The Honourable David Emerson
Minister of Industry
David Emerson attended the University of Alberta and obtained his Bachelor of
Economics degree in 1968 and his Master of Economics degree in 1970. He then
went on to Queen's University where he received his PhD in Economics.
While completing his doctorate in 1972, he worked as a researcher for the
Economic Council of Canada in Ottawa. In 1975, his passion for public service
brought him to British Columbia, where he quickly rose through the ranks to
become the province's Deputy Minister of Finance in 1984.
In 1986, he left government to become President and Chief Executive Officer
of the Western and Pacific Bank of Canada in Vancouver. Four years later, he
returned to the provincial government as Deputy Minister of Finance, where he
was quickly promoted to Deputy Minister to the Premier and then President of
British Columbia Trade Development Corporation.
In 1992, he was appointed to lead the newly created Vancouver International
Airport Authority, which was responsible for developing, operating and improving
the airport's services and facilities. Today, the airport is a major economic
generator for Greater Vancouver and the province.
In 1998, Mr. Emerson was appointed President and
Chief Executive Officer of Canfor Corporation, British Columbia's largest
forestry company, leading it through one of the forestry industry's most
difficult periods.
On June 28, 2004, as a candidate representing the Liberal Party of Canada,
Mr. Emerson was elected as the Member of Parliament
for Vancouver Kingsway.
He and his wife, Theresa, have a son and a daughter, age 12 and 9. He also
has three grown children, a son, age 34, and two daughters, age 30 and 22.
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