Pierre Arcand
| Pierre Arcand | |
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MNA for Mont-Royal
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office April 25, 2007 |
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| Preceded by | Philippe Couillard |
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| Born | November 13, 1951 Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec |
| Political party | Quebec Liberal Party |
| Spouse(s) | Dominique Chaloult |
| Profession | businessman, journalist |
| Portfolio | Minister of Environment, Sustainable Development and Parks |
Pierre Arcand (born November 13, 1951 in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec) is a politician, businessman, announcer and journalist in Quebec, Canada. He is the elected Member of the National Assembly of Quebec (MNA) for the provincial riding of Mont-Royal in the Island of Montreal. He represents the Quebec Liberal Party. He is the current Minister of Environment, Sustainable Development and Parks and was previously the Minister of International Relations and for the Francophonie.
He is the brother of journalist Paul Arcand.
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[edit] Studies and professional career
Arcand attended Cegep de Saint-Hyacinthe and the HEC (Hautes etudes commerciales) in the 1970s.
Arcand started his journalistic career in 1978 at CKAC as a news editor and then the radio station's vice-president and the director of information. He was then the senior vice-president of Metromedia CMR Broadcasting Inc. in which the company acquired several radio and television stations across the province but mainly in the Montreal area. Among those included CKOI-FM and CFCF-AM. In 2002, he would become the president of Corus Entertainment's Corus Quebec radio division who purchased Metromedia's radio stations. During the glory days of CIQC AM 600 (1998–99) before its transformation to 940News CINW, Pierre Arcand and his business partner, Pierre Beland, were often jokingly referred to on-air as "The Two Pierres".
He was involved with the Tel-Aide community organization as an administration member.
[edit] 2007 provincial elections and Jean-Marie Le Pen controversy
In 2007, Arcand decided to try in provincial politics when he announced his candidacy in the provincial elections for the riding of Mont-Royal which was left vacant by Health minister Philippe Couillard who announced his candidacy in the riding of Jean-Talon in Quebec City replacing Margaret Delisle. He decided to run in order to improve the province's competitiveness in the economic domain.
Prior to the start of the campaign, Arcand compared Action democratique du Quebec (ADQ) leader Mario Dumont to French far-right politician and leader of France's Front National, Jean-Marie Le Pen.
In an interview on Radio-Canada's radio show Christiane Charette he said about Mario Dumont: [1] [2]
| “ | Dans le cas de Mario Dumont, ce que je n'aime pas, c'est qu'en 1995, il était indépendantiste, puis en l'an 2000, il était comme Mike Harris. Là, il devient le Jean-Marie Le Pen du Québec. Il a fait une attaque directe contre les communautés culturelles.
English translation: In the case of Mario Dumont, what I don't like is that in 1995 he was a separatist, then in 2000 he became like Mike Harris and then, he became the Jean-Marie Le Pen of Quebec. He made a direct attack against the cultural communities. |
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The controversy arose during a period when the issue of reasonable accommodations was a dominant topic prior to the start of the campaign. Shortly after the interview, Dumont had requested Arcand to retract his statements in which he later corrected it in a press conference. Despite the controversy, he was easily elected in Mont-Royal. He was named the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Economic Development, Innovation, Export Trade and Tourism, portfolios currently held by Raymond Bachand until April 16, 2008 when he was named the Assistant to the President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Finances Monique Jérôme-Forget after Hull MNA Roch Cholette ended his political career and resigned.
[edit] Cabinet promotion
Following his easy re-election in 2008, Arcand was given his first cabinet position. He was named the Minister for International Relations, replacing Monique Gagnon-Tremblay who was promoted to President of the Treasury Board in remplacement of Monique Jerome-Forget. Arcand was also given the portfolio of the Francophonie that was left vacant by Benoit Pelletier who did not seek a re-election.
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Monique Gagnon-Tremblay |
Minister of International Relations 2008–2010 |
Succeeded by Monique Gagnon-Tremblay |
| Preceded by Benoit Pelletier |
Minister for the Francophonie 2008–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Line Beauchamp |
Minister for Environment, Sustainable Development and Parks 2010–present |
Incumbent |
