Russ Hiebert

Russ Hiebert MP
Member of Parliament for South Surrey—White Rock—Cloverdale
Incumbent
Assumed office 2004
Preceded by	Val Meredith
Personal details
Born	February 8, 1969 (1969-02-08) Steinbach, Manitoba
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Andrea Hiebert
Residence	Cloverdale, British Columbia
Profession	Lawyer, Businessman

Russel "Russ" Hiebert (born February 8, 1969) is the Canadian Member of Parliament for South Surrey—White Rock—Cloverdale. He was born in Steinbach, Manitoba. He has a BA from Biola University, and an MBA and LL.B from the University of British Columbia. Hiebert was a practicing lawyer and small businessman prior to entering Parliament. He is married with four children.

Career

In 2004 he won the nomination to represent the newly-merged Conservative Party. On June 28, 2004, Hiebert was elected to the House of Commons in the 2004 federal election. He ran against Liberal candidate Judy Higginbotham, a veteran Surrey City Councillor, winning by more than 3400 votes. During his first term as MP, Hiebert served on the Ethics and Privacy Committee, formed and co-chaired the all-party Border Caucus, and co-chaired the Conservative Party Task Force on Safe Streets and Healthy Communities.

In the 2006 election, he was re-elected by an increased plurality when he received 47% of the vote; his nearest competitor, Liberal candidate Jim McMurtry, received 31%.

On February 8, 2006, Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed Hiebert parliamentary secretary to the Minister of National Defence, Gordon O'Connor. Hiebert generated positive headlines in January 2007 when he delivered wheelchairs to a hospital in Kandahar, Afghanistan. In June 2006 he was elected by his colleagues from all parties to the chairmanship of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. He also continued to serve as Conservative co-chairman of the all-party Parliamentary Border Caucus.

On October 10, 2007, Hiebert was appointed as the inaugural parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister of Western Economic Diversification, Rona Ambrose. Hiebert was also the leading government member of the Standing Committee on Ethics, Privacy and Access to Information which held hearings on the high profile Mulroney-Schreiber affair in fall 2007 and spring 2008.

Hiebert was elected to a third term on October 14, 2008 in the 2008 general election, garnering 57% of the vote. His nearest competitor, Liberal Judy Higginbotham, received 21 per cent.

His activities during his third term included leading a parliamentary committee's study into the activities of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, including review of the Section 13 hate speech provisions of the Canadian Human Rights Act. Hiebert served on the Commons Finance Committee, the Natural Resources Committee, and the International Human Rights Sub-Committee.

In the 41st Canadian general election, Hiebert won the riding with approximately 54% of the vote. He currently serves on the International Trade Committee and the Ethics, Privacy and Access to Information Committee of the House of Commons. He also continues to serve as Canadian Branch Chairman of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the Conservative Co-Chairman of the Parliamentary Border Caucus.

Political positions

Hiebert is a socially conservative MP, as evidenced by his opposition to abortion and to same-sex marriage his public criticism of human rights commissions, and his introduction of a Private Members Motion on income splitting for families with children.[6]

Russ Hiebert was an opponent of the Liberal-proposed Carbon Tax of 2009, referring to it as "job-killing" and "irresponsible" during question period.

Hiebert spoke in opposition to Bill C-428, a proposal to reduce the residency requirement for entitlement to a monthly pension from ten years to three years.

In February 2011, Hiebert voted against former NDP MP Bill Siksay's private members' bill C-389, a bill to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression.

In September 2011, Hiebert spoke in Parliament in support of Bill C-10, the Safe Streets and Communities Act, stating that it "would increase sentences for child sex offenders, end the use of house arrest for serious and violent crimes and increase penalties for drug dealers who specifically target our children." Bill C-10 includes a wide range of measures, including increasing the maximum penalty for the manufacture of marijuana from seven to 14 years.

Office operating costs

MPs are allotted a budget for office lease, staffing costs, telephone, printing and travel costs. Hiebert made local headlines in spring 2010 for his parliamentary operating costs during the 2008/2009 fiscal year. His operating costs, tallied at $637,093, were second only to Stephen Fletcher, who spent $781,000. Fletcher, however, is a quadriplegic who spent about $330,000 for specialized office equipment, staff, and travel that allowed him to carry out his duties as a Member of Parliament.

In response to the concerns raised in the community Hiebert's operating costs were reduced substantially the following year (2009/2010) ranking his costs in the bottom 40% of BC MPs, and $55,000 less than either Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal, the top spending Surrey MP, and $110,000 less than Nathan Cullen, the top spending MP in British Columbia. [7]

External links

• Russ Hiebert
• Russ Hiebert - Parliament of Canada biography