Jeremy Dalton

Jeremy Dalton BA (22 September 1942 – 28 May 2005) was a Canadian politician and lawyer. He was a member of the British Columbia Liberal Party and later an independent. He served as MLA for the riding of West Vancouver-Capilano for two terms after the 1991 and 1996 elections.

Jeremy Dalton
Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for West Vancouver-Capilano
In office
1991–2001
Succeeded byRalph Sultan
Personal details
Born(1942-09-22)September 22, 1942
DiedMay 28, 2005(2005-05-28) (aged 62)
Political partyIndependent (2001)
Other political
affiliations		British Columbia Liberal Party (1991-2001)
Alma materUniversity of British Columbia

Personal life

Before entering politics, Dalton attended the University of British Columbia, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts and a law degree. He also ran a private law practice and taught at Langara College. He was married to Leah Dalton and had three children.[1]

Political career

1991 election

He was first elected in the 1991 British Columbia general election for the district of West Vancouver-Capilano, winning a majority of votes,[2] every poll, and the second-highest margin in the province.[3]

While in opposition, Dalton was critic for labour and consumer services early on.[4] He was education critic after that,[5] In the rumblings leading up to the Gordon Wilson-Judi Tyabji scandal, he replaced Gary Farrell-Collins as opposition whip.[6] After Tyabji's sacking as opposition house leader, he was appointed to that position by Liberal Leader Gordon Wilson.[7] Later in 1993 he became critic for attorney-general.[8] While justice critic, Dalton (and most of the Liberal opposition) took the unusual step of supporting NDP attorney-general Colin Gabelmann after the latter admitted to including incorrect information in a court affidavit so as to not have to appear in court.[9] The day after Dalton and the rest of the Liberals reversed their position.[10]

1996 election

In the lead-up to the 1996 election, Dalton may have had a harder-than-usual nomination.[11] He eventually became the candidate and was re-elected. His 71.3% of votes was the highest in any riding that election.[12] After that election, he again became labour critic.[13]

1997 conflict of interest case

On June 24, 1997, Dalton was forced to resign as labour critic after it was revealed that he wrote a letter to a government bureaucrat regarding an issue he had a financial stake in: a gravel pit under development near a ranch that his wife and father-in-law were part owners of.[14] Liberal leader Gordon Campbell asked the province's conflict of interest commissioner to investigate shortly thereafter after it surfaced that he had written as many as four letters about the same issue,[15] including two to different government cabinet ministers.[16] Dalton later became deputy environment critic after a shadow cabinet shuffle.[17] The commissioner eventually concluded that although it was inappropriate, it was not a conflict of interest because he was acting as a private citizen, and that he should not have been using MLA stationary for personal matters.[18]

Later career and dismissal

Similar affairs would eventually lead to the end of Dalton's political career. The second time was when he used his MLA letterhead in a personal matter, this one involving Handsworth Secondary School, where two of his children were attending. At the time he was deputy education critic and was left a backbencher as a result.[19] The third letter, again about the gravel pit and ranch, resulted in his suspension from caucus for three months.[20] His suspension lasted from April 5, 2000, to July 10, 2000.[21] After returning to caucus, he publicly supported a tunnel being built as a third crossing of Burrard Inlet.[22]

Dalton was permanently dismissed from Liberal caucus and sat as an independent on January 11, 2001. This time it was because he publicly reprimanded two Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers at the scene of an accident.[23] He sat as an independent for the remainder of the term and ran in the 2001 election, but was defeated.[24]

After minor continuing involvement in politics after the 2001 election, Dalton died on May 28, 2005, succumbing to complications following surgery.[25]

References
  1. "Mr. Jeremy Dalton". Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
  2. "SOV 91 West Vancouver-Capilano Electoral District Poll-by-Poll Results". Elections BC. Archived from the original on 2007-10-04. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
  3. Denny Boyd (1991-10-21). "A tale of two candidates: the Liberalization of West Van". Vancouver Sun. p. B1.
  4. "Shadow cabinet boasts expertise". 1991-11-08. p. B4publisher=Vancouver Sun.
  5. Jennifer Gray-Grant (1992-05-04). "Parents protest school cutbacks: Enrolment fund needed now, BCTF says". Vancouver Sun. p. B1.
  6. Keith Baldrey (1993-01-21). "Liberals rocked again: MLS quits top post because Wilson won't rile out Tyabji romance". Vancouver Sun. p. A1.
  7. Greg McIntyre (1993-02-14). "Tyabji tussling with reasons for firing". Vancouver Province. p. A4.
  8. "Campbell hopes for seat in legislature next year". Vancouver Sun. 1993-10-22. p. B1.
  9. Keith Baldrey and Harold Munro (1994-04-14). "Gabelmann admits to fixing affidavit to avoid day in court". Vancouver Sun. p. A1.
  10. Stewart Bell (1994-04-18). "Legal advice brought reversal by Liberals: Party had change of heart". Vancouver Sun. p. B2.
  11. Keith Baldrey & Justine Hunter (1994-10-03). "Liberals lift frees on nomination meetings". Vancouver Sun. p. A3.
  12. "Summary of Results by Candidate". Elections BC. Archived from the original on 2001-03-06. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
  13. "All 32 Liberal MLAs join 'shadow cabinet': The party's budget for support staff and research will increase to $2.2 million annually". Vancouver Sun. 1996-06-21. p. B3.
  14. Barbara McLintock (1997-06-25). "Letter fells Liberal MLA". Vancouver Province. p. A4.
  15. Jim Beatty (1997-07-03). "Campbell seeks conflict probe of Liberal MLA's lobbying conduct: Jeremy Dalton's letters regarding land in the Cariboo continue to cause furore". Vancouver Sun. p. A6.
  16. Barbara McLintock (1997-06-26). "Demoted Dalton told to hold tongue". Vancouver Province. p. A6.
  17. David Hogben (1997-10-21). "Campbell seeks free-enterprise unity in shadow-cabinet shuffle". Vancouver Sun. p. A7.
  18. Barbara McLintock (1997-10-19). "MLA guilty of using influence improperly". Vancouver Province. p. A6.
  19. Craig McInnes (1999-06-29). "Letterhead use leads to Dalton's Demotion: The MLA is rebuked after sending a letter to lobby his local school board". Vancouver Sun. p. A4.
  20. Craig Mcinnes (2000-04-05). "Liberal MLA suspended for 'inapproproate use of office'". Vancouver Sun. p. B4.
  21. "Elected Candidates 1987-2001" (PDF). Electoral History of British Columbia Supplement, 1987-2001. Elections BC. p. 49. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
  22. Mark Wilson (2000-09-13). "Tunnel vision again: Third crossing would run under Burrard Inlet from Lonsdale to Main Street". Vancouver Province. p. A6.
  23. Jim Beatty (2001-01-12). "It's four strikes and Liberal MLA Dalton is out of party: The embattled member was caught abusing his position for a fourth time". Vancouver Sun. p. A4.
  24. "Summary of Results by Candidate" (PDF). Statement of Votes - 37th Provincial General Election - May 16, 2001. Elections BC. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 18, 2003. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
  25. Jane Seyd (2005-01-01). "Former W. Van MLA dies". North Shore News. p. 1.
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