1. Heather Stefanson is the former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba and served as Leader of the Opposition of Manitoba after the 2023 Manitoba election.
87 Facts About Heather Stefanson
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Heather Stefanson was the member of the Legislative Assembly for the electoral district of Tuxedo until May 6,2024.
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Heather Stefanson was raised in Winnipeg, where she attended St John's-Ravenscourt School.
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Heather Stefanson received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Western Ontario.
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From 1995 to 2000, Heather Stefanson was a member of the University of Manitoba's Young Associates organization.
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In 1999, Heather Stefanson was suspended for seven months by the Manitoba District Council of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada for failing to meet educational requirements.
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Heather Stefanson was found to have made 34 inappropriate trades while she was working as an investment adviser at Wellington West Capital.
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Heather Stefanson had been suspended from acting in the capacity of a registered representative but had issued statements to clients indicating her employment as a registered representative during this suspension.
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Heather Stefanson was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in a 2000 by-election, replacing former Progressive Conservative Premier Gary Filmon in the south Winnipeg riding of Tuxedo.
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Heather Stefanson was easily re-elected in the 2003 election, with the NDP improving to a second-place status, followed by her re-election in the 2007,2011,2016, and 2019 elections.
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On 2 November 2021, Heather Stefanson became the first female Premier of Manitoba following a majority vote of the Progressive Conservative caucus.
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Heather Stefanson was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in a 2000 by-election, replacing former Progressive Conservative Premier Gary Filmon in the south Winnipeg riding of Tuxedo.
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Heather Stefanson defeated Liberal Rochelle Zimberg by 2692 votes to 1586; Iona Starr, representing the governing New Democratic Party, finished third.
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Heather Stefanson continues to serve as an honorary board member for Special Olympics Manitoba.
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Heather Stefanson has announced several investments in the Assiniboine Park located in her Tuxedo constituency.
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In 2017, when Heather Stefanson was serving as Deputy Premier, she announced $15-million for the Assiniboine Park Conservancy's new Diversity Gardens project, the final phase of the Conservancy's 10-year, $200 million development plan.
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Heather Stefanson has maintained strong ties with the Jewish community throughout her time as MLA.
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Heather Stefanson was sworn in as Minister of Justice and Attorney General in a ceremony at the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in 2016, becoming only the second woman to hold that position since 1871.
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Heather Stefanson was appointed Deputy Premier and Keeper of the Great Seal of the province of Manitoba.
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In 2017, Heather Stefanson collaborated with the Chief Justices of Manitoba's provincial court, Court of Queen's Bench, and Court of Appeal to request that the federal government change the Criminal Code to eliminate preliminary inquiries in the province.
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In October 2017, Heather Stefanson established a committee of experts in family law to make recommendations on how to make the system more accessible and less adversarial for couples going through separation and divorce.
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In June 2018, Heather Stefanson announced the committee's recommendations, which included establishing a three-year pilot project in Winnipeg to direct Winnipeg-based family matters to non-adversarial mediation outside of court; creating an administrative office to triage and find more appropriate ways to resolve disputes; and expanding information available to Manitobans about family law related issues.
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In March 2018, Heather Stefanson introduced legislation reinstating the Queen's Counsel designation for Manitoba lawyers who have served for at least ten years and have demonstrated outstanding practice as a lawyer among other contributions.
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In October 2018, Heather Stefanson's predecessor issued the first call for nominations for Queen's Counsel appointments.
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In December 2017, Heather Stefanson introduced The Safe and Responsible Retailing of Cannabis Act, which established the framework for the regulation of cannabis retail sales in Manitoba.
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Heather Stefanson defended the home grow prohibition as a means of keeping cannabis away from children and preventing diversion of supply into the black market.
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In March 2018, Heather Stefanson announced The Impaired Driving Offences Act, which updated drug impaired driving provisions to complement pending federal legislation.
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Heather Stefanson was joined by the Minister of Health, Seniors and Active Living who announced a provincial prohibition on smoking cannabis in outdoor public places.
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In October 2017, Heather Stefanson established a committee of experts in family law to make recommendations on how to make the system more accessible and less adversarial for couples going through separation and divorce.
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In June 2018, Heather Stefanson announced the committee's recommendations, which included establishing a three-year pilot project in Winnipeg to direct Winnipeg-based family matters to non-adversarial mediation outside of court; creating an administrative office to triage and find more appropriate ways to resolve disputes; and expanding information available to Manitobans about family law related issues.
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In March 2018, Heather Stefanson introduced legislation reinstating the Queen's Counsel designation for Manitoba lawyers who have served for at least 10 years and have demonstrated outstanding practice as a lawyer among other contributions.
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In October 2018, Heather Stefanson's predecessor issued the first call for nominations for Queen's Counsel appointments.
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Heather Stefanson was sworn in as Minister of Families in a ceremony at the Manitoba Legislature on August 1,2018.
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In September 2018, Heather Stefanson reported the first reduction in the number of children in Child and Family Services care in 15 years, with a nine percent decrease in child apprehensions and an eight percent increase in family reunifications.
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Heather Stefanson credited the government's emphasis on preventative measures as helping at-risk families avoid contact with the child welfare system.
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The number of children in CFS care decreased each year Heather Stefanson was Minister of Families.
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Heather Stefanson made several changes to Manitoba's CFS system meant to reduce the number of children in care.
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Heather Stefanson had previously invested $400,000 to launch Granny's House, a two-story home in North Point Douglas that provides short-term respite for parents otherwise at-risk of CFS contact.
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In June 2019, Heather Stefanson signed onto the National Housing Strategy with the federal government.
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In July 2020, Heather Stefanson announced a $31 million investment in repairs to Manitoba Housing properties, estimated to make over 800 otherwise vacant units ready for new tenants.
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Heather Stefanson announced several home ownership programs throughout her time as Minister of Families.
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Heather Stefanson later announced $2 million to provide down payment assistance to first-time homebuyers and help build houses for First Nations families through a partnership between the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and the Manitoba Real Estate Association.
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Heather Stefanson was Minister of Families during most of the first year of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
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Two days later, Heather Stefanson announced $27.6 million in support to help childcare centres serve the children of frontline workers, including an $18 million grant program administered by the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce and Manitoba Chambers of Commerce to help early childhood educators offer childcare services at home or in the community.
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For children in the Manitoba CFS system, Heather Stefanson extended supports and services to all young adults who would otherwise age out of the system during the pandemic.
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Heather Stefanson announced a partnership with telecommunications firm TELUS to support children in CFS, with the donating 120 tablets with data plans to the province.
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Heather Stefanson announced measures to improve staffing in disability services agencies, including $6 million to help with overtime costs, replacement staff, and sick leave as part of a broader $10 million Pandemic Staffing Support Benefit.
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Heather Stefanson later announced a one-time $5 wage top up for workers in the disability services and other critical frontline positions as part of the $35 million Caregiver Wage Support Program.
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Heather Stefanson announced a partnership with Manitoba Possible and Red River College to increase staffing in disability services agencies during the pandemic.
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In June 2020, Heather Stefanson announced $2.5 million for a Home Nutrition and Learning Program pilot project.
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Heather Stefanson was sworn in as Minister of Health and Seniors Care in a ceremony at the Manitoba Legislature on January 5,2021.
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Heather Stefanson did not retain the Deputy Premier role, which the premier awarded to Kelvin Goertzen, the Minister of Legislative and Public Affairs.
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Heather Stefanson identified the COVID-19 vaccine rollout as a significant priority in interviews following her appointment as Minister of Health and Seniors Care.
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In February 2021, Heather Stefanson announced that the Manitoba government would implement all recommendations of Dr Lynn Stevenson's review of long-term care.
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Heather Stefanson's death prompted criticism from Wab Kinew, the Leader of the Opposition, who questioned whether Mousseau had been appropriately cleared for medical transport.
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In January 2021, Heather Stefanson announced a four-stage immunization plan that outlined a strategy to expand Manitoba's immunization campaign to priority groups and then to all Manitobans based on age.
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Heather Stefanson was criticized for a slow rollout of the vaccine, which she attributed to a lack of supply from the federal government.
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On May 5,2021, Heather Stefanson announced that the province had administered 500,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.
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On May 21,2021, the province announced Heather Stefanson would be taking a medical leave to undergo a necessary procedure recommended by her physician.
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Heather Stefanson resumed her duties virtually in late June and gave her first in-person interview with media on July 8,2021.
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Heather Stefanson did not provide details as to the nature of her medical procedure.
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Heather Stefanson later told media she had undergone a hysterectomy on the recommendation of her doctor after putting it off for more than a year.
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Heather Stefanson was the first PC party member to announce their candidacy in the election, and had the support of two thirds of the PC caucus.
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Heather Stefanson ran prominently on a pledge to scrap Bill 64, Pallister's unpopular education reform legislation.
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Heather Stefanson narrowly won the race with 363 votes over her opponent.
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Heather Stefanson received donations from several prominent businesspeople, including Winnipeg Jets executive chairman Mark Chipman, Richardson Financial Group CEO Sandy Riley, and Buhler Industries founder John Buhler.
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On May 14,2022, Heather Stefanson was cautioned for having illegally spent $1,800 in campaign funds prior to the electoral period beginning.
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Heather Stefanson was sworn in as Manitoba's first female premier on November 2,2021.
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Heather Stefanson promised to create a task force to tackle the backlog in surgeries and diagnostic tests.
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Heather Stefanson announced a new senior leadership team, including a new Chief of Staff.
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Heather Stefanson established a new Economic Development Board of Cabinet on February 22,2022, to co-ordinate economic growth and job creation initiatives in Manitoba.
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Heather Stefanson acted in response to the COVID-19 Omicron variant, only after annual Christmas celebrations.
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Heather Stefanson announced public health orders to combat the Omicron variant on December 27,2021.
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Heather Stefanson required her cabinet and caucus to be vaccinated against COVID-19, imposing a deadline for them to meet immunization requirements.
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Heather Stefanson later removed Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler from cabinet due his refusal to disclose his vaccination status, a decision she characterized as inconsistent with the government's efforts to promote vaccination.
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Heather Stefanson later removed Tory MLA Josh Guenter from his role as Legislative Assistant to the Minister of Health for his continued disagreement with the government over COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
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Over her premiership, polling data has consistently suggested Heather Stefanson to be the most unpopular premier in Canada.
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On January 27,2022, Heather Stefanson admitted to breaking conflict of interest rules when she failed to disclose over $31 million in property sales.
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On June 9,2022, Pride Winnipeg criticized Heather Stefanson for using Pride as a photo-op when she did not march in the parade despite having promised to do so.
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When questioned, Heather Stefanson blamed this on "scheduling conflicts" and miscommunication from her staff.
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Pride Winnipeg subsequently stated that they would not be extending an invitation to Heather Stefanson to speak at any 2023 Pride events.
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Heather Stefanson ultimately announced annual grants of $250,000 for Winnipeg Pride, and would take part in the 2023 event by walking in the parade.
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On Tuesday, October 18,2022, concerns were raised when it was discovered that Heather Stefanson had used an undisclosed secret email for government communication.
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In February 2023, Heather Stefanson ended an online school that was launched in January 2021 to provide a remote learning option for grades K-8 during the height of the pandemic, the only K-8 remote learning option at the time.
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Heather Stefanson led the PCs into the 2023 Manitoba general election.
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Heather Stefanson primarily campaigned on reducing the cost of living for Manitoba families and businesses.
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Heather Stefanson narrowly held on to her own seat, and was one of only three PCs left in the capital.