13 Facts About Bill Siksay

William Livingstone Siksay was born on March 11,1955 and is a Canadian politician.

Bill Siksay was born in Oshawa, Ontario, to parents Patricia and William Bill Siksay.

Bill Siksay then enrolled in the MDiv programme at the Vancouver School of Theology at the University of British Columbia, studying as a candidate to be a congregational minister in the United Church of Canada.

Bill Siksay was one of the first people to come out as gay or lesbian in the process of his ordination and helped start the debate in the church on the ordination and commissioning of openly gay or lesbian candidates.

Bill Siksay did not complete the programme and was not ordained.

Bill Siksay ran in the 1997 election in the riding of Vancouver Centre, but lost to incumbent Hedy Fry.

Bill Siksay was previously critic for Citizenship and Immigration, and then for Canadian Heritage and Housing.

In May 2005, Siksay introduced a bill to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression.

Bill Siksay was again re-elected by a narrow margin in the 2008 election.

Bill Siksay was the only MP in Parliament to vote against the Tackling Violent Crime Act, arguing that its provisions on the age of consent would harm LGBT youth.

On December 16,2010, Bill Siksay announced that he would not run again in the subsequent election.

Bill Siksay's seat was retained for the New Democrats by Kennedy Stewart in the 2011 federal election.

On July 2,2014, Siksay began as working as the administrative assistant to the bishop of the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster, Melissa M Skelton, who retired February 28,2021.