George S. Baker, PC (born September 4, 1942) is a Canadian politician and member of the Senate.

Baker was first elected to the House of Commons in the 1974 election as the Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for Gander—Twillingate, in Newfoundland and Labrador. He was re-elected in every subsequent election (representing Gander—Grand Falls after 1988) until his appointment to the Senate by Governor General Adrienne Clarkson, on the recommendation of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, in 2002.

Although a popular and articulate MP, he was hurt by the tradition of appointing no more than one Canadian Cabinet minister from Newfoundland at a time, and by his reputation as a maverick who said what he thought rather than what the party leadership would like him to say. Fred Mifflin's and Brian Tobin's appointments to cabinet following the 1993 election meant Baker had to remain on the backbench. Tobin's resignation from the cabinet to become Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador opened the way for Baker to be appointed as Minister of Veterans Affairs. But when Prime Minister Chrétien lured Tobin back to Ottawa for the 2000 election, Baker was removed from Cabinet. He was appointed to the Senate in 2002.

Baker lives in Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, with his wife Averill Baker.

[edit] Block Newfoundland controversy

In March 2009, as a Liberal Senator for Newfoundland and Labrador, he was the first among Newfoundland's federal parliamentarians to overtly call for the foundation of a new sovereigntist party, based on the Bloc Québécois, largely in response to the $1.7 billion cuts in equalization payments that represented no less than 20% of the province's budget, due to a change of how natural resources are factored in the calculation of equalization transfers.

This prompted a rebuke from the Prime Minister's office and political commentators in Toronto and Ottawa. Some Conservative MPs demanded that Michael Ignatieff kick him out of the Liberal caucus, that he refused to do. However, this action caused little outcry in his home province.

[edit] External links

• Parliament of Canada biography
• Liberal Senate Forum

v • d • e   Current members of the Senate of Canada AB Banks • Brown • Fairbairn • McCoy • Mitchell • Tardif BC Campbell • Jaffer • Greene • Martin • Neufeld • St. Germain MB Carstairs • Chaput • Johnson • Plett • Stratton • Zimmer NB Day • Kinsella • Losier-Cool • Lovelace Nicholas • Mockler • Ringuette • Robichaud • Stewart-Olsen • Wallace • Vacant NL Baker • Cochrane • Furey • Manning • Rompkey • Vacant NS Comeau • Cordy • Cowan • Dickson • Greene • MacDonald • Mercer • Moore • Ogilvie • Oliver ON Cools • Di Nino • Eaton • Eggleton • Finley • Frum Sokolowski • Gerstein • Grafstein • Harb • Kenny • Keon • LeBreton • Mahovlich • Meighen • Munson • Murray • Pitfield • Poulin • Poy • Ruth • Segal • Smith • Stollery • Vacant PE Callbeck • Downe • Duffy • Hubley QC Angus • Brazeau • Carignan • Champagne • Dallaire • Dawson • de Bané • Demers • Fortin-Duplessis • Fox • Fraser • Hervieux-Payette • Housakos • Joyal • Lapointe • Lavigne • Massicotte • Nolin • Pépin • Rivard • Rivest • Seidman • Watt • Vacant SK Andreychuk • Dyck • Merchant • Peterson • Tkachuk • Wallin Territories NT Sibbeston NU Patterson YT Lang Conservative (C) • Independent (Ind.) or Not affiliated (N/A) • Liberal (L) • Progressive Conservative (PC)

v • d • e   Ministers of Veterans Affairs Ministers of Soldiers' Civil Re-establishment (1918-1928) Lougheed · Manion · Béland · Elliott · Manion (acting) · Morand (acting) · Paquet · King Ministers of Pensions and National Health (1928-1944) King · Ralston · McLaren · Sutherland · Power · Mackenzie Ministers of Veterans Affairs (1944-) Mackenzie · Gregg · Lapointe · Brooks · Churchill · Lambert · Teillet · Dubé · Laing · MacDonald · McKinnon · MacDonald · Lamontagne (acting) · Campbell · Hees · Merrithew · Campbell · McCreath · Collenette · Young · Mifflin · Baker · Duhamel · Pagtakhan · McCallum · Guarnieri · Thompson

This article about a Newfoundland and Labrador politician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e