Liza Frulla PC CM OQ (born March 30, 1949, in Montreal, Quebec), formerly known as Liza Frulla-Hébert, is a former Canadian politician. She was a Liberal Member of the National Assembly of Quebec from 1989 to 1998, a Liberal Member of Parliament from 2002 to 2006, and a member of the Cabinet of Prime Minister Paul Martin.

Liza Frulla
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Jeanne-Le Ber
Verdun—Saint-Henri—Saint-Paul—Pointe Saint-Charles (2002-2004)
In office
May 13, 2002 – January 23, 2006
Preceded byRaymond Lavigne
Succeeded byThierry St-Cyr
Member of the National Assembly of Quebec for Marguerite-Bourgeoys
In office
September 25, 1989 – November 30, 1998
Preceded byGilles Fortin
Succeeded byMonique Jérôme-Forget
Personal details
Born (1949-03-30) March 30, 1949 (age 75)
Montreal, Quebec
Political partyLiberal Party of Canada (national)
Quebec Liberal Party (provincial)
Occupationbroadcaster

Background

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All four of Frulla's grandparents were born in Italy and like many Italian Quebeckers, her family was strongly federalist and Quebec Liberal oriented. In college she says she was not politically involved as she voted "yes" in the 1980 referendum, believing it was only fair to give René Lévesque's government a mandate to negotiate, but when the results were strongly "no", she reverted to federalism. She then later worked as a marketer for Labatt Breweries when she regularly met with government officials and eventually joined the Quebec Liberals under Robert Bourassa.[1]

Early career

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From 1974 to 1976, Frulla worked for the public affairs service of the organizing committee for the 1976 Montreal Olympics. She subsequently became the first woman reporter accredited to cover professional sport in the electronic media.[citation needed]

Provincial politics

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From 1989 to 1998, she represented the riding of Marguerite-Bourgeoys in the National Assembly of Quebec. She was Minister of Communications and Minister of Cultural Affairs. She was vice-chair of the "No" committee in the 1995 Quebec referendum. However, on November 1, 2007, while appearing on the RDI program Le Club des Ex, she admitted to having voted for the "Yes" side in the 1980 referendum.[citation needed]

In 1998, she left the National Assembly to host her own show, Liza, on public broadcaster Radio-Canada until 2002.

Federal politics

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She was elected to Parliament in a 2002 by-election in the now-defunct riding of Verdun—Saint-Henri—Saint-Paul—Pointe-Saint-Charles. After that riding was merged with portions of neighbouring ridings to form Jeanne-Le Ber, she was re-elected by a razor-thin margin over Thierry St-Cyr in 2004; she subsequently lost to him in 2006.

Frulla has the prenominal "the Honourable" and the postnominal "PC" for life by virtue of being made a member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada on December 12, 2003.[2] She was the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Minister responsible for the Status of Women in the cabinet of Prime Minister Paul Martin and previously served as Minister of Social Development.

Honours

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In 2016, she was made an Officer of the National Order of Quebec.[3] In 2017, she was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada.[4]

Electoral record (partial)

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2004 Canadian federal election: Jeanne-Le Ber
Party Candidate Votes % Expenditures
Liberal Liza Frulla 18,766 41.09 $61,848
Bloc Québécois Thierry St-Cyr 18,694 40.93 $32,921
New Democratic Anthony Philbin 3,160 6.92 $1,281
Conservative Pierre-Albert Sévigny 2,524 5.53 $14,155
Green Jean Claude Mercier 1,864 4.08 not listed
Marijuana Cathy Duchesne 520 1.14 none listed
Marxist–Leninist Normand Chouinard 148 0.32 none listed
Total valid votes 45,676 100.00
Total rejected ballots 836
Turnout 46,512 55.22
Electors on the lists 84,223
Percentage change figures are factored for redistribution. Conservative Party percentages are contrasted with the combined Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative figures from 2000. Sources: Official Results, Elections Canada and Financial Returns, Elections Canada. Italicized expenditures refer to totals submitted by the candidate and are presented when the reviewed totals are not available.

References

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  1. ^ "Audio".
  2. ^ "Information Resources". www.pco-bcp.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2001-08-30.
  3. ^ "National Order of Quebec citation" (in French).
  4. ^ "Governor General Announces 99 New Appointments to the Order of Canada". The Governor General of Canada. 20 September 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
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27th Ministry – Cabinet of Paul Martin
Cabinet posts (2)
Predecessor Office Successor
Hélène Scherrer Minister of Canadian Heritage
2004–2006
Bev Oda
Jane Stewart Minister of Human Resources Development
2003–2004
styled as Minister of Social Development
Ken Dryden
Special Cabinet Responsibilities
Predecessor Title Successor
Jean Augustine Minister responsible for the Status of Women
2004–2006
Bev Oda