George Ashe (Canadian politician)
{{Short description|Canadian politician}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = George Ashe
| image =
| caption =
| riding = Durham West
| parliament = Ontario Provincial
| term_start = June 9, 1977
| term_end = September 10, 1987
| predecessor = Charles Godfrey
| successor = Norah Stoner
| party = Progressive Conservative
| birth_name = George Lyle Ashe
| birth_date = {{birth date|1932|10|05}}
| birth_place = Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| death_date = {{death date and age|2014|8|3|1932|10|5}}
| death_place = Whitby, Ontario, Canada
| profession = Politician
| spouse = Margaret "Margo" Conroy (m. 1954){{cite news|title=Conroy-Ashe wedding at St. Joseph's |date=July 13, 1954|page=9|newspaper=Ottawa Citizen|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-ottawa-citizen-marriage-of-conroy/148108581/|access-date=May 26, 2024}}
| children = 4 (including Kevin)
}}
George Lyle Ashe (October 5, 1932 – August 3, 2014) was a Canadian politician. He was a Progressive Conservative Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1977 to 1987 who represented the Durham region riding of Durham West. He served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Bill Davis and Frank Miller.
Background
Ashe was born in Ottawa, Ontario, and educated in that city. He worked in agency management for Northern Life of Canada. He was a Separate School trustee for the Roman Catholic board in Gloucester Township in the late 1950s. He and his wife Margo raised four children.
Politics
He was an alderman for Nepean Township in the early 1960s. He was elected deputy reeve of Pickering in 1969, and became the city's first mayor four years later. Ashe served as mayor of Pickering until 1977, and was also a member of the Durham Regional Council.{{cite web |url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thestar/obituary.aspx?page=lifestory&pid=171978819 |title=Obituary |newspaper=Toronto Star |publisher=Legacy.com |date=August 6, 2014}}
He was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1977 election, in the riding of Durham West defeating New Democratic Party incumbent Charles Godfrey by 593 votes.{{cite news |title=Ontario provincial election results riding by riding |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=June 10, 1977 |page=D9}} He served as parliamentary assistant to three ministers, and was re-elected with an increased plurality in the 1981 election.{{cite news|author=Canadian Press |title=Winds of change, sea of security |newspaper=The Windsor Star |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0NtYAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QlIMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1444%2C1388326 |date=1981-03-20 |location=Windsor, Ontario |page=22 |accessdate=2014-04-01}} Ashe was appointed to Bill Davis's cabinet on April 10, 1981, as Minister of Revenue.{{cite news |title=Norton gets Environment as Davis shuffles Cabinet |last=Speirs |first=Rosemary |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=April 10, 1981 |page=1}}
Following a cabinet shuffle on July 6, 1983, Ashe was named as Minister of Government Services.{{cite news |title=Shuffle gives Treasury job to Grossman |last1=Speirs |first1=Rosemary |last2=Stead |first2=Sylvia |last3=Cruikshank |first3=John |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=July 6, 1983 |pages=1, 2}} Ashe supported Frank Miller to succeed Davis in the Progressive Conservative Party's 1985 leadership convention, and was named Minister of Energy when Miller became in as Premier of Ontario on February 8, 1985.{{cite news |title=The Ontario Cabinet |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=February 9, 1985 |page=4}}
Ashe was re-elected in the 1985 election, which reduced Miller's Conservatives to minority government status.{{cite news |title=Results of vote in Ontario election |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=May 3, 1985 |page=13}} He was appointed as Chair of the Management Board of Cabinet on May 17, 1985, but accomplished little before Miller's government was defeated in the house in June.{{cite news |title=The new Cabinet |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=May 18, 1985 |page=11}} In opposition, he served as his party's critic for Revenue, the management board, and Financial Institutions. He lost the Durham West constituency to Liberal Norah Stoner by 5,843 votes in the 1987 election, amid a Liberal sweep of the province.{{cite news |title=Results from individual ridings |newspaper=The Windsor Star |date=September 11, 1987 |page=F2}}
Ashe's son, Kevin is also the Mayor of Pickering, elected in 2022.{{Cite web |last=glennhendry |date=2022-10-25 |title=New look to Pickering Council after first election without Dave Ryan in 28 years - inDurham {{!}} Local Online News |url=https://durham.insauga.com/new-look-to-pickering-council-after-first-election-without-dave-ryan-in-28-years/ |access-date=2024-05-18 |website=inDurham {{!}} Durham's Latest Breaking News |language=en-US}} During the 40th Ontario general election, Ashe was the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario in Ajax—Pickering but ultimately lost.{{Cite web|url=https://www.pickering.ca/en/city-hall/kevinasheprofile.aspx|title = Kevin Ashe Profile|date = 6 May 2021}}{{Cite web |title=Ashe wins PC nomination for Ajax-Pickering |date=April 27, 2007 |url=https://www.durhamregion.com/news-story/3488830-ashe-wins-pc-nomination-for-ajax-pickering/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170425114901/https://www.durhamregion.com/news-story/3488830-ashe-wins-pc-nomination-for-ajax-pickering/ |archive-date=2017-04-25}}
=Cabinet positions=
{{s-start}}
{{Canadian cabinet member navigational box header |ministry=Frank_Miller}}
{{ministry box cabinet posts
| post2preceded = Bette Stephenson
| post2 = Chair of the Management Board of Cabinet
| post2years = 1985 (May–June)
| post2note =
| post2followed = Elinor Caplan
| post1preceded = Philip Andrewes
| post1 = Minister of Energy
| post1years = 1985 (February–May)
| post1note =
| post1followed = Mike Harris
}}
{{Canadian cabinet member navigational box header |ministry=Bill_Davis}}
{{ministry box cabinet posts
| post2preceded = Douglas Wiseman
| post2 = Minister of Government Services
| post2years = 1983–1985
| post2note =
| post2followed = Bob Runciman
| post1preceded = Lorne Maeck
| post1 = Minister of Revenue
| post1years = 1981–1983
| post1note =
| post1followed = Bud Gregory
}}
{{s-end}}
Later life
In 2003, Ashe was elected as a Trustee for the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington District School Board and he served one three-year term. He died in 2014 of Parkinson's disease.{{cite news |title=First mayor of Pickering George Ashe dies |url=http://www.durhamregion.com/news-story/4734793-first-mayor-of-pickering-george-ashe-dies/ |date=August 5, 2014 |first=Keith |last=Gilligan |newspaper=Durham Region News |publisher=Metroland Media}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Ontario MPP biography|id=george-lyle-ashe}}
{{Davis Ministry}}
{{Miller Ministry}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashe, George}}
Category:Mayors of Pickering, Ontario
Category:Members of the Executive Council of Ontario
Category:People from Clarington
Category:Politicians from Ottawa
Category:Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs
Category:Ontario school board trustees
Category:20th-century mayors of places in Ontario
Category:20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario