The Honourable
George Baker
PC
Minister of Veterans Affairs
In office
August 3, 1999 – October 17, 2000
Prime MinisterJean Chrétien
MinisterJohn Manley
Preceded byFred Mifflin
Succeeded byRon Duhamel
Secretary of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency)
In office
August 3, 1999 – October 15, 2000
Prime MinisterJean Chrétien
Preceded byFred Mifflin
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Parliamentary constituencies
Canadian Senator
from Newfoundland and Labrador
In office
March 26, 2002 – September 4, 2017
Nominated byJean Chrétien
Appointed byAdrienne Clarkson
Preceded byRaymond Squires (2001)
Succeeded byMohamed-Iqbal Ravalia (2018)
Member of Parliament
for Gander—Grand Falls
(Gander—Twillingate; 1974–1988)
In office
July 8, 1974 – March 25, 2002
Preceded byJohn Lundrigan
Succeeded byRex Barnes
Personal details
Born (1942-09-04) September 4, 1942
Dominion of Newfoundland
Political partyIndependent Liberal (since 2014)
Other political
affiliations		Liberal (until 2014)
ChildrenAnnelle Baker, Averill Baker, Eli Baker, Joscelyn Baker, and granddaughter Annelle.
OccupationCanadian Senator

George S. Baker PC (born September 4, 1942) is a Canadian politician and former member of the Senate of Canada.

Baker was first elected to the House of Commons in the 1974 election as the Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for Gander—Twillingate, in Newfoundland and Labrador. He was re-elected in every subsequent election (representing Gander—Grand Falls after 1988) until his appointment to the Senate by Governor General Adrienne Clarkson, on the recommendation of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, in 2002.

Although a popular and articulate MP, he was hurt by the tradition of appointing no more than one Canadian Cabinet minister from Newfoundland at a time, and by his reputation as a maverick who said what he thought rather than what the party leadership would like him to say. Fred Mifflin's and Brian Tobin's appointments to cabinet following the 1993 election meant Baker had to remain on the backbench. Tobin's resignation from the cabinet to become Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador opened the way for Baker to be appointed as Minister of Veterans Affairs.[1][2] But when Prime Minister Chrétien lured Tobin back to Ottawa for the 2000 election, Baker was removed from Cabinet. He was appointed to the Senate in 2002.

On January 29, 2014, Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau announced all Liberal Senators, including Baker, were removed from the Liberal caucus, and would continue sitting as Independents.[3] According to Senate Opposition leader James Cowan, the Senators refer to themselves as the Senate Liberal Caucus even though they are no longer members of the parliamentary Liberal caucus.[4]

Baker retired from the Senate upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75 on September 4, 2017.[5]

In 2024, Baker's daughter, Averill Baker was disbarred from practicing law by the Law Society of Newfoundland and Labrador.[6]

Bloc Newfoundland controversy

In March 2009, as a Liberal Senator for Newfoundland and Labrador, he was the first among Newfoundland's federal parliamentarians to overtly call for the foundation of a new sovereigntist party, based on the Bloc Québécois, largely in response to the $1.7 billion cuts in equalization payments that represented no less than 20% of the province's budget, due to a change of how natural resources are factored in the calculation of equalization transfers.

This prompted a rebuke from the Prime Minister's office and political commentators in Toronto and Ottawa. Some Conservative MPs demanded that Michael Ignatieff kick him out of the Liberal caucus, that he refused to do. However, this action caused little outcry in his home province.

References

  1. ↑ "Baker Gets Cabinet Post". CBC News. August 3, 1999. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  2. ↑ "No big surprises in cabinet shuffle". CBC News. August 4, 1999. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Justin Trudeau removes senators from Liberal caucus". CBC News. January 29, 2014. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Trudeau's expulsion catches Liberal senators by surprise". Globe and Mail. January 29, 2014. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  5. ↑ "'How dull life would be': George Baker leaves Senate at age 75, after decades of boldness". CBC News. September 5, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  6. ↑
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