30 Facts About Bill Blair

Bill Blair previously held the portfolios of Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction and minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

Bill Blair's father had served as a police officer for 39 years.

Bill Blair considered pursuing a degree in law or finance, when he initially enrolled at the University of Toronto Scarborough in the mid 1970s.

Bill Blair left to follow his ambition of being a police officer, but returned later and completed a Bachelor of Arts in economics and criminology.

Bill Blair is married to Susanne McMaster, and together they have three grown children and 2 grandchildren.

Bill Blair joined the Metropolitan Toronto Police while in university to make money and began taking courses on a part-time basis.

Bill Blair walked a beat near Regent Park and later worked as an undercover officer in Toronto's drug squad.

Chief David Boothby assigned Bill Blair to improve the poor community relations between the officers of 51 Division, which patrolled Bill Blair's old beat near Regent Park.

Bill Blair normalized police relations with the community by measures such as sending cops to read to kids in local elementary schools and engaging with local businesses and churches.

In 1999, Bill Blair was considered as a candidate to replace outgoing Chief Boothby, but Mayor Mel Lastman, with the support of Premier Mike Harris, chose to hire Julian Fantino, then head of the York Regional Police.

Bill Blair succeeded Mike Boyd, who had served as interim chief after the expiry of Julian Fantino's contract.

Bill Blair served as president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

In 2013, Bill Blair came into conflict with Toronto Mayor Rob Ford after confirming to the media that the police had obtained a video of the mayor smoking what appeared to be crack cocaine.

Bill Blair retired from the police service when his contract ended on April 25,2015, and was succeeded by Deputy Chief Mark Saunders.

Bill Blair declined to comment on his future plans while he was still police chief.

The Liberal Party recruited Bill Blair to be its candidate in Scarborough Southwest for the 2015 federal election to be held October.

Bill Blair won the Liberal nomination on June 13,2015.

On October 19,2015, Bill Blair was elected to the 42nd Canadian Parliament in the Scarborough Southwest riding.

On January 28,2017, Bill Blair was named parliamentary secretary to the minister of justice.

In January 2016, Bill Blair was named as the head of the federal-provincial task force tasked with creating a plan for the legalization of cannabis in Canada.

On September 19,2017, Bill Blair assumed the role of parliamentary secretary to the minister of health.

Bill Blair has held a number of roles working with the Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

On July 18,2018, Bill Blair joined Cabinet when he was appointed Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction.

Bill Blair was made Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness on November 20,2019, soon after his re-election to the 43rd Canadian Parliament.

Bill Blair became President of the Privy Council on October 26,2021, and dropped public safety from his portfolio, becoming Minister of Emergency Preparedness, soon after his re-election to the 44th Canadian Parliament.

In November 2021, Bill Blair oversaw the Canadian Armed Forces' operation to help those in the Pacific coast of British Columbia amidst torrential rains that caused landslides and floods.

Bill Blair played a key role in the federal government's response to the Canada convoy protest, where the Emergencies Act was invoked.

In September 2022, Bill Blair coordinated the federal response to Hurricane Fiona.

Bill Blair is a Member of the Venerable Order of Saint John.

On January 19,2013, Bill Blair was honoured by the Canadian Tamil Congress, with their inaugural "Leaders for Change Award" for his exemplary leadership during the protests of 2009 in Toronto.