Benoît Pelletier
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| Deputy House leader of the government, Minister responsible for Intergovernmental Affairs, Indians Affairs, Canadian Francophone Affairs, Democratic Institution Reform, Information Access and Outaouais region | |
|---|---|
| Incumbent | |
| Riding | Chapleau (1998-present) |
| In office since | November 30, 1998 |
| Preceded by | Claire Vaive |
| Born | January 10, 1960 Quebec City, Quebec |
| Political party |
Quebec Liberal Party |
| Profession(s) | lawyer |
Benoît Pelletier (born January 10, 1960 in Quebec City, Quebec) is a politician and lawyer in Quebec, Canada. He is the current Liberal Party Member of the National Assembly (MNA) for the provincial riding of Chapleau in the Outaouais region. He is the current Minister for Canadian Intergovernmental Affairs, Francophones, the Agreement on Internal Trade, the Reform of Democratic Institutions and Access to Information in the Jean Charest government. He is also the minister responsible for the Outaouais region.
He studied law at the Université Laval in 1981 and obtained a licence and was admitted to the Barreau du Quebec soon after. He worked for the federal Ministry of Justice as a legal adviser.
He received a masters degree in law at the University of Ottawa in 1989 where he taught there for several years and obtained an award for best teacher of the year in 1998.
He travelled to France in the late 1990s and 2000s and received two doctors degree in law at the Paris and the Marseille universities.
At the same time in 1998, Pelletier entered politics and won the 1998 provincial election in the Chapleau riding which includes much of the old city of Gatineau. During his tenure in the Opposition he was the critic for Intergovernmental Affairs.
When the Liberal Party gained power in the 2003 election, Pelletier was named the minister for this portfolio. During his tenure, he treated the issue about the fiscal imbalance, Quebec's position in the international community as well as the federal Liberal government's sponsorship scandal that involved some non-governmental members of the provincial party including former Liberal minister Marc-Yvan Côté. From 2003 to 2005, he was also the Delegate Minister for aboriginal affairs before handing this portfolio to Geoffrey Kelley. He was also the Minister for Parliamentary Reform, which looks at modifications to the electoral system which was criticized by the Action democratique du Quebec after the 2003 elections.
In the 2007 elections, Pelletier was re-elected for a third term defeating ADQ Jocelyn Dumais and Edith Gendron, the Parti Québécois candidate and wife of Gatineau MP Richard Nadeau. He was renamed the Minister for Intergovermental affairs and responsible for the Outaouais region. He reclaimed the portfolio of aboriginal affairs but lost the Parliamentary reform portfolio to Jean-Marc Fournier.
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| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jean-Pierre Charbonneau |
Minister/Delegate Minister of Canadian Intergovernmental Affairs 2003–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Sylvain Simard |
Minister responsible for Outaouais region 2003–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Michel Letourneau |
Delegate Minister for Indian Affairs 2003–2005 |
Succeeded by Geoffrey Kelley |
| Preceded by Geoffrey Kelley |
Delegate Minister of Indian Affairs (2nd time) 2007–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| National Assembly of Quebec | ||
| Preceded by Claire Vaive |
MNA for Chapleau 1998–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
