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Mr.
Harper was first elected to the House of
Commons in 1993 as the Reform Party of
Canada Member of Parliament for Calgary
West. He stepped down in 1997 to become
Vice President (later President) of the
National Citizens Coalition, a
non-partisan Canadian organization that
advocates for individual freedoms and
accountable government. In 2002, Mr.
Harper won the leadership of the
Canadian Alliance, became Leader of the
Official Opposition and returned to the
House as MP for Calgary Southwest.
In
2003, the members of the Canadian
Alliance and Progressive Conservative
Party of Canada voted to unite as the
new Conservative Party of Canada, and
selected Mr. Harper as their first
leader.
Under
his leadership, the Conservatives gained
25 seats in the 2004 federal election,
largely as a result of a major
breakthrough in Canada’s most populous
province, Ontario. Two years later,
Canadians gave Mr. Harper and his party
a mandate to form a Conservative
government for the first time in 13
years.
In
2008, the Harper-led Conservatives were
returned to office with a larger seat
count and a mandate to guide Canada
through the volatile economic conditions
presaging the worst global recession in
half a century.
Now in
his fourth year as Prime Minister, Mr.
Harper and his Government are working
hard to ensure Canada’s economic
recovery is strong and sustainable.
Keeping taxes low, reducing deficits and
laying the foundations for long-term
prosperity top the Government’s agenda.
Mr. Harper is also continuing to advance
Canadians’ interests and values on the
international stage in a year when
Canada is hosting the 2010 Olympic and
Paralympic Winter Games, the G8 and G20
summits, and a Royal Tour by Her Majesty
Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada.
Stephen Harper was born on April 30,
1959, in Toronto, Ontario. He moved to
Alberta in 1978 to work in the petroleum
industry and went on to obtain both a
bachelor’s and a master’s degree in
economics from the University of
Calgary. Mr. Harper and his wife Laureen
have two children, Benjamin and Rachel,
and maintain a permanent home in
Calgary.
From
Canadian Governemnt website -
http://pm.gc.ca
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