Anita Neville
Encyclopedia
Anita Neville, MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (born July 22, 1942) was a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 politician. She was elected to the Canadian House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 as a Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 in the general election of 2000, and was re-elected in 2004 and 2006, before being defeated in 2011.

Early life and career

Neville was born in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...

, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

. She holds a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...

 from the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...

. Before entering political life, Neville worked as an Economic Development Consultant for the province of Manitoba. She was a director of Workforce 2000 and the Winnipeg Core Area Initiative and Employment Training Program, and has also been involved in the Law Society of Manitoba and the Winnipeg Jewish Child and Family organization. During the 1990s, she was a member of the Canadian delegation which monitored elections in post-war Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

.

Neville was for several years a school trustee on the Winnipeg School Board, representing Ward One in the Winnipeg School Division from 1986 to 2000. Neville regularly topped the poll in her three-member constituency. She served as Chair of the Board for five years (1987–1989; 1996–1998), and also chaired its finance committee for a period of time.

Federal politics

In the 1995 provincial election
Manitoba general election, 1995
The Manitoba general election of April 25,1995 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the Progressive Conservative Party, which won 31 seats out of 57...

 in Manitoba, Neville was a Liberal candidate in the upscale west-Winnipeg riding of River Heights. This riding is usually considered as one of the few safe seats for the provincial Liberals, and was previously held by party leader Sharon Carstairs
Sharon Carstairs
Sharon Carstairs, PC is a Canadian politician and former Senator.-Early life:Carstairs was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the daughter of former Nova Scotia Premier Harold Connolly and his wife Vivian...

 prior to her appointment to the Canadian Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...

 in 1994. Nevertheless, Neville was defeated by Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba is the only right wing political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is also the official opposition party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.-Origins and early years:...

 candidate Mike Radcliffe
Mike Radcliffe
Michael Frederick Carrington Radcliffe is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1995 to 1999, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Premier Gary Filmon from 1997 to 1999.Radcliffe was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and holds a...

, 5429 votes to 4435.

Later in 1995, Neville was re-elected as a Winnipeg school trustee, finishing in first place in Ward One with 13,828 votes. In the 1999 election
Manitoba general election, 1999
The Manitoba general election of September 21, 1999 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada....

, she chaired the successful campaign of provincial Liberal leader Jon Gerrard
Jon Gerrard
Jon Gerrard, PC, MLA is a politician and medical doctor in Manitoba, Canada. He was a Member of Parliament from 1993 to 1997, and was a secretary of state in the government of Jean Chrétien...

 in River Heights.

In the 2000 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....

, Neville was the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 nominee for the Winnipeg South Centre
Winnipeg South Centre
Winnipeg South Centre is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1925 to 1979 and since 1988.-Geography:...

, previously held by the retiring Lloyd Axworthy
Lloyd Axworthy
Lloyd Norman Axworthy, PC, OC, OM is a prominent Canadian politician, statesman and University President from Manitoba. He is best known for having served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien...

. She was elected with 15,231 votes, against 10,675 for her nearest competitor, Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....

 David Newman
David Newman (politician)
David Gerald Newman is a politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1995 to 1999, and was a cabinet minister under Gary Filmon from 1997 to 1999...

. This contest was notable for a controversy involving Canadian Alliance
Canadian Alliance
The Canadian Alliance , formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance , was a Canadian conservative political party that existed from 2000 to 2003. The party was the successor to the Reform Party of Canada and inherited its position as the Official Opposition in the House of Commons and held...

 candidate Betty Granger
Betty Granger
Betty Granger is a former school trustee in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. During the 2000 federal election, her comments about Asian immigration to Canada provoked a national political controversy....

, who made comments about Asian students that many interpreted as racist.

In the 2004 election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

, Neville was re-elected with 18,133 votes against 10,516 for Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 candidate Raj Joshi.

In 2008, Neville was re-elected with 16,438 votes (42.3%) against 14,103 (36.3%) for Conservative Party candidate Trevor Kennerd, 5,490 (14.1%) for NDP candidate Rachel Heinrichs, and 2,860 (7.4%) for Green Party candidate Vere Scott.

Under the government of Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....

, Neville served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage
Minister of Canadian Heritage
The Minister of Canadian Heritage is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who heads the Department of Canadian Heritage, the federal government department responsible for Canada's Arts, Culture, Media, Communications network, and Sport....

. She has also served as the Official Opposition
Official Opposition (Canada)
In Canada, Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition , commonly known as the Official Opposition, is usually the largest parliamentary opposition party in the House of Commons or a provincial legislative assembly that is not in government, either on its own or as part of a governing coalition...

 Critic for Indian Affairs
Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (Canada)
The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who heads two different departments...

.

In the 2011 election, Neville lost her seat to Conservative Joyce Bateman
Joyce Bateman
Joyce Bateman is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 2011 election. She represents the electoral district of Winnipeg South Centre as a member of the Conservative Party....

 by 696 votes.

Political interests

Neville was the Official Opposition Critic for the Status of Women, and was a member of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women and the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.

Neville is a prominent supporter of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

 within the Liberal Party caucus and is co-chairperson of the Liberal Parliamentarians for Israel with Senator David Smith. She was a vocal opponent of the war with Iraq in early 2003, and is currently a leading opponent of the proposed American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Missile Defense Shield
National Missile Defense
National missile defense is a generic term for a type of missile defense intended to shield an entire country against incoming missiles, such as intercontinental ballistic missile or other ballistic missiles. Interception might be by anti-ballistic missiles or directed-energy weapons such as lasers...

. She has also supported numerous initiatives in the aboriginal community, and supported the legalization of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....

 in 2005.

External links

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