Some Day the Sun Will Shine and Have Not Will Be No More (50 page)

BRIAN PECKFORD WAS BORN
in
Whitbourne, Newfoundland, on August 27, 1942, and grew up in Whitbourne,
Marystown, and Lewisporte. Peckford is a former premier of the province of
Newfoundland and Labrador and holds a Bachelor of Education degree, having also
completed postgraduate work in English Literature, Education, Psychology, and
French Literature. Prior to entering politics, he was a high school teacher in
rural Newfoundland.

He was first elected to the House of Assembly in 1972 at the age of
twenty-nine. He was appointed parliamentary assistant to the premier, Honourable
Frank Moores, in 1973. The following year he was appointed minister of Municipal
Affairs and Housing and in 1976 held the portfolios of minister of: Mines and
Energy; and Rural and Northern Development. At the age of thirty-six, he was
elected leader of the provincial Progressive Conservative Party and premier of
the province, becoming the youngest first minister in over 100 years.

It was Peckford’s administration that fought for and achieved a new,
groundbreaking arrangement with the federal government called the Atlantic
Accord, which has become the template for all exploration and development of
offshore oil and gas resources in Canada. It is under this arrangement that the
oil fields of Hibernia, Terra Nova, and White Rose have been developed and are
producing today. It is as a result of the revenues from these developments that
the province of Newfoundland and Labrador
has achieved “have”
status, the first time since becoming a part of Canada in 1949. Peckford retired
from public life in 1989 and established his own consulting business serving
government and business clients in North America and Europe.

In 1982, Peckford received the Vanier Award as an outstanding young Canadian.
That same year he was sworn to the Privy Council of Canada by her majesty the
Queen, and he published a book in 1983 entitled
The Past in the Present
expressing his views on Newfoundland and Labrador’s economic history and
prospects. In 1986, he received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Memorial
University and served on the board of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and
as chair of its Human Resources Committee from 1993 to 1998. He was appointed,
in 1998, as a one-person inquiry by the Government of British Columbia to
investigate the state of Fraser River salmon stocks and management issues
related to the fishery. Two reports were issued in ninety days, on budget.
In 2001, he received an Outstanding Contribution Award from the Newfoundland
Ocean Industries Association for his work on offshore oil and gas issues.
In 2007, he was appointed Chancellor of Sprott Shaw Degree College.

In 2008, Mr. Peckford was chair of a federal government–appointed expert panel
to review federal chronic disease policy, especially diabetes, and to present a
report to the federal Health minister. The report was completed on time and on
budget. Peckford is currently a director of Strongbow Exploration Inc., a public
junior mining company with exploration interests in British Columbia, North West
Territories, Nunavut, and the United States. He and his wife, Carol, reside in
Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island.

Although Peckford is well-known for his persistent efforts to improve the
financial and economic condition of his native province, there are other firsts
for which he and his administrations are responsible, including the first
aquaculture legislation, first Department of Environment, first pay equity
policy, first Arts Council, first Status of Women Council, first community
college system, and the first and only Fine Arts degree program and building at
the Grenfell Campus of Memorial University in Corner Brook.

Brian Peckford can be reached via email at
[email protected]
.