John van Dongen
Encyclopedia
John van Dongen is a Member of the Legislative Assembly
, representing the riding of Abbotsford South
, in the province of British Columbia
(BC), Canada
. Mr. van Dongen is one of the longest serving BC Liberal MLAs in the BC Legislature. He was first elected in 1995 in a by-election and was re-elected in 1996, 2001, 2005, and 2009.
John is the oldest of seven children and was born in Canada shortly after his parents emigrated from Holland. He earned a degree in agricultural economics at the University of British Columbia and operated a successful dairy farm for more than 35 years.
Before his election to the Legislative Assembly, Mr. van Dongen was involved in farm organizations and businesses for almost two decades. He served 15 years as a Director of Dairyland (Agrifoods International Co-operative) including one year as Vice President of the Board; 10 years as a Director of BC Dairy Foundation, two years as President. Mr. van Dongen also served 6 years as Director of the BC Farm Debt Review Board and 10 years as Director of the BC Dairyman’s Association, including two years as President.
On July 4, 1996, van Dongen admonished the government for halting planning of a replacement for the obsolete MSA Hospital. Speaking in the Legislative Assembly, he stated, “The inclusion of this item as a project that should be under review is almost as ludicrous as the Ministry of Health's decision a year ago to downgrade population projections to levels which had already been exceeded by the actual numbers. This is the second or possibly third time that the MSA hospital is being planned, and the holding costs of the site are running in excess of $200,000 per month. I find it to be insulting to our intelligence that the government continues to be less than frank about its true intentions with respect to the MSA hospital. The end result is a continued waste of staff time, both for the local community and the government, in talking about a hospital that the government has apparently no intention of building.” The decision was quickly overturned and planning continued. Van Dongen later served several years on the Hospital Construction Committee, and was acknowledged by Premier Campbell at the official opening of Abbotsford Regional Hospital in 2008, for his many years of advocacy and tireless efforts on behalf of the Abbotsford community.
From 2001 to 2005, van Dongen was the BC Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries. In his first year in office, he delivered on the difficult job of reducing the Ministry’s budget by 45% – the largest budget reduction ever implemented in a Provincial government ministry at that time.
From 2005 to 2008, Mr. van Dongen served as the Minister of State for Intergovernmental Relations where he was instrumental in introducing the Enhanced Driver’s License to BC, the first province to adopt the program.
A cabinet shuffle in 2008 saw van Dongen appointed as the BC Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. Although only in office for a year, van Dongen’s stewardship led to numerous accomplishments. He quickly addressed public concerns about ethics issues at the materials damage research facility of the Insurance Corporation of BC; introduced an aggressive strategy to deal with gang and gun violence; lobbied Federal Justice Minister Honorable Rob Nicholson on amendments to the Criminal Code regarding the “2 for 1 credit,” which resulted in changes to the law in 2011; introduced certification requirements for Home Inspectors; shepherded Pay Day Lender legislation, which had been under development for 13 years, into law, as well as new Gift Card Legislation; and finished the new 90 page BC Police Act which was tabled in the Legislature in the spring of 2009.
On April 24, 2009, van Dongen announced that the BC Office of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles, a department for which he is responsible in the Legislature, had suspended his driver's licence for a period of four months. In an interview with CBC Radio van Dongen said the suspension was a result of his being cited twice in one year for driving in excess of 41 km/h above the posted speed limit. Van Dongen featured prominently in anti-speeding advertising campaigns for the provincial government in recent years. Three days later, van Dongen resigned as Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor-General.
After the 2009 provincial election, Mr. van Dongen was appointed Party Whip, and continued in his roles as Member of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance and Government Services, and Chair of the Caucus Committee on Government Restructuring.
In 2010, he was appointed as the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee to Appoint a Chief Electoral Officer for BC.
John van Dongen awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship by the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International in 2009; was named an Honorary Member of the BC Farm Writers’ Association in 2010; and was nominated for British Columbia for the 2010 ALS Society of Canada Brett Yerex Exceptional Advocacy Award.
Mr. van Dongen is currently a member of Rural Caucus and the Cabinet Committee on Jobs and Economic Growth. He is also the Chair of a new Criminal Justice Reform Project.
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....
, representing the riding of Abbotsford South
Abbotsford South
Abbotsford South is a provincial electoral district in British Columbia, Canada established by the Electoral Districts Act, 2008. It will come into effect upon the next dissolution of the BC Legislature, currently scheduled for April 2009, and will first be contested in the ensuing election.-...
, in the province of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
(BC), Canada
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...
. Mr. van Dongen is one of the longest serving BC Liberal MLAs in the BC Legislature. He was first elected in 1995 in a by-election and was re-elected in 1996, 2001, 2005, and 2009.
John is the oldest of seven children and was born in Canada shortly after his parents emigrated from Holland. He earned a degree in agricultural economics at the University of British Columbia and operated a successful dairy farm for more than 35 years.
Before his election to the Legislative Assembly, Mr. van Dongen was involved in farm organizations and businesses for almost two decades. He served 15 years as a Director of Dairyland (Agrifoods International Co-operative) including one year as Vice President of the Board; 10 years as a Director of BC Dairy Foundation, two years as President. Mr. van Dongen also served 6 years as Director of the BC Farm Debt Review Board and 10 years as Director of the BC Dairyman’s Association, including two years as President.
On July 4, 1996, van Dongen admonished the government for halting planning of a replacement for the obsolete MSA Hospital. Speaking in the Legislative Assembly, he stated, “The inclusion of this item as a project that should be under review is almost as ludicrous as the Ministry of Health's decision a year ago to downgrade population projections to levels which had already been exceeded by the actual numbers. This is the second or possibly third time that the MSA hospital is being planned, and the holding costs of the site are running in excess of $200,000 per month. I find it to be insulting to our intelligence that the government continues to be less than frank about its true intentions with respect to the MSA hospital. The end result is a continued waste of staff time, both for the local community and the government, in talking about a hospital that the government has apparently no intention of building.” The decision was quickly overturned and planning continued. Van Dongen later served several years on the Hospital Construction Committee, and was acknowledged by Premier Campbell at the official opening of Abbotsford Regional Hospital in 2008, for his many years of advocacy and tireless efforts on behalf of the Abbotsford community.
From 2001 to 2005, van Dongen was the BC Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries. In his first year in office, he delivered on the difficult job of reducing the Ministry’s budget by 45% – the largest budget reduction ever implemented in a Provincial government ministry at that time.
From 2005 to 2008, Mr. van Dongen served as the Minister of State for Intergovernmental Relations where he was instrumental in introducing the Enhanced Driver’s License to BC, the first province to adopt the program.
A cabinet shuffle in 2008 saw van Dongen appointed as the BC Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. Although only in office for a year, van Dongen’s stewardship led to numerous accomplishments. He quickly addressed public concerns about ethics issues at the materials damage research facility of the Insurance Corporation of BC; introduced an aggressive strategy to deal with gang and gun violence; lobbied Federal Justice Minister Honorable Rob Nicholson on amendments to the Criminal Code regarding the “2 for 1 credit,” which resulted in changes to the law in 2011; introduced certification requirements for Home Inspectors; shepherded Pay Day Lender legislation, which had been under development for 13 years, into law, as well as new Gift Card Legislation; and finished the new 90 page BC Police Act which was tabled in the Legislature in the spring of 2009.
On April 24, 2009, van Dongen announced that the BC Office of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles, a department for which he is responsible in the Legislature, had suspended his driver's licence for a period of four months. In an interview with CBC Radio van Dongen said the suspension was a result of his being cited twice in one year for driving in excess of 41 km/h above the posted speed limit. Van Dongen featured prominently in anti-speeding advertising campaigns for the provincial government in recent years. Three days later, van Dongen resigned as Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor-General.
After the 2009 provincial election, Mr. van Dongen was appointed Party Whip, and continued in his roles as Member of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance and Government Services, and Chair of the Caucus Committee on Government Restructuring.
In 2010, he was appointed as the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee to Appoint a Chief Electoral Officer for BC.
John van Dongen awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship by the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International in 2009; was named an Honorary Member of the BC Farm Writers’ Association in 2010; and was nominated for British Columbia for the 2010 ALS Society of Canada Brett Yerex Exceptional Advocacy Award.
Mr. van Dongen is currently a member of Rural Caucus and the Cabinet Committee on Jobs and Economic Growth. He is also the Chair of a new Criminal Justice Reform Project.