Tom Rideout

Gerard Thomas Rideout ( born June 25, 1948 in Fleur de Lys, Newfoundland ) is a former Canadian politician from the Liberal Party and the Progressive Conservative Party. He was in 1989 for 44 days Prime Minister of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Life

Rideout began his political career in 1975 when he was first elected as a candidate of the Liberal Party for the constituency of Baie Verte - White Bay as a member of the House of Representatives of Newfoundland and Labrador. In 1979 he was re-elected as a Liberal in this constituency, but resigned in 1980 the Progressive Conservative Party, since the Liberals took in his opinion, not a strong stance on the issue of ownership of the province to coastal resources.

In the provincial elections in 1982 and 1985, he was elected member of the House of Representatives again in his and was during this same time period 1982 to 1984 Parliamentary Assistant to Prime Minister Brian Peckford. In 1984, he was viewed as a potential successor Peckfords and appointed by the latter to the Minister of Culture, Recreation and Youth in his cabinet. After a cabinet reshuffle, he took between 1985 and 1989 the influential Ministry of Fisheries.

Following the resignation Peckfords as chairman of the Progressive Conservative Party in January 1989 he applied for the successor and was elected shortly afterwards at a party congress in St. John's party chairman.

On March 22, 1989, he was, as such, Peckfords successor as Prime Minister of Newfoundland and Labrador, where his tenure, however, lasted only 44 days. For the general elections on 20 April 1989, the Liberal Party was also under the new chairman Clyde Wells 31 of the 52 seats in the House, giving a broad absolute majority. On 5 May 1989 Wells was sworn in as the new Prime Minister.

Rideout then became leader of the opposition. While some observers believed that Rideout lost by the hastily proclaimed elections, others saw the reason for the electoral defeat of the fact that after more than 17-year reign of the Progressive Conservative Party of time had come for a change of government. As opposition leader he led in January 1990 to political forces to review the so-called Meech Lake Accord, an ultimately unsuccessful amendment to the Constitution of Canada.

On January 17, 1991, he announced his resignation as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party and finally laid in September 1991 from his position as party chairman, opposition leader and Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Baie Verte - White Bay down officially. Was succeeded by Len Simms, whom he had only narrowly in the election for party chairman in 1989.

After he unsuccessfully applied for in 1993 a return to politics, he was eventually re-elected as member of the House of Representatives in 1999, representing the constituency zunächstbis 2007 Lewisporte, and then until 2008 the constituency Baie Verte - Springdale.

After the conclusion of next completed his studies in law, he was admitted to the Bar in 1998.

After the electoral victory of the Progressive Conservative Party in November 2003, the new Prime Minister Danny Williams appointed him Minister for issues of indigenous peoples as well as for public works, services and transport. In addition to these positions, he was Minister from September to October 2004, Acting Minister of Health and Community Services.

After a cabinet reshuffle Prime Minister Williams appointed him on 8 November 2005 as Vice - Prime Minister and Minister for Fisheries. After a dispute with the Prime Minister about the construction of roads in his constituency, he finally came on 30 June 2008 back of his Cabinet offices and lay down even his seat.