Ralph Goodale

Ralph Edward Goodale PC (born October 5, 1949) is a Canadian diplomat and retired politician who has served as the Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom since April 19, 2021.

Goodale was first elected in 1974 as the

Early life

Goodale was born in Regina, Saskatchewan and raised on a farm near Wilcox, Saskatchewan, the son of Winnifred Claire (Myers) and Thomas Henry Goodale.^[1][2] He was a member of Scouts Canada and earned the rank of Queen's Scout.^[3] He first attended the University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus and then obtained a law degree from the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, where he was awarded the Gold Medal for academic achievement.^{[citation needed]}

Federal politics, 1974–1979

Active at politics from a young age, he was first elected to the

The party won 9.99% of the vote in the 1986 provincial election, but only Goodale was elected to the legislature, defeating Engel in a rematch. Goodale ran on a platform of fiscal responsibility in this election, arguing that both the Progressive Conservative and New Democratic parties favoured excessive spending policies, typified by their proposals for a Keynesian-style stimulation of the provincial economy through subsidized home improvement and renovation schemes.^{[citation needed]}

Return to federal politics

Defeated in 1988 election

Goodale resigned as leader to run for the federal Liberals in the 1988 election for the seat of Regina—Wascana. He lost narrowly to former Regina mayor Larry Schneider, who later went on to serve briefly in Kim Campbell's cabinet. Beginning earlier that year and prior to his resignation, Goodale's executive assistant was Jason Kenney. Kenney would become a Conservative Party of Canada MP in Calgary ridings Calgary Southeast and Calgary Midnapore (1997–2016) and later Premier of Alberta (2019-2022).^[5]

Goodale then spent five years in the private sector, working for companies such as the Pioneer Life Assurance Company, Pioneer Lifeco Inc., and Sovereign Life Insurance Co.; he has stated in interviews that he felt his political career had ended.^{[citation needed]}

In government, 1993–2006

Goodale contested Regina—Wascana again in the

A close ally of Paul Martin, Goodale was appointed to the senior portfolio of Finance Minister when Martin became Prime Minister on December 12, 2003. In that capacity he tabled two consecutive balanced budgets and launched the Government's productivity agenda.^{[citation needed]}

On December 28, 2005, a letter surfaced from

After the Liberals' defeat and Paul Martin's election-night announcement that he would resign as party leader, Goodale initially indicated that he was not interested in succeeding Martin in that post. "I do not anticipate ever having to cross that bridge," he said. "I rule it out."[13] On March 13, 2006, the Toronto Star reported that Goodale was reconsidering his decision, and stated that he may enter the Liberal leadership election after all.^[14] In the end, he declined, citing his inability to speak French as a key reason. On November 28, 2006, he endorsed Bob Rae to be the next leader of the Liberal Party.^[15] After the third ballot, Bob Rae, who finished third, was eliminated. Goodale then endorsed Stéphane Dion, the eventual winner.

Goodale was opposed to David Orchard's candidacy in the by-election for Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River.^[16] Dion terminated the nomination contest and appointed Joan Beatty as the candidate.

Proposed coalition government, 2008

Goodale was re-elected once more in the

Goodale was one of the 34 Liberal MPs who was returned in the 2011 federal election, the Liberal Party of Canada's worst-ever electoral performance.^{[citation needed]} He and Kevin Lamoureux of Winnipeg North in Winnipeg, Manitoba, were the only two Liberal MPs elected from the Prairie provinces.

The NDP surpassed the Liberals in number of seats, becoming the official opposition, resulted in priority in choosing parliamentary offices. They requested that Goodale forfeit his suite in the coveted Central Block. The Liberals saw this as a measure of disrespect to Goodale, noting that he had seniority as a former cabinet minister and house leader, despite this being standard practice and noting the Conservatives had not asked any Liberals to give up their offices.^[12]

In government, 2015–2019

The Liberals won a majority government in the

Goodale sought re-election in the 2019 federal election, but lost his bid to Conservative Party candidate Michael Kram in a rematch of the 2015 race. Despite having represented the riding since 1993, Goodale was defeated by more than 16 percentage points.^[22]

Post-politics

On March 31, 2020, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the appointment of Goodale as Special Advisor to the Government of Canada's response to Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crash.^[23] Goodale will "examine lessons learned" from Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, Air India Flight 182 and other air disasters and "develop a framework to guide Canada's responses to international air disasters."^[24]

Diplomatic career

Goodale was appointed the Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom on April 13, 2021,^[25][26] replacing Janice Charette, who was appointed the interim clerk of the Privy Council.^[27] Goodale's priorities in the position will include "working with the U.K. on climate change and the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic" as well as replacing the "transitional trade agreement with a permanent deal in the wake of Brexit".^[27]

On December 13, 2023, Goodale was appointed as representative of Canada to the Ismaili Imamat.^[28]

Reactions to appointment

The appointment drew praise from Saskatchewan premier Scott Moe, who called the appointment "well deserved" and stating Goodale will be "a real advocate and a great representative for the nation and Canada, but he’ll also be, in many ways, a great representative for the province of Saskatchewan", as well as Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong, who said Goodale "brings a lot of experience to the job".^[27]

Electoral record

Regina—Wascana

Note: Conservative vote is compared to the Canadian Alliance vote in 2000 election.

Note: Canadian Alliance vote is compared to the Reform vote in 1997 election.

Assiniboia-Gravelbourg

Assiniboia

Honours

Commonwealth honours

Commonwealth honours

Country	Date	Appointment	Post-nominal letters
Canada	4 November 1993 – Present	Member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada	PC
Canada	6 February 1977 – Present	Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal
Canada	7 May 1992 – Present	125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal
Canada	6 February 2002 – Present	Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
Canada	6 February 2012 – Present	Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (November 2020)

References