Local MPs remember former finance minister Jim Flaherty
Posted Apr 11, 2014 05:54:12 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Jim Flaherty will be fondly and tearfully remembered today on Parliament Hill.
The former finance minister died yesterday at age 64, sending shock waves through the capital and across the land.
As Prime Minister Harper’s only finance minister until he resigned less than a month ago, Flaherty helped steer Canada through the world’s worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
Friends and colleagues say Flaherty was looking forward to the next phase of his life that never came.
His death left M-P’s on all sides of the political spectrum in tears.
Flaherty’s death means it won’t be business as usual today in the House of Commons, where M-Ps are expected to forego question period and instead pay tribute to Flaherty.
A rare skin disease put Flaherty on steroids recently, but the condition was not thought to be life-threatening.
The cause of death has not been indicated.
The family of Jim Flaherty released a statement:
“Christine Elliot and her triplet sons John, Galen and Quinn would like to make Canadians aware that her beloved husband and father passed away peacefully today in Ottawa.
We appreciate that he was so well supported in his public life by Canadians from coast to coast to coast and by his international colleagues. The family asks for privacy at this time.”
Former MPP for Kitchener-Waterloo, Elizabeth Witmer worked with Jim Flaherty from 1995 in the Mike Harris cabinet, until 2003. “He was an individual who worked extremely hard. He was a decent man. He had a keen interest and compassion for the disabled community in particular, but he was very focused on taking steps that improved the quality of life in the province of Ontario.” says Witmer. “I worked with Christine [Flaherty’s wife] until I left Queens park in 2012. To her and the three boys, I extend my sincere condolences. Certainly I know that Jim loved his boys and he loved Christine.”
MP for Kitchener-Waterloo, Peter Braid also released a statement:
“Today is a very sad day. The death of Jim Flaherty is a great loss to his family, friends, colleagues, and his country. My thoughts and prayers are with his family at this difficult time. He was a great public servant, and his work as Finance Minister was recognized in Canada and around the world. I will remember Jim Flaherty and be forever grateful for the strong support he provided to my efforts to strengthen the charitable sector. He will also be remembered for his tremendous work to enhance the lives of people with disabilities in Canada. His legacy is a more stable economy, a stronger society, and a better Canada.”
