About

While a struggling single mom in British Columbia, Lisa began her Bachelor of Arts degree in the Okanagan Valley. Her youngest, still in diapers at the time, would occasionally make appearances in lecture theatres when the babysitter cancelled. It was during university when Lisa became politically active, having been elected the two-term VP Academic by the students – both elections won by a landslide. It should be noted that Lisa ran unopposed.

Upon receiving her degree in the spring of 2002, Lisa loaded the kids in the car, heading east, to Ottawa’s Parliament Hill. A Manitoba MP, who appreciated Lisa’s feisty spirit, had hired her as his Legislative Assistant after she disagreed with him on post secondary education policy. After several years on the Hill, Lisa went on hiatus and completed a graduate year studying public relations while working on Michael Ignatieff’s first leadership bid.

Lisa was then lured back to the Hill as a chief of staff in the more secure environment of the Canadian Senate. After a couple of years in the Senate and another working for then-Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff, Lisa gave in to the call of Toronto. Having been raised in Vancouver, Lisa is always surprised by how much she loves the Big Smoke.

Lisa has had an interesting few years in Toronto, including having been the subject of a sexist smear in the Ontario Legislature by an MPP who should have known better. You can read all about it here and here. It is unlikely the MPP in question will ever make that mistake again.

In 2012, it was revealed that Lisa was one of the whistleblowers at Ontario’s embattled air ambulance service, Ornge.

Lisa is the Senior Vice President and Principal of Daisy Consulting Group, a Toronto issues management firm. She is also a regular commentator on two national television news networks.

Her kids, now young adults, have no desire, thankfully, to jump into the political arena.  Lisa’s partner, who you may have heard of, keeps life interesting. She also thinks he’s pretty amazing.