliament of Canada made the official name of these territories the ''Northwest Territories'', dropping all hyphenated forms of it. Between 1925 and 1999, the Northwest Territories covered a land area of – larger than that of India.

On April 1, 1999, the eastern three-fifths of the Northwest Territories (including all of the District of Keewatin and much of that of Mackenzie and Franklin) became a separate Canadian territory named ''Nunavut''.

There was some discussion of changing the name of the Northwest Territories after the splitting off of Nunavut, possibly to a term from an Aboriginal language. One proposal was "Denendeh" (an Athabaskan language word meaning "our land"). This idea was advocated by the former premier Stephen Kakfwi, among others. One of the most popular proposals for a new name — one to name the territory ''"Bob"'' — began as a prank, but for a while it was at or near the top in the public-opinion polls.

In the end a poll conducted prior to division showed that strong support remained for retaining the name "Northwest Territories". This name arguably became ''more appropriate'' following division than it had been when the territories actually extended far into Canada's north-central and northeastern areas.

In Inuktitut, the Northwest Territories are referred to as ᓄᓇᑦᓯᐊᖅ (''Nunatsiaq''), "beautiful land."

Climate

The Northwest Territories reaches for over so there is a large climate variant from south to north. The southern part of the Territory (most of the mainland portion) has a subarctic climate while the islands and northern coast have a polar climate. Summers in the south are short but warm with daytime highs reaching on average the low range, with overnight lows around . Winters are long and cold, with daytime highs around , and lows around .

Summers in the north are short and cool, with daytime highs in the mid teens, and lows in the single degrees. Winters are long and harsh, daytime highs in the mid and lows around . Extremes are common with summer highs in the south reaching and lows reaching into the negatives. In winter in the south it is not uncommon for the temperatures to reach the 's but can also reach the low teens during the day. In the north temperatures can reach highs of , and lows can reach into the low negatives.

In winter in the north it is not uncommon for the temperatures to reach the but can also reach the single digits during the day. Thunderstorms are not rare in the south, but in the north they are very rare but do occur. Tornadoes are extremely rare but have happened with the most notable one happening just outside of Yellowknife that destroyed a communications tower. The Territory has a fairly dry climate due to the mountains in the west.

About half of the territory is above the tree line. There are no trees in most of the eastern areas of the territory, or the north islands.

Demographics

The NWT is one of two jurisdictions in Canada, Nunavut is the other, where Aboriginal peoples are in the majority with 50.3% of the population.

According to the 2006 Canadian census the 10 major ethnic groups were:

North American Indian - 36.5%

English - 17.2%

Canadian - 14.7%

Scottish - 14.3%

Irish - 11.8%

Inuit (Inuvialuit) - 11.1%

French - 10.5%

German - 8.5%

Métis - 6.9%

Ukrainian - 3.5%

Population of the Northwest Territories since 1871

! Year	! Population	! five-year% change	! ten-year% change	! Rank among provincesand territories
1871	48,000	n/a	n/a	6
1881	56,446	n/a	17.6	7
1891	98,967	n/a	75.3	7
1901	20,129	n/a	-79.7	11
1911	6,507	n/a	-67.7	11
1921	8,143	n/a	25.1	10
1931	9,316	n/a	14.4	10
1941	12,028	n/a	29.1	10
1951	16,004	n/a	33.1	11
1956	19,313	20.7	n/a	11
1961	22,998	19.1	43.7	11
1966	28,738	25.0	48.8	11
1971	34,805	21.1	51.3	11
1976	42,610	22.4	48.3	11
1981	45,740	7.3	31.4	11
1986	52,235	14.2	22.6	11
1991	57,649	10.3	26.0	11
1996	64,402	11.7	23.2	11
2001	37,360	-42.0	-35.2	11
2006	41,464	12.0	-35.0	11

:1.Yukon was ceded from the Northwest Territories in 1898. :2.Alberta and Saskatchewan were created from parts of the Northwest Territories in 1905. :3.Data through 1996 includes Nunavut. 2001 data does not include Nunavut. :4.2006 census data.

Religion

The largest denominations by number of adherents according to the 2001 census were Roman Catholic with 16,940 (46.7%); the Anglican Church of Canada with 5,510 (14.9%); and the United Church of Canada with 2,230 (6.0%), while a total of 6,465 (17.4%) people stated no religion.

Language

French was made an official language in 1877 by the appointed government, after lengthy and bitter debate resulting from a speech from the throne in 1888 by Lieutenant Governor Joseph Royal. The members voted on more than one occasion to nullify and make English the only language used in the assembly. After some conflict with Ottawa and a decisive vote on January 19, 1892, the assembly members voted for an English-only territory.

In the early 1980s, the federal government pressured the government of the Northwest Territories to reintroduce French as an official language. Some Native members walked out of the assembly, protesting that they were not permitted to speak their own language. The executive council appointed a special committee to study the matter, which decided that if French was to be an official language, then the other languages in the territories must also be allowed.

The Northwest Territories' Official Languages Act recognizes the following eleven official languages, which are more than in any other political division in the Americas:

Chipewyan

Cree

English

French

Gwich’in

Inuinnaqtun

Inuktitut

Inuvialuktun

North Slavey

South Slavey

Tłįchǫ

NWT residents have a right to use any of the above languages in a territorial court and in debates and proceedings of the legislature. However, laws are legally binding only in their French and English versions, and the NWT government only publishes laws and other documents in the territory's other official languages when the legislature asks it to. Furthermore, access to services in any language is limited to institutions and circumstances where there is significant demand for that language or where it is reasonable to expect it given the nature of the services requested. In practical terms, English language services are universally available, and there is no guarantee that other languages, including French, will be used by any particular government service except for the courts.

The 2006 census returns showed a population of 41,464. Of the 40,680 singular responses to the census question regarding inhabitants "mother tongue", the most reported languages were the following:

1	English	31,545	77.5%
2	Dogrib (Tłı̨chǫ)	1,950	4.8%
3	South Slavey	1,285	3.2%
4	French	975	2.4%
5	North Slavey	835	2.1%
6	Inuktitut	695	1.7%
7		505	1.2%
8	Chipewyan	390	1.0%
9		305	0.8%
10		260	0.6%
11=	Cree	190	0.5%
11=	Gwich'in	190	0.5%
13	Inuinnaqtun	55	0.1%

There were also 320 responses of both English and a "non-official language"; 15 of both French and a "non-official language"; 45 of both English and French, and about 400 people who either did not respond to the question, or reported multiple non-official languages, or else gave some other un-enumeratable response. The Northwest Territories' official languages are shown in bold.

(Figures shown are for the number of single language responses and the percentage of total single-language responses)

Communities

As of 2010 there are 33 official communities in the NWT. These range in size from Yellowknife with a population of 18,700 to Kakisa with 52 people. Governance of each community differs, some are run under various types of First Nations control, while others are designated as a city, town, village or hamlet, but most communities are municipal corporations. Yellowknife is the largest community and has the largest number of Aboriginal peoples, 4,105 (22.2%) people. However, Behchoko, with a population of 1,894, is the largest First Nations community, 1,730 (91.5%), and Inuvik with 3,484 people is the largest Inuvialuit community, 1,335 (38.9%). There is one Indian reserve in the NWT, Hay River Reserve, located on the south shore of the Hay River.

+Five largest municipalities by population	!Municipality	!2006
Yellowknife	18,700
	3,648
Inuvik	3,484
	2,364
Behchoko	1,894

Economy

The NWT's geological resources include gold, diamonds, natural gas and petroleum. NWT diamonds are promoted as an alternative to purchasing blood diamonds. Two of the biggest mineral resource companies in the world, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto mine many of their diamonds from the NWT. In 2010, NWT accounted for 28.5% of Rio Tinto's total diamond production (3.9 million carats, 17% more than in 2009, from the Diavik Diamond Mine) and 100% of BHP's (3.05 million carats from the EKATI mine).

The Northwest Territories has the highest per capita GDP of all provinces or territories in Canada, C$76,000 in 2009.

Major territorial mines

Eldorado Mine - 1933-1940, 1942–1960, 1976-1982 (radium, uranium, silver, copper)

Con Mine - 1938-2003 (gold)

Negus Mine - 1939-1952 (gold)

Ptarmigan and Tom Mine - 1941-1942, 1986-1997 (gold)

Thompson-Lundmark Mine - 1941-1943, 1947-1949 (gold)

Giant Mine - 1948-2004 (gold)

Discovery Mine - 1950-1969 (gold)

Rayrock Mine - 1957-1959 (uranium)

Camlaren Mine - 1962-1963, 1980-1981 (gold)

Cantung Mine - 1962-1986, 2002–2003, 2005-current (tungsten)

Echo Bay Mines Limited - 1964-1975 (silver and copper)

Pine Point Mine - 1964-1988 (lead and zinc)

Tundra Mine - 1964-1968 (gold)

Terra Mine - 1969-1985 (silver and copper)

Salmita Mine - 1983-1987 (gold)

Colomac Mine - 1990-1992, 1994-1997 (gold)

Ekati Diamond Mine - 1998-current (diamonds)

Diavik Diamond Mine - 2003-current (diamonds)

Snap Lake Diamond Mine - 2007-current (diamonds)

Government

As a territory, the NWT has fewer rights than the provinces. During his term, Premier Kakfwi pushed to have the federal government accord more rights to the territory, including having a greater share of the returns from the territory's natural resources go to the territory. Devolution of powers to the territory was an issue in the 20th general election in 2003, and has been ever since the territory began electing members in 1881.

The commissioner of the NWT is the chief executive and is appointed by the Governor-in-Council of Canada on the recommendation of the federal Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. The position used to be more administrative and governmental, but with the devolution of more powers to the elected assembly since 1967, the position has become symbolic. Since 1985 the commissioner no longer chairs meetings of the Executive Council (or cabinet), and the federal government has instructed commissioners to behave like a provincial lieutenant governor. Unlike lieutenant governors, the commissioner of the Northwest Territories is not a formal representative of the Queen of Canada.

Unlike provincial governments and the Yukon, the government of the Northwest Territories does not have political parties, except for the period between 1898 and 1905. It is a consensus government called the Legislative Assembly. This group is composed of one member elected from each of the nineteen constituencies. After each general election, the new parliament elects the premier and the speaker by secret ballot. Seven MLAs are also chosen as cabinet ministers, with the remainder forming the opposition. The territory's most recent general election was on October 1, 2007. The head of state for the territories is a Commissioner appointed by the federal government. The Commissioner had full governmental powers until 1980 when the territories were given greater self government. The legislature then began electing a cabinet and ''Government Leader'' later known as the Premier.

The current Legislative Assembly is the 16th and the next election will be held October 3, 2011. The Premier is Floyd Roland. The member of Parliament for Western Arctic, the riding that comprises the Northwest Territories, is Dennis Bevington (New Democratic Party). The Commissioner of the Northwest Territories is George Tuccaro and the Deputy Commissioner is Margaret Thom.

Culture

Aboriginal issues in the Northwest Territories include the fate of the Dene who, in the 1940s, were employed to carry radioactive uranium ore from the mines on Great Bear Lake. Of the thirty plus miners who worked at the Port Radium site, at least fourteen have died due to various forms of cancer. A study was done in the community of Deline, called ''A Village of Widows'' by Cindy Kenny-Gilday, which indicated that the number of people involved were too small to be able to confirm or deny a link.

There has been racial tension based on a history of violent conflict between the Dene and the Inuit, who have now taken recent steps towards reconciliation.

Land claims in the NWT culminated with the creation of the Inuit homeland of Nunavut, the result of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement, the largest land claim in Canadian history.

Another land claims agreement with the Tłı̨chǫ people created a region within the NWT called Tli Cho, between Great Bear and Great Slave Lakes, which will give the Tłı̨chǫ their own legislative bodies, taxes, resource royalties, and other affairs, though the NWT will still maintain control over such areas as health and education. This area includes two of Canada's three diamond mines at Ekati and Diavik.

See also

Northwest Territories lists:

: Airports;· Plebiscites;· Highways;· Legislative Assemblies

Symbols of the Northwest Territories

List of National Parks of Canada

Scouting and Guiding in the Northwest Territories

References

Further reading

}} }}

Ecosystem Classification Group, and Northwest Territories. ''Ecological Regions of the Northwest Territories Taiga Plains''. Yellowknife, NWT: Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources, Govt. of the Northwest Territories, 2007. ISBN 0-7708-0161-7

External links

Government of the Northwest Territories

Northwest Territories Tourism Canada

Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre

Aurora College

NWT Archives

NWT Literacy Council

Language Commissioner of the Northwest Territories

Lessons From the Land: interactive journeys of NWT traditional Aboriginal trails

CBC Digital Archives - Northwest Territories: Voting in Canada's North

}}

Category:1870 in Canada Category:Beaufort Sea Category:Provinces and territories of Canada Category:Arctic Ocean Category:States and territories established in 1870

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Honorific-prefix	The Right Honourable
Name	Stephen Harper
Honorific-suffix	PC MP
Order	22nd
Office	Prime Minister of Canada
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Term start	February 6, 2006
Predecessor	Paul Martin
Office2	Leader of the Opposition
Monarch2	Elizabeth II
Primeminister2	Paul Martin
Term start2	March 20, 2004
Term end2	February 6, 2006
Predecessor2	Grant Hill (Acting)
Successor2	Bill Graham (Acting)
Monarch3	Elizabeth II
Primeminister3	Jean ChrétienPaul Martin
Term start3	May 21, 2002
Term end3	January 8, 2004
Predecessor3	John Reynolds (Acting)
Successor3	Grant Hill (Acting)
Constituency mp4	Calgary Southwest
Parliament4	Canadian
Term start4	June 28, 2002
Predecessor4	Preston Manning
Constituency mp5	Calgary West
Parliament5	Canadian
Term start5	October 25, 1993
Term end5	June 2, 1997
Predecessor5	James Hawkes
Successor5	Rob Anders
Birth date	April 30, 1959
Birth place	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Spouse	Laureen Teskey(m. 1993-present)
Party	Conservative Party (2003–present)
Otherparty	Liberal Party (Before 1985)Progressive Conservative Party (1985–1986)Reform Party (1987–1997)Canadian Alliance (2002–2003)
Religion	Christian and Missionary Alliance
Children	Benjamin, Rachel
Residence	24 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario (Official)Calgary, Alberta (Private)
Alma mater	University of Calgary
Profession	Economist
Signature	Stephen Harper Signature-rt.svg
Website	Official website }}

Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election. He is the first prime minister from the newly reconstituted Conservative Party, following a merger of the Progressive Conservative and Canadian Alliance parties.

Harper has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the riding of Calgary Southwest in Alberta since 2002. Earlier, from 1993 to 1997, he was the MP for Calgary West. He was one of the founding members of the Reform Party, but did not seek re-election, and instead joined, and shortly thereafter led, the National Citizens Coalition. In 2002, he succeeded Stockwell Day as leader of the Canadian Alliance (the successor to the Reform Party) and returned to parliament as Leader of the Opposition. In 2003, he reached an agreement with Progressive Conservative leader Peter MacKay for the merger of their two parties to form the Conservative Party of Canada. He was elected as the party's first non-interim leader in March 2004.

Harper's Conservative Party won a stronger minority in the October 2008 federal election, showing a small increase in the percentage of the popular vote and increased representation in the Canadian House of Commons, with 143 of 308 seats. The 40th Canadian Parliament was dissolved in March 2011, after a no-confidence vote that found the Cabinet in contempt of parliament was passed by the opposition parties.

On May 2, 2011, Harper's Conservative Party won a majority government in the May 2011 federal election, by winning 166 seats.

Early life

Harper was born in Toronto, the first of three sons of Margaret (née Johnston) and Joseph Harris Harper, an accountant at Imperial Oil. He attended Northlea Public School and, later, John G. Althouse Middle School and Richview Collegiate Institute, both in Central Etobicoke. He graduated in 1978, and was a member of Richview Collegiate's team on ''Reach for the Top'', a television quiz show for Canadian high school students. Harper then enrolled at the University of Toronto but dropped out after two months. He then moved to Edmonton, Alberta, where he found work in the mail room at Imperial Oil. Later, he advanced to work on the company's computer systems. He took up post-secondary studies again at the University of Calgary, where he completed a bachelor's degree in economics. He later returned there to earn a master's degree in economics, completed in 1993. Harper has kept strong links to the University of Calgary, and often lectured there. He is the most recent prime minister since Joe Clark without a law degree.

Political beginnings

Harper became involved in politics as a member of his high school's Young Liberals Club. He later changed his political allegiance because he disagreed with the National Energy Program (NEP) of Pierre Trudeau's Liberal government. He became chief aide to Progressive Conservative MP Jim Hawkes in 1985, but later became disillusioned with both the party and the government of Brian Mulroney, especially the administration's fiscal policy and its inability to fully revoke the NEP until 1986. He left the PC Party that same year.

He was then recommended by the University of Calgary's economist Bob Mansell to Preston Manning, the founder and leader of the Reform Party of Canada. Manning invited him to participate in the party, and Harper gave a speech at Reform's 1987 founding convention in Winnipeg. He became the Reform Party's Chief Policy Officer, and he played a major role in drafting the 1988 election platform. He is credited with creating Reform's campaign slogan, "The West wants in!"

Harper ran for the Canadian House of Commons in the 1988 federal election, appearing on the ballot as Steve Harper in Calgary West. He lost by a wide margin to Hawkes, his former employer. The Reform Party did not win any seats in this election, although party candidate Deborah Grey was elected as the party's first MP in a by-election shortly thereafter. Harper became Grey's executive assistant, and was her chief adviser and speechwriter until 1993. He remained prominent in the Reform Party's national organization in his role as policy chief, encouraging the party to expand beyond its Western base and arguing that strictly regional parties were at risk of being taken over by radical elements. He delivered a speech at the Reform Party's 1991 national convention, in which he condemned extremist views.

Harper's relationship with Manning became strained in 1992, due to conflicting strategies over the Charlottetown Accord. Harper opposed the Accord on principle for ideological reasons, while Manning was initially more open to compromise. Harper also criticized Manning's decision to hire Rick Anderson as an adviser, believing that Anderson was not sufficiently committed to the Reform Party's principles. He resigned as policy chief in October 1992.

Harper stood for office again in the 1993 federal election, and defeated Jim Hawkes amid a significant Reform breakthrough in Western Canada. His campaign likely benefited from a $50,000 print and television campaign organized by the National Citizens Coalition against Hawkes, although the NCC did not endorse Harper directly.

Reform MP

Harper emerged a prominent member of the Reform Party of Canada caucus. He was active on constitutional issues during his first term in Parliament, and played a prominent role in drafting the Reform Party's strategy for the 1995 Quebec referendum. A long-standing opponent of centralized federalism, he stood with Preston Manning in Montreal to introduce a twenty-point plan to "decentralize and modernize" Canada in the event of a "no" victory. Harper later argued that the "no" side's narrow plurality was a worst-case scenario, in that no-one had won a mandate for change.

Harper has expressed socially conservative views on some issues. In 1994, he opposed plans by federal Justice Minister Allan Rock to introduce spousal benefits for same-sex couples. Citing the recent failure of a similar initiative in Ontario, he was quoted as saying, "What I hope they learn is not to get into it. There are more important social and economic issues, not to mention the unity question." Harper also spoke against the possibility of the Canadian Human Rights Commission or the Supreme Court changing federal policy in these and other matters.

At the Reform Party's 1994 policy convention, Harper was part of a small minority of delegates who voted against restricting the definition of marriage to "the union of one man and one woman". He actually opposed both same-sex marriage and mandated benefits for same-sex couples, but argued that political parties should refrain from taking official positions on these and other "issues of conscience".

Harper was the only Reform MP to support the creation of the Canadian Firearms Registry at second reading in 1995, although he later voted against it at third reading stage. He said at the time that he initially voted for the registry because of a poll showing that most of his constituents supported it, and added that he changed his vote when a second poll showed the opposite result. Some accused him of manipulating the second poll to achieve the result he wanted. It was reported in April 1995 that some Progressive Conservatives opposed to Jean Charest's leadership wanted to remove both Charest and Manning, and unite the Reform and Progressive Conservative parties under Harper's leadership.

Despite his prominent position in the party, Harper's relationship with the Reform Party leadership was frequently strained. In early 1994, he criticized a party decision to establish a personal expense account for Preston Manning at a time when other Reform MPs had been asked to forego parliamentary perquisites. He was formally rebuked by the Reform executive council despite winning support from some MPs. His relationship with Manning grew increasingly fractious in the mid-1990s, and he pointedly declined to express any opinion on Manning's leadership during a 1996 interview. This friction was indicative of a fundamental divide between the two men: Harper was strongly committed to conservative principles and opposed Manning's inclinations toward populism, which he saw as leading to compromise on core ideological matters.

These tensions culminated in late 1996 when Harper announced that he would not be a candidate in the next federal election. He resigned his parliamentary seat on January 14, 1997, the same day that he was appointed as a vice-president of the National Citizens Coalition (NCC), a conservative think-tank and advocacy group. He was promoted to NCC president later in the year.

In April 1997, Harper suggested that the Reform Party was drifting toward social conservatism and ignoring the principles of economic conservatism. The Liberal Party lost seats but managed to retain a narrow majority government in the 1997 federal election, while Reform made only modest gains.

Out of Parliament

1997–2000

Soon after leaving Parliament, Harper and Tom Flanagan co-authored an opinion piece entitled "Our Benign Dictatorship", which argued that the Liberal Party only retained power through a dysfunctional political system and a divided opposition. Harper and Flanagan argued that national conservative governments between 1917 and 1993 were founded on temporary alliances between Western populists and Quebec nationalists, and were unable to govern because of their fundamental contradictions. The authors called for an alliance of Canada's conservative parties, and suggested that meaningful political change might require electoral reforms such as proportional representation. "Our Benign Dictatorship" also commended Conrad Black's purchase of the Southam newspaper chain, arguing that his stewardship would provide for a "pluralistic" editorial view to counter the "monolithically liberal and feminist" approach of the previous management.

Harper remained active in constitutional issues. He was a prominent opponent of the Calgary Declaration on national unity in late 1997, describing it as an "appeasement strategy" against Quebec nationalism. He called for federalist politicians to reject this strategy, and approach future constitutional talks from the position that "Quebec separatists are the problem and they need to be fixed". In late 1999, Harper called for the federal government to establish clear rules for any future Quebec referendum on sovereignty. Some have identified Harper's views as an influence on the Chrétien government's Clarity Act.

As National Citizens Coalition (NCC) leader, Harper launched an ultimately unsuccessful legal battle against federal election laws restricting third-party advertising. He led the NCC in several campaigns against the Canadian Wheat Board, and supported Finance Minister Paul Martin's 2000 tax cuts as a positive first step toward tax reform.

In 1997, Harper delivered a controversial speech on Canadian identity to the Council for National Policy, a conservative American think tank. He made comments such as "Canada is a Northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term, and very proud of it", "if you're like all Americans, you know almost nothing except for your own country. Which makes you probably knowledgeable about one more country than most Canadians", and "the NDP [New Democratic Party] is kind of proof that the Devil lives and interferes in the affairs of men." These statements were made public and criticized during the 2006 election. Harper argued that the speech was intended as humour, and not as serious analysis.

Harper considered campaigning for the Progressive Conservative Party leadership in 1998, after Jean Charest left federal politics. Among those encouraging his candidacy were senior aides to Ontario Premier Mike Harris, including Tony Clement and Tom Long. He eventually decided against running, arguing that it would "burn bridges to those Reformers with whom I worked for many years" and prevent an alliance of right-wing parties from taking shape. Harper was skeptical about the Reform Party's United Alternative initiative in 1999, arguing that it would serve to consolidate Manning's hold on the party leadership. He also expressed concern that the UA would dilute Reform's ideological focus.

2000–01

When the United Alternative created the Canadian Alliance in 2000 as a successor party to Reform, Harper predicted that Stockwell Day would defeat Preston Manning for the new party's leadership. He expressed reservations about Day's abilities, however, and accused Day of "[making] adherence to his social views a litmus test to determine whether you're in the party or not". Harper endorsed Tom Long for the leadership, arguing that Long was best suited to take support from the Progressive Conservative Party. When Day placed first on the first ballot, Harper said that the Canadian Alliance was shifting "more towards being a party of the religious right".

After the death of Pierre Trudeau in 2000, Harper wrote an editorial criticizing Trudeau's policies as they affected Western Canada. He wrote that Trudeau "embraced the fashionable causes of his time, with variable enthusiasm and differing results", but "took a pass" on the issues that "truly defined his century". Harper subsequently accused Trudeau of promoting "unabashed socialism", and argued that Canadian governments between 1972 and 2002 had restricted economic growth through "state corporatism".

After the Canadian Alliance's poor showing in the 2000 election, Harper joined with other Western conservatives in co-authoring a document called the "Alberta Agenda". The letter called on Alberta to reform publicly-funded health care, replace the Canada Pension Plan with a provincial plan and replace the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with a provincial police force. It became known as the "firewall letter", because it called on the provincial government to "build firewalls around Alberta" in order to stop the federal government from redistributing its wealth to less affluent regions. Alberta Premier Ralph Klein agreed with some of the letter's recommendations, but distanced himself from the "firewall" comments.

Harper also wrote an editorial in late 2000 arguing that Alberta and the rest of Canada were "embark[ing] on divergent and potentially hostile paths to defining their country". He said that Alberta had chosen the "best of Canada's heritage—a combination of American enterprise and individualism with the British traditions of order and co-operation" while Canada "appears content to become a second-tier socialistic country [...] led by a second-world strongman appropriately suited for the task". He also called for a "stronger and much more autonomous Alberta", while rejecting calls for separatism. In the 2001 Alberta provincial election, Harper led the NCC in a "Vote Anything but Liberal" campaign. Some articles from this period described him as a possible successor to Klein.

Harper and the NCC endorsed a private school tax credit proposed by Ontario's Progressive Conservative government in 2001, arguing that it would "save about $7,000 for each student who does not attend a union-run public school". Education Minister Janet Ecker criticized this, saying that her government's intent was not to save money at the expense of public education.

Day's leadership of the Canadian Alliance became increasingly troubled throughout the summer of 2001, as several party MPs called for his resignation. In June, the ''National Post'' newspaper reported that former Reform MP Ian McClelland was organizing a possible leadership challenge on Harper's behalf. Harper announced his resignation from the NCC presidency in August 2001, to prepare a campaign.

Canadian Alliance leadership

Stockwell Day called a new Canadian Alliance leadership race for 2002, and soon declared himself a candidate. Harper emerged as Day's main rival, and declared his own candidacy on December 3, 2001. He eventually won the support of at least 28 Alliance MPs, including Scott Reid, James Rajotte and Keith Martin. During the campaign, Harper reprised his earlier warnings against an alliance with Quebec nationalists, and called for his party to become the federalist option in Quebec. He argued that "the French language is not imperilled in Quebec", and opposed "special status" for the province in the Canadian Constitution accordingly. He also endorsed greater provincial autonomy on Medicare, and said that he would not co-operate with the Progressive Conservatives as long as they were led by Joe Clark. On social issues, Harper argued for "parental rights" to use corporal punishment against their children and supported raising the age of sexual consent. He described his potential support base as "similar to what George Bush tapped".

The tone of the leadership contest turned hostile in February 2002. Harper described Day's governance of the party as "amateurish", while his campaign team argued that Day was attempting to win re-election by building a narrow support base among different groups in the religious right. The Day campaign accused Harper of "attacking ethnic and religious minorities". In early March, the two candidates had an especially fractious debate on CBC Newsworld. The leadership vote was held on March 20, 2002. Harper was elected on the first ballot with 55% support, against 37% for Day. Two other candidates split the remainder.

After winning the party leadership, Harper announced his intention to run for Parliament in a by-election in Calgary Southwest, recently vacated by Preston Manning. Ezra Levant had already been chosen as the riding's Alliance candidate and initially declared that he would not stand aside for Harper; he subsequently reconsidered. The Liberals did not field a candidate, following a parliamentary tradition of allowing opposition leaders to enter the House of Commons unopposed. The Progressive Conservative candidate, Jim Prentice, also chose to withdraw. Harper was elected without difficulty over New Democrat Bill Phipps, a former United Church of Canada moderator. Harper told a reporter during the campaign that he "despise[d]" Phipps, and declined to debate him.

Harper officially became Leader of the Opposition in May 2002. Later in the same month, he said that the Atlantic Provinces were trapped in "a culture of defeat" which had to be overcome, the result of policies designed by Liberal and Progressive Conservative governments. Many Atlantic politicians condemned the remark as patronizing and insensitive. The Legislature of Nova Scotia unanimously approved a motion condemning Harper's comments, which were also criticized by New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord, federal Progressive Conservative leader Joe Clark and others. Harper refused to apologize, and said that much of Canada was trapped by the same "can't-do" attitude.

His first 18 months as opposition leader were largely devoted towards consolidating the fractured elements of the Canadian Alliance and encouraging a union of the Canadian Alliance and the federal Progressive Conservatives. The aim of this union was to present only one right-of-center national party in the next federal election. In undertaking the merger talks, PC leader Peter MacKay reversed his previous agreement with leadership opponent David Orchard not to merge with the Alliance. After reaching an agreement with MacKay in October 2003, the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada officially merged in December, with the new party being named the "Conservative Party of Canada".

In March 2003 Harper and Stockwell Day co-wrote a letter to ''The Wall Street Journal'' in which they condemned the Canadian government's unwillingness to participate in the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Conservative Party leadership

On January 12, 2004, Harper announced his resignation as Leader of the Opposition, in order to run for the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada. Harper was elected the first leader of the Conservative Party, with a first ballot majority against Belinda Stronach and Tony Clement on March 20, 2004. Harper's victory included strong showings in Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada.

2004 federal election

Harper led the Conservatives into the 2004 federal election. Initially, new Prime Minister Paul Martin held a large lead in polls, but this eroded due to infighting, Adscam and other scandals surrounding his government. The Liberals attempted to counter this with an early election call, as this would give the Conservatives less time to consolidate their merger.

Martin's weak performance in the leader's debate, along with an unpopular provincial budget by Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty in Ontario, moved the Conservatives into a lead for a time. However, comments by Conservative MPs, leaked press releases slandering the then Prime Minister, as well as controversial TV attack ads suggesting that the Conservatives would make Canada more like the United States, caused Harper's party to lose some momentum.

Harper made an effort to appeal to voters in Quebec, a province where the Reform/Alliance side of the merged party had not done well. He was featured in several of the Tories' French-language campaign ads.

The Liberals were re-elected to power with a minority government, with the Conservatives coming in second place. The Conservatives managed to make inroads into the Liberals' Ontario stronghold, primarily in the province's socially conservative central region. However, they were shut out of Quebec, marking the first time that a centre-right party did not win any seats in that province. Harper, after some personal deliberation, decided to stay on as the party leader. Many credited him with bringing the Progressive Conservative Party and Canadian Alliance together in a short time to fight a close election.

Agreement with the BQ and the NDP

Two months after the federal election, Stephen Harper privately met with Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe and New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton in a Montreal hotel. On September 9, 2004, the three signed a letter addressed to then-Governor General Adrienne Clarkson, stating, }}

On the same day the letter was written, the three party leaders held a joint press conference at which they expressed their intent to co-operate on changing parliamentary rules, and to request that the Governor General consult with them before deciding to call an election. At the news conference, Harper said "It is the Parliament that's supposed to run the country, not just the largest party and the single leader of that party. That's a criticism I've had and that we've had and that most Canadians have had for a long, long time now so this is an opportunity to start to change that." However, at the time, Harper and the two other opposition leaders denied trying to form a coalition government. Harper said, "This is not a coalition, but this is a co-operative effort."

One month later, on October 4, Mike Duffy, now a Conservative senator (appointed by Harper), said "It is possible that you could change prime minister without having an election," and that some Conservatives wanted Harper to temporarily become prime minister without holding an election. The next day Layton walked out on talks with Harper and Duceppe, accusing them of trying to replace Paul Martin with Harper as prime minister. Both Bloc and Conservative officials denied Layton's accusations.

On March 26, 2011, Duceppe stated that Harper had tried to form a coalition government with the Bloc and NDP in response to Harper's allegations that the Liberals may form a coalition with the Bloc and the NDP.

Harper as Conservative leader and Leader of the Opposition

The Conservative Party's first policy convention was held from March 17–19, 2005, in Montreal. Harper had been rumoured to be shifting his ideology closer to that of a Blue Tory, and many thought he'd wanted to move the party's policies closer to the centre. Any opposition to abortion or bilingualism was dropped from the Conservative platform. Harper received an 84% endorsement from delegates in the leadership review.

Despite the party's move to the centre, the party began a concerted drive against same-sex marriage. Harper was criticized by a group of law professors for arguing that the government could override the provincial court rulings on same-sex marriage without using the "notwithstanding clause", a provision of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It also argued, in general, for lower taxes, an elected Senate, a tougher stance on crime, and closer relations with the United States.

Following the April 2005 release of Jean Brault's damaging testimony at the Gomery Inquiry, implicating the Liberals in the scandal, opinion polls placed the Conservatives ahead of Liberals. The Conservatives had earlier abstained from the vote on the 2005 budget to avoid forcing an election. With the collapse in Liberal support and a controversial NDP amendment to the budget, the party exerted significant pressure on Harper to bring down the government. In May, Harper announced that the government had lost the "moral authority to govern". Shortly thereafter, the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois united to defeat the government on a vote that some considered to be either a confidence motion or else a motion requiring an immediate test of the confidence of the House. The Martin government did not accept this interpretation and argued that vote had been on a procedural motion, although they also indicated that they would bring forward their revised budget for a confidence vote the following week. Ultimately, the effort to bring down the Government failed following the decision of Conservative MP Belinda Stronach to cross the floor to the Liberal Party. The vote on the NDP amendment to the budget tied, and with the Speaker of the House voting to continue debate, the Liberals stayed in power. At the time, some considered the matter to be a constitutional crisis.

Harper was also criticized for supporting his caucus colleague MP Gurmant Grewal. Grewal had produced tapes of conversations with Tim Murphy, Paul Martin's chief of staff, in which Grewal claimed he had been offered a cabinet position in exchange for his defection.

The Liberals' support dropped after the first report from the Gomery Inquiry was issued. On November 24, 2005, Harper introduced a motion of non-confidence on the Liberal government, telling the House of Commons "that this government has lost the confidence of the House of Commons and needs to be removed." As the Liberals had lost NDP support in the house by refusing to accept an NDP plan to prevent health care privatization, the no-confidence motion was passed by a vote of 171–133. It was the first time that a Canadian government had been toppled by a straight motion of non-confidence proposed by the opposition. As a result, Parliament was dissolved and a general election was scheduled for January 23, 2006.

On February 27, 2008, allegations surfaced that two Conservative Party officials offered terminally ill, Independent MP Chuck Cadman a million-dollar life insurance policy in exchange for his vote to bring down the Liberal government in a May 2005 budget vote. If the story had been proved true, the actions may have been grounds for charges as a criminal offence since, under the Criminal Code of Canada, it is illegal to bribe an MP.

When asked by Vancouver journalist Tom Zytaruk about the alleged life insurance offer then-opposition leader Stephen Harper states on an audio tape "I don't know the details. I know there were discussions" and goes on to say "The offer to Chuck was that it was only to replace financial considerations he might lose due to an election". Harper also stated that he had told the Conservative party representatives that they were unlikely to succeed. "I told them they were wasting their time. I said Chuck had made up his mind." In February 2008 the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigated the allegations that Section 119's provisions on bribery and corruption in the Criminal Code had been violated. The RCMP concluded their investigation stating that there is no evidence for pressing charges.

Harper denied any wrongdoing and subsequently filed a civil libel suit against the Liberal Party of Canada. Since libel laws do not apply for statements made in the House of Commons, the basis of the lawsuit was that statements made by Liberal party members outside the House and in articles which appeared on the Liberal party web site made accusations that Harper had committed a criminal act.

The audio expert hired by Harper to prove that the tape containing the evidence was doctored reported that the latter part of the tape was recorded over, but the tape was unaltered where Harper's voice said "I don't know the details, I know that, um, there were discussions, um, but this is not for publication?" and goes on to say he "didn't know the details" when asked if he knew anything about the alleged offer to Cadman.

2006 federal election

The Conservatives began the campaign period with a policy-per-day strategy, contrary to the Liberal plan of holding off major announcements until after the Christmas holidays, so Harper dominated media coverage for the first weeks of the election. Though his party showed only modest movement in the polls, Harper's personal numbers, which had always significantly trailed those of his party, began to rise. In response, the Liberals launched negative ads targeting Harper, similar to their attacks in the 2004 election. However, their tactics were not sufficient to erode the Conservative's advantage, although they did manage to close what had been a ten point advantage in public opinion. As Harper's personal numbers rose, polls found he was now considered not only more trustworthy, but a better choice for Prime Minister than Martin.

Immediately prior to the Christmas break, in a faxed letter to NDP candidate Judy Wasylycia-Leis, the Commissioner of the RCMP, Giuliano Zaccardelli announced the RCMP had opened a criminal investigation into her complaint that it appeared Liberal Finance Minister Ralph Goodale's office had leaked information leading to insider trading before making an important announcement on the taxation of income trusts. On December 27, 2005, the RCMP confirmed that information in a press release. At the conclusion of the investigation, Serge Nadeau, a top Finance Department bureaucrat, was charged with criminal breach of trust. No charges were laid against then Finance Minister Ralph Goodale.

The election gave Harper's Conservatives the largest number of seats in the House, although not enough for a majority government, and shortly after midnight on January 24, Martin conceded defeat. Later that day, Martin informed Governor General Michaëlle Jean that he would resign as Prime Minister, and at 6:45 p.m. Jean asked Harper to form a government. Harper was sworn in as Canada's 22nd Prime Minister on February 6, 2006. In his first address to Parliament as head of government, Harper opened by paying tribute to the Queen and her "lifelong dedication to duty and self-sacrifice," referring to her specifically as Canada's head of state. He also said before the Canada-UK Chamber of Commerce that Canada and the United Kingdom were joined by "the golden circle of the Crown, which links us all together with the majestic past that takes us back to the Tudors, the Plantagenets, the Magna Carta, ''habeas corpus'', petition of rights, and English common law." Jouralist Graham Fraser said in the ''Toronto Star'' that Harper's speech was "one of the most monarchist speeches a Canadian prime minister has given since John Diefenbaker." An analysis by Michael D. Behiels suggests a political realignment may be underway based on the continuance of Harper's government.

Prime Minister

2008 federal election

On October 14, 2008, after a 5 week long campaign, the Conservative Party won a federal election and increased its number of seats in Parliament to 143, up from 127 at the dissolution of the previous Parliament; however, the actual popular vote among Canadians dropped slightly by 167,494 votes. As a result of the lowest voter turnout in Canadian electoral history, this represented only 22% of eligible Canadian voters, the lowest level of support of any winning party in Canadian history. Meanwhile, the number of opposition Liberal MPs fell from 95 to 77 seats. It takes 155 MPs to form a majority government in Canada's 308 seat Parliament.

2008 Parliamentary dispute and prorogation

On December 4, 2008, Harper asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean to prorogue Parliament in order to avoid a vote of confidence scheduled for the following Monday, becoming the first Canadian PM ever to do so. The request was granted by Jean, and the prorogation lasted until January 26, 2009. The opposition coalition dissolved shortly after, with the Conservatives winning a Liberal supported confidence vote on January 29, 2009.

2010 prorogation

On December 30, 2009, Harper announced that he would request the governor general prorogue Parliament again, effective immediately on December 30, 2009, during the 2010 Winter Olympics and lasting until March 3, 2010. Harper stated that this was necessary for Canada's economic plan. Jean would grant the request. In an interview with CBC News, Prince Edward Island Liberal member of Parliament Wayne Easter accused the Prime Minister of "shutting democracy down". Tom Flanagan, Harper's University of Calgary mentor and former Chief of Staff, also questioned Harper's reasoning for prorogation, stating that "I think the government's talking points haven't been entirely credible" and that the government's explanation of proroguing was "skirting the real issue—which is the harm the opposition parties are trying to do to the Canadian Forces" regarding the Canadian Afghan detainee issue. The second prorogation in a year received some international criticism as being undemocratic. Demonstrations took place on January 23 in 64 Canadian cities and towns, and five cities in other countries. A Facebook protest group attracted over 20,000 members.

A poll released by Angus Reid on January 7, found that 53% of Canadians were opposed to the prorogation, while 19% supported it. 38% of Canadians believed that Harper used the prorogation to curtail the Afghan detainee inquiry, while 23% agreed with Harper's explanation that the prorogation was necessary economically.

2010 Senate appointments

Harper filled five vacancies in the Senate of Canada with appointments of new Conservative senators, on January 29, 2010. The Senators filled vacancies in Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, and New Brunswick, as well as two vacancies in Ontario. The new senators were Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu, of Quebec, Bob Runciman, of Ontario, Vim Kochhar, of Ontario, Elizabeth Marshall of Newfoundland and Labrador and Rose-May Poirier, of New Brunswick. This changed the party standings in the Senate, which had been dominated by Liberals, to 51 Conservatives, 49 Liberals, and five others.

2011 Vote of non-confidence

Harper's Conservative government was defeated in a no-confidence vote on March 25, 2011, after being found in contempt of Parliament, thus triggering a general election. This was the first occurrence in Commonwealth history of a government in the Westminster parliamentary tradition losing the confidence of the House of Commons on the grounds of contempt of Parliament. The no-confidence motion was carried with a vote of 156 in favor of the motion, and 145 against.

2011 Election

On May 2, 2011, after a 5-week campaign, the Conservative Party won a federal election, increasing its number of seats in Parliament to 166, up from 143 at the dissolution of the previous Parliament, and securing a majority government. The Conservative Party also received a greater number of total votes than in 2008. Aside from ending five years of minority governments, this election was notable for a number of firsts: bringing the New Democratic Party to official opposition status, the election of Canada's first Green Party Member of Parliament, and the decline of the Bloc Quebecois (from 47 to 4 seats).

Domestic policy

Unlike his recent predecessors, Harper did not name one of his colleagues to the largely honorific post of Deputy Prime Minister. Various observers had expected him to name MacKay, the former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party and his deputy party leader, or Lawrence Cannon, as a Quebec lieutenant, to the post. Harper did, however, name an order of succession to act on his behalf in certain circumstances, starting with Cannon, then Jim Prentice, then the balance of his cabinet in order of precedence.

After sidestepping the political landmine for most of the first year of his time as prime minister, much as all the post-Charlottetown Accord prime ministers had done, Harper's hand was forced to reopen the Quebec sovereignty debate after the opposition Bloc Québécois were to introduce a motion in the House that called for recognition of Quebec as a "nation". On November 22, 2006, Harper introduced his own motion to recognize that "the Québécois form a nation within a united Canada." Five days later, Harper's motion passed, with a margin of 266-16; all federalist parties, as well as the Bloc Québécois, were formally behind it.

Economic management

As of January 2010, the ruling Conservatives had raised the federal deficit back to $36 billion dollars. It is claimed by certain pundits that the Conservatives raised Canada's deficit to the largest in the country's history. At the same time, Canada had the lowest Debt-to-GDP in the G7 economies. The Economist magazine stated that Canada had come out the recession stronger than any other rich country in the G7.

Senate

In 2004, Harper said "the Upper House remains a dumping ground for the favoured cronies of the prime minister." During his term as prime minister from 2006 to 2008, Harper let senate retirements go unfilled. This resulted in 16 senate vacancies by the October 2008 election. The one exception to this policy was Michael Fortier. When Harper first took office, he directed the governor general to appoint Michael Fortier to both the Senate and the Cabinet, arguing the government needed representation from the city of Montreal. Although there is a precedent for this action in the Westminster system, the appointment led to criticism from opponents who claimed Harper was reneging on his push for an elected senate. In 2008 Mr Fortier gave up his senate seat and sought election as a Member of Parliament but was defeated by a large margin by the incumbent Bloc Québécois MP.

After the October 2008 election, Harper again named Senate reform again as a priority. However, by December 2008, Harper had appointed 18 senators. In 2009 he appointed an additional 9 senators. Many of those appointed had close ties with the Conservative Party, including the campaign manager of the Conservative Party, Doug Finley. Critics accused Harper of hypocrisy (the Liberals coined the term "Harpocrisy"). Conservative Senator, Bert Brown, defended Harper's appointments, and said "the only way [the Senate]'s ever been filled is by having people that are loyal to the prime minister who's appointing them."

Census controversy

Ahead of the Canada 2011 Census, the Harper government announced that the long-form questionnaire (which collects detailed demographic information) will no longer be mandatory. According to Minister of Industry Tony Clement, the change was made because of privacy-related complaints and after consulting with Statistics Canada. However, Canada's privacy commissioner reported only receiving three complaints between 1995 and 2010, according to a report in the Toronto Sun.

Munir Sheikh, Canada's Chief Statistician appointed by Harper, resigned on July 21, 2010, in protest of the Harper government's change in policy. Ivan Fellegi, the former Chief Statistician of Canada, criticized Harper government's decision, saying that those who are most vulnerable (such as the poor, new immigrants, and aboriginals) are least likely to respond to a voluntary form, which weakens information about their demographic.

The move was opposed by some governmental and non-governmental organizations. Federation of Canadian Municipalities; City of Toronto; Canadian Jewish Congress; Evangelical Fellowship of Canada; Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops; Canadian Medical Association; Statistical Society of Canada; the American Statistical Association; and Registered Nurses Association of Ontario all opposed the change. However, the Fraser Institute supported the change. The provincial governments of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Manitoba, also opposed the change.

Foreign policy

During his term, Harper has dealt with many foreign policy issues relating to the United States, War on terror, Arab-Israeli conflict, free trade, China and Africa.

In 2009, Harper visited China. During the visit Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao publicly scolded Harper for not visiting earlier, pointing out that "this is the first meeting between the Chinese premier and a Canadian prime minister in almost five years." In 2008, former prime minister Jean Chrétien had criticized Harper for missing opening ceremonies for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

On September 11, 2007, Harper visited Australia and addressed its Parliament.

Michael Ignatieff criticized Harper for cutting foreign aid to Africa by $700 million, falling short of the UN Millennium Development Goals, and cutting eight African countries from the list of priority aid recipients.

Afghanistan

On March 11 and March 12, 2006, Harper made a surprise trip to Afghanistan, where Canadian Forces personnel have been deployed as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force since late 2001, to visit troops in theatre as a show of support for their efforts, and as a demonstration of the government's commitment to reconstruction and stability in the region. Harper's choice of a first foreign visit was closely guarded from the press until his arrival in Afghanistan (citing security concerns), and is seen as marking a significant change in relationship between the government and the military. Harper returned to Afghanistan on May 22, 2007, in a surprise two-day visit which included visiting Canadian troops at the forward operating base at Ma'Sum Ghar, located south of Kandahar, making Harper the first Prime Minister to have visited the front lines of a combat operation.

Israeli and Jewish affairs

At the outset of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict, Harper defended Israel's "right to defend itself" and described its military campaign in Lebanon as a "measured" response, arguing that Hezbollah's release of kidnapped IDF soldiers would be the key to ending the conflict. Speaking of the situation in both Lebanon and Gaza on July 18, Harper said he wanted "not just a ceasefire, but a resolution" but such a thing would not happen until Hezbollah and Hamas recognize Israel's right to exist. Harper blamed Hezbollah for all the civilian deaths. He asserted that Hezbollah's objective is to destroy Israel through violence.

The media noted that Harper didn't allow reporters opportunities to ask him questions on his position. Some Canadians, including many Arab and Lebanese Canadians, criticized Harper's description of Israel's response.

In December 2008, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations recognized Harper's support for Israel with its inaugural International Leadership Award, pointing out Harper's decision to boycott the Durban II anti-racism conference, and his government's "support for Israel and [its] efforts at the U.N. against incitement and ... the delegitimization [of Israel]".

In March 2009, Harper spoke at a Parliament Hill ceremony organized by Chabad-Lubavitch to honor the Jewish victims of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which included an attack on the Nariman House. He expressed condolences over the murder at Chabad's Mumbai center of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka. Harper described the killings as "affronts to the values that unite all civilized people". Harper added that the quick installment of a new rabbi at the Chabad center in Mumbai as a signal that the Jewish people will "never bow to violence and hatred".

In 2010, Canada lost a bid for a seat on the UN Security Council. While initially blaming the loss on his rival Ignatieff, Harper later said that it was due to his pro-Israeli stance. Harper then said that he would take a pro-Israeli stance, no matter what the political cost to Canada. Ignatieff criticized Harper's stance as a "mistake", saying Canada would be better able to defend Israel through the Security Council than from the sidelines and pointed out that it is the Security Council that will determine if sanctions are imposed on Iran. Ignatieff also accused Harper of steering the discussion away from implementing the two-state solution, and instead rendering all discussion into a competition "about who is Israel's best friend".

Free Trade with EFTA

On June 7, 2007, the Conservative government announced it had finalized free trade negotiations with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Under this agreement, Canada increased its trade ties with Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. In 2006, the value of trade between these partners was $10.7 billion. Canada had originally begun negotiations with the EFTA on October 9, 1998, but talks broke down due to a disagreement over subsidies to shipyards in Atlantic Canada.

United States

Shortly after being congratulated by George W. Bush for his victory, Harper rebuked U.S. Ambassador David Wilkins for criticizing the Conservatives' plans to assert Canada's sovereignty over the Arctic Ocean waters with armed forces. Harper's first meeting as Prime Minister with the U.S. President occurred at the end of March 2006.

The Harper Government received American news coverage during the Democratic Party's 2008 presidential primaries after the details of a conversation between Barack Obama's economic advisor Austan Goolsbee, and Canadian diplomat Georges Rioux were revealed. Reportedly Goolsbee was reassuring the Canadians that Obama's comments on potentially renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) were more political rhetoric than actual policy. The accuracy of these reports has been debated by both the Obama campaign and the Canadian Government. The news came at a key time nearing the Ohio and Texas primaries where, perceptions among Democratic voters is that the benefits of the NAFTA agreement are dubious. Thus the appearance that Obama was not being completely forthright was attacked by his opponent Hillary Clinton. ABC News reported that Harper's Chief of Staff, Ian Brodie was responsible for the details reaching the hands of the media. Harper has denied that Brodie was responsible for the leak, and launched an investigation to find the source. The Opposition, as well as Democratic strategist Bob Shrum, criticized the Government on the issue, stating they were trying to help the Republicans by helping Hillary Clinton win the Democratic nomination instead of Obama. They also alleged the leak would hurt relations with the United States if Obama ever were to become President. Obama was elected President in November. In February, Obama made his first foreign visit, as president, to Ottawa, in which he affirmed support for free trade with Canada, as well as complimenting Canada on its involvement in Afghanistan.

Media relations and information

Harper has insisted on his right to choose who asks questions at press conferences , which has caused the national media to lodge complaints. In 2007, Harper was awarded the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) "Code of Silence Award" for his "white-knuckled death grip on public information". "If journalists can't get basic information from the federal government, Canadians can't hold the government accountable. The Prime Minister's Office has repeatedly demonstrated contempt for the public's right to know," [CAJ President] Welch said. "Harper pledged to run a government that was open, transparent and accountable, but his track record to-date has been abysmal." Some have alleged that the Prime Minister's Office also "often informs the media about Harper's trips at such short notice that it's impossible for Ottawa journalists to attend the events". Harper's director of communications has denied this, saying that "this prime minister has been more accessible, gives greater media scrums and provides deeper content than any prime minister has in the last 10 to 12 years". Some suggest that the Conservatives' then recent electoral success could be credited to their control of the campaign message, a practice that they continued when they became the government.

The Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) have criticized Harper's control over the media. In an open letter of June 2010, the CAJ wrote "Politicians should not get to decide what information is released. This information belongs to Canadians, the taxpayers who paid for its production. Its release should be based on public interest, not political expediency. This breeds contempt and suspicion of government. How can people know the maternal-health initiative has been well thought out or that the monitoring of aboriginal bands has been done properly if all Canadians hear is: 'Trust us'?"

Supreme Court appointments

Harper chose the following jurists to be appointed as justices of the Supreme Court of Canada by the governor general:

Marshall Rothstein (March 1, 2006 – present)

Thomas Cromwell (Sept. 5, 2008 – present)

Justice Rothstein

In keeping with Harper's election promise to change the appointment process, Rothstein's appointment involved a review by a parliamentary committee, following his nomination by the Prime Minister. Rothstein had already been short-listed, with two other candidates, by a committee convened by Paul Martin's previous Liberal government, and he was Harper's choice. Harper then had Rothstein appear before an 'ad hoc', non-partisan committee of 12 Members of Parliament. This committee was not empowered to block the appointment, though, as had been called for by some members of Harper's Conservative Party.

Justice Cromwell

On September 5, 2008, Harper nominated Justice Cromwell of Nova Scotia Court of Appeal to fill the Supreme Court seat left vacant by the departure of Justice Michel Bastarache. By and large Cromwell's nomination has been well received, with many lauding the selection, however dissent has been noted surrounding the nomination. First, Harper bypassed Parliament's Supreme Court selection panel, which was supposed to produce a list of three candidates for him to chose from. Second, Newfoundland Justice Minister Jerome Kennedy criticized the appointment, citing the Newfoundland government's belief that constitutional convention stipulates that a Newfoundlander should have been named to the Court in the rotation of Atlantic Canadian Supreme Court representation.

Honours

Harper received the Woodrow Wilson Award on October 6, 2006, for his public service in Calgary. It was held at the Telus Convention Centre in Calgary, the same place where he made his victory speech.

''Time'' magazine named him as Canada's Newsmaker of the Year in 2006. Stephen Handelman wrote "that the prime minister who was once dismissed as a doctrinaire backroom tactician with no experience in government has emerged as a warrior in power".

On June 27, 2008, Harper was awarded the Presidential Gold Medallion for Humanitarianism by B'nai B'rith International. He is the first Canadian to be awarded this medal.

On July 11, 2011, Harper was honoured by Alberta's Blood tribe. He was made honorary Chief of the Blood Tribe during a ceremony, in which they recognized him for making an official apology on behalf of the Government of Canada for the residential schools abuse. Harper issued this apology in 2008. The Chief of the tribe explained that he believes the apology officially started the healing and rebuilding of relations between the federal and native councils. Lester B. Pearson, John Diefenbaker and Jean Chretien are the only other Prime Ministers of Canada to be awarded the same honorary title.

Personal life

Harper married Laureen Teskey in 1993. Laureen was formerly married to New Zealander Neil Fenton from 1985 to 1988. They have two children: Benjamin and Rachel. He is the third Prime Minister, after Pierre Trudeau and John Turner, to send his children to Rockcliffe Park Public School, in Ottawa. He is a member of the evangelical Christian and Missionary Alliance and attends church at the East Gate Alliance Church in Ottawa.

An avid follower of ice hockey, he has been a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs since his childhood in the Leaside and Etobicoke communities in Toronto. He is working on a book of the history of hockey and writes articles occasionally on the subject. Harper appeared on The Sports Network (TSN) during the broadcast of the Canada–Russia final of the 2007 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. He was interviewed and expressed his views on the state of hockey, and his preference for an overtime period in lieu of a shoot-out. In February 2010, Harper interviewed former National Hockey League greats Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe for a Saskatoon Kinsmen Club charity event.

Harper taped a cameo appearance in an episode of the television show ''Corner Gas'' which aired March 12, 2007. He reportedly owns a large vinyl record collection and is a fan of The Beatles and AC/DC. In October 2009, he joined Yo-Yo Ma on stage in a National Arts Centre gala and performed "With a Little Help from My Friends". He was also accompanied by Herringbone, an Ottawa band with whom he regularly practises. He received a standing ovation after providing the piano accompaniment and lead vocals for the song.

In October 2010, Harper taped a cameo appearance in an episode of the television show ''Murdoch Mysteries'', which aired July 20, 2011, during the show's fourth season.

Harper is tall. He is the first Prime Minister to employ a personal stylist, Michelle Muntean, whose duties range from co-ordinating his clothing to preparing his hair and makeup for speeches and television appearances. While formerly on public payroll, she has been paid for by the Conservative Party since "some time [in] 2007".

Electoral record

All electoral information is taken from Elections Canada. Italicized expenditures refer to submitted totals, and are presented when the final reviewed totals are not available.

See also

28th Canadian Ministry The Harper cabinet

List of current heads of state and government

List of Prime Ministers of Canada

List of Prime Ministers of Queen Elizabeth II

United States – Canada softwood lumber dispute

References

Further reading

Behiels, Michael D. "Stephen Harper's Rise to Power" (PDF) ''American Review of Canadian Studies'' Spring 2010, Vol. 40 Issue 1, pp 118–45

Chantal, Hébert. (2007) ''French Kiss: Stephen Harper's Blind Date with Quebec'' Vintage Canada, ISBN 9780676979084

Cody, Howard. "Minority Government In Canada: The Stephen Harper Experience" ''American Review of Canadian Studies'' 2008 38(1): 27-42

Flanagan, Tom. (2009) ''Harper’s Team: Behind the Scenes in the Conservative Rise to Power'' (2nd ed), ISBN 9780773535459

Johnson, William. (2006) ''Stephen Harper & the Future of Canada'' (2nd ed) Douglas Gibson, ISBN 0771043503

Mackey, Lloyd. (2005) ''"The pilgrimage of Stephen Harper''" ECW Press ISBN 1550227130

Martin, Lawrence. ''"Harperland: The Politics of Control"'' ''Viking Canada'' (2010). ISBN 9780670065172

Plamondon, Bob. ''Full Circle: Death and Resurrection in Canadian Conservative Politics'' (2006), 472 pp., ISBN 9781552638552

External links

Prime Minister of Canada – official website

Stephen Harper's M.A. Thesis

CBC – The Conservative Leader

Office of the Prime Minister's YouTube channel

P.M. Harper Sings

Harper's Air Miles - Stephen Harper's foreign trips, since 2006

;Notes: Order of precedence Category:1959 births Category:Canadian economists Category:Canadian Newsmakers of the Year Category:Conservative Party of Canada MPs Category:Current national leaders Category:Members of the Canadian House of Commons from Alberta Category:Members of the Christian and Missionary Alliance Category:Leaders of the Conservative Party of Canada Category:Leaders of the Opposition (Canada) Category:Living people Category:Members of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada Category:People from East York, Toronto Category:People from Calgary Category:Prime Ministers of Canada Category:Reform Party of Canada MPs Category:University of Calgary alumni

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