Stephen Owen
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Stephen Owen (b. September 8 1948 in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian politician.
Owen is currently a member of Paul Martin's Liberal government, serving in cabinet as Canada's tenth Minister of Western Economic Diversification as well as Minister of State for Sport. He is the Member of Parliament for the electoral district of Vancouver Quadra, encompassing the western end of the City of Vancouver.
During the 1980s, Owen worked for the government of British Columbia as a non-partisan official. He served as that province's ombudsman from 1986 to 1992, and as a high-level bureaucrat from 1992 to 1997. He is the past commissioner and vice-president of the Law Commission of Canada. His cousin, Philip Owen, is a former mayor of Vancouver.
Owen was first elected to the House of Commons in 2000 and joined Jean Chrétien's cabinet on January 15, 2002, serving as secretary of state for both western economic diversification and Indian affairs and northern development. On December 12, 2003, he was promoted by newly appointed Martin to minister of public works and government services. In this capacity, he was a frequent target of opposition questions on the "sponsorship scandal".
Owen defeated former provincial cabinet minister Stephen Rogers in the federal election of 2004, and by a much greater margin than most observers anticipated. He was named Minister of Western Economic Diversification and Minister of State for Sport on July 20 2004. Under normal circumstances, this would have been considered a demotion, though as it stands, the shuffle places Owen in a powerful managerial position as regards preparation for the upcoming Olympic Games in British Columbia.
| 27th Ministry - Government of Paul Martin | ||
| Cabinet Posts (3) | ||
| Preceded by: Rey Pagtakhan | Minister of Western Economic Diversification (2004-) | Succeeded by: (incumbent) |
| Minister of State (Sport) (2004-) | ||
| Preceded by: Ralph Goodale | Minister of Public Works and Government Services (2003-2004) | Succeeded by: Scott Brison |
| 26th Ministry - Government of Jean Chrétien | ||
| Sub-Cabinet Posts (1) | ||
| Secretary of State (Western Economic Diversification) (Indian Affairs and Northern Development) (2002-2003) | ||