Myron Thompson was born in 1936 in Monte Vista, Colorado.
He was raised on the family farm and resided there for 25 years.
He attended the University of Adams State, Colorado and received his B.A. in Business Administration and Education and then went on to do one year of Post Graduate studies. Myron also served two years in the US Military.
He moved to Sundre, Alberta in 1968 and becam
e a Canadian Citizen in 1974.
He spent 23 years as Teacher, Counsellor and Principal at Sundre High School as well as serving as Councillor and Mayor of Sundre. He has been involved with a number of community organizations.
Myron was first nominated as Reform Party candidate on June 13, 1992 and is presently serving his 4th term as MP for the constituency of Wild Rose. He currently represents the Official Opposition on the Justice Committee. He has also served as the Conservative Party's Critic of Canada's Child Pornography policies, and has become one of the foremost defenders of the rights of the child. In the past, Myron has served as Deputy Solicitor General Critic in Charge of Native Issues , as well as serving as the Official Opposition Watchdog during the G-8 Summit in Kananaskis. Previously, he was Critic for Solicitor General, and Organized Crime; and Deputy Critic for Indian Affairs, and Canada Customs.
He is married to Dorothy (Dot) with 2 adult children.
| Born: |
1936 |
| Education: |
B.A. in Business Administration and Education,
University of Adams State, Colorado |
| Personal: |
Married, 2 children |
| Career: |
Teacher, guidance counsellor and principal at
Sundre Jr. and Sr. High School
Councillor and Mayor of Sundre
U.S. military (2 years) |
| Political Involvement: |
- Member of Parliament (present)
- Member of Justice Commitee
- Chief Opposition Watchdog for Child Pornography (former)
- Deputy Solicitor General Critic in charge of Native Issues(former)
- Official Opposition Watchdog for the G-8 Summit in Kananaskis (former)
- Chief Opposition Critic for Organized Crime (former)
- Critic for the Solicitor General (August 2000)
- Deputy Critic for the Solicitor General
(former)
- Deputy Critic for Indian Affairs (former)
|
Accomplishments
Since first being elected in 1993 to serve the scenic riding of Wild Rose, Myron Thompson has served in a number of key roles for the Conservative Party, and its two
predecessors
the Canadian Alliance and the Reform Party of Canada.
Myron began his parliamentary career by being the first out of the gate to expose government waste of taxpayer's dollars in January 1994. He questioned the then Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Marcel Masse on his use of a challenger jet, rather than a commercial airliner to deliver a speech in New Orleans. This led to the immediate cutting of the challenger fleet to 4 jets at a saving of $24 million dollars to taxpayers and a new mandate for government travel.
Myron is currently serving on the Standing Committee on Justice and has been active in many justice and victims' rights rallies. Myron has fought since 1993 for substantive changes to the Young Offenders' Act. He has also fought unrelentingly to protect the family in his opposition to same sex benefits legislation and to stop the current injustice regarding the distribution of child pornography. He has also served as Critic to the Solicitor General for the Official Opposition.
In October 2003 Myron received unanimous consent from all parties in the House of Commons for a motion that called for the government to immediately re-write the child pornography law to eliminate all defenses that justify the criminal possession of child pornography and, therefore, protect our children from further sexual exploitation.
In June 1995 Myron won a huge victory for victims of crime by single-handedly forcing the Minister of Justice to prepare and pass DNA legislation in record time. Myron asked the Minister during Question Period when he was finally going to do something about DNA testing. The Minister tried to give a smart “political” answer, but realized he had lost the fight. As a result, he was forced into a commitment to prepare legislation that afternoon. Within 24 hours this legislation allowed police to get warrants to obtain DNA samples from suspects. This legislation also opened the door for a DNA data bank for violent offenders to be established in Canada. Many crimes in Canada have been solved thanks to Myron's efforts for DNA testing.
During 1996-1997 Myron was tasked with the job of formulating Reform's policy on Prison Reform. During these travels he visited all major prisons across the country and soon found the system to be unaccountable and poorly run. Myron received quite a reputation for his surprise visits to the Wardens across the country. As soon as they knew Myron was coming, they made attempts to conceal their practices. In one leaked e-mail the warden directed his staff to put away the snow blowers, go out and buy shovels and make the inmates start shoveling. Week after week Myron stood up in the House of Commons pointing out to the then Solicitor General, Lawrence McAulay, the poor business practices and questionable safety issues rampant in Canada's prison system. After weeks of embarrassing examples the then Commissioner, Ole Ingstrup was soon quietly replaced. In Michael Harris' book Con Game, Myron was mentioned for his exemplary work in exposing our poorly run prison system.
During 1998-1999 Myron was asked by Preston Manning to help our aboriginal communities come together and speak with one voice. In his travels he met a lady from Manitoba named Leona Freed. Together, Myron and Leona traveled the country building the First Nations Accountability Coalition. Presently, the coalition has over 5,000 members and is a strong voice against corruption on the reserves. Their motto is accountability, equality, and democracy, and they have made a tremendous difference for grassroots aboriginals in Canada.
In 2000, with the G8 Summit taking place in the Wild Rose riding, Myron was named the G8 watchdog for the Canadian Alliance. He met with all major stakeholders through extensive fieldwork, and exposed numerous flaws in the Liberals' preparations for the Summit. At the behest of numerous constituents who would be directly affected by the security arrangements, Myron received a guarantee from the Solicitor General that any damages involving the G8 Summit would be compensated to his constituents. He worked tirelessly afterwards as well when the Liberals reneged on many of these promises. Myron received a little international attention when he questioned the Public Works Minister in April 2000 about posting the confidential G8 security plans on the Internet. Spotlight magazine from Munich, Germany featured Myron's question in their June
issue.
In addition to Myron's critic roles he has also introduced a number of Private Members' Bills, on a variety of subjects ranging from the income tax act to justice issues. Myron's ideas hold such sway in Ottawa, that even the Chretien/Martin Liberals recognize their common sense. They liked one idea so much that they ended up stealing it in 2002 when they introduced the First Nations Governance Act. Within this proposed legislation, they borrowed Myron's idea of a First Nations Ombudsmen, however they didn't include the real core of the legislation that called for this individual to be impartial, accountable, and cost effective.
At the constituency level, Myron has fulfilled his 1993 promise to be “the most accessible Member of Parliament the riding has ever seen.” Every year he has held numerous town hall meeting and coffee drop-ins with constituents, and he has attended dozens of meetings with town councils, service organizations, and other concerned parties.
In particular, Myron has fought hard to represent the farm community in Wild Rose. He worked closely with the farmers in Wild Rose in analyzing changes to the Canadian Wheat Board Act, organized and initiated the Hay West campaign, as well as spearheaded a rally in favor of Canada's Beef Producers.
In the Bow Valley region he conducted many meetings, as the Banff/Bow Valley study was being developed and released. This past fall he scored another victory by having the Liberals agree to commit $50 million dollars to expanding and correcting the inherantly dangerous Trans Canada Highway that runs through this region.
In addition, Myron was able to get then Finance Minister, Paul Martin to enact a major change to the Excise Tax Act. A constituent in Canmore, who was denied a new homebuilders rebate for those who operate Bed and Breakfasts, brought the issue to his attention. After a year of working with Revenue Canada officials, changes were made to the Excise Tax Act, and this constituent received a cheque from Revenue Canada for over $5000 in February 2002.
Myron operates one of the busiest constituency offices in the country, helping thousands of constituents deal with their concerns with the federal government. Most importantly, in order to make sure that he represents the views of the people of Wild Rose, Myron distributes a number of surveys in his yearly householder to constituents. The results of these surveys have assisted Myron in dealing with the many issues and legislation that arise daily in the House of Commons.
Myron Thompson has put Wild Rose on the map. He is one of the most requested Conservative speakers. From his good-natured appearances on This Hour has 22 Minutes, and most recently the Mike Bullard Show, people all across Canada know Myron Thompson, for who he truly is – a true conservative with rock solid principles, willing to fight on behalf of his constituents for what is right.
