Maurice Dionne

Maurice Dionne
Member of Parliament for Northumberland—Miramichi
In office 1974–1984
Preceded by	Percy Smith
Succeeded by	Bud Jardine
In office 1988–1993
Succeeded by	Charles Hubbard
Personal details
Born	Maurice Adrian Dionne 1936 Bath, New Brunswick
Died	November 17, 2003 Miramichi, New Brunswick
Political party	Liberal
Profession	educator

Maurice Dionne (1936 in Bath, New Brunswick – November 17, 2003, in Miramichi, New Brunswick) was an educator and politician in the Miramichi River Valley of New Brunswick, Canada.

Dionne attended teacher's college and taught in a variety of locations, including Baie-Comeau, Quebec, where he met his future wife, Precille. Dionne moved to the Miramichi to become principal of Millerton High School.

Dionne was long active in Liberal Party of Canada circles, and was elected to the House of Commons of Canada, serving from 1974 to 1984 and again from 1988 to 1993. He lost his seat in 1984, when Brian Mulroney's Progressive Conservative Party of Canada won the largest landslide in terms of total seats in Canadian history. During these years out of office, he worked in the forestry industry in a consulting capacity.

As a Member of Parliament, Dionne's major accomplishments were securing government assistance to aid expansion to the major pulp mill in the valley, securing the dredging of the entrance to the Miramichi River to enable ports there to continue receiving ocean-going vessels, and securing the construction of a federal maximum security prison at Renous in the valley.

In 1992, Dionne called a press conference to announce that he was suffering from Alzheimer's disease. This was one of the first occasions that a public figure made such an announcement, and it helped to create understanding of the affliction. Dionne did not run in the next election, and died in 2003.

Dionne and his wife had two daughters and three sons.

External links

• Maurice Dionne – Parliament of Canada biography