Stephen Crawford (politician)
Stephen Crawford is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 2018 provincial election. He represents the riding of Oakville as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. He defeated incumbent Kevin Flynn, who had served as the Oakville MPP since 2003, and was most recently Ontario's Minister of Labour. Early life. Stephen Crawford was born in Mississauga, Ontario, to his parents William and Diane Crawford. He grew up in Mississauga, the youngest of three children and attended Lorne Park Secondary School. Education. Crawford attended the University of  Western Ontario to study political science, and then went to University of Toronto for business. After university he then went on to earn his Canadian Investment Manager (CIM) designation. Business career. After completing his education, Crawford worked as a financial advisor at Midland Walwyn. He went on to become a senior executive and senior equity partner at Acuity Funds Ltd. The company became one of the fastest growing asset management firms in Canada, growing to almost $10 billion in managed assets. The company was acquired by AGF Management Ltd. in 2011. After Acuity, Crawford became a senior executive and  helped transition and build O'Leary Funds LP before it was purchased by Canoe Financial in 2016. Personal life. Crawford resides in Oakville, Ontario, where he lives with his wife Najia and children. He is a member of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce, 100 Guys Who Care-Oakville, and the Royal Canadian Military Institute. He is also a vocal supporter of Plan Canada's "Because I am a Girl" campaign, which focuses on empowering young girls' rights to education, and health care globally. Crawford is the great grand-nephew of famous Irish born Canadian writer, Isabella Valancy Crawford. Political career. Crawford  ran for the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario nomination in the summer of 2017, defeating his opponents in the second round of voting. In the 2018 Ontario General Election, Crawford ran against Liberal candidate, and long time incumbent, Kevin Flynn. Also running in the election was, NDP candidate Lesley Sprague, Green Party candidate Emily De Sousa, and Libertarian Party candidate Spencer Oklobdzija. Crawford beat Kevin Flynn in the election by 4510 votes, ending his 15-year tenure as Oakville's MPP. On August 9, 2018, Crawford was named the chair of the Finance and Economic Affairs Committee. Crawford announced his  first private members bill named, Safeguarding Our Information Act, 2018. The bill is also named Bill 55. The main purpose of Bill 55 is to prevent government institutions from access the private financial data of Ontario residents, without their expressly given consent. The bill is a reaction to the federal government's inaction on the news of Statistics Canada proposing to access the financial records of 500,000 Canadians. On June 26, 2019, Crawford was named the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Infrastructure. He served in this role from 2019-2021. In July 2021, MPP Crawford was appointed to the  role of Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Energy, which is the position he currently holds. Crawford and MPP Triantafilopoulos were presented with keys to the town of Oakville on November 29, 2019, "for their work on the regional review process and strong representation of the voice of Oakville residents". Crawford received a second key to the Town of Oakville for his work in saving the Glen Abbey golf course. The potential development of the Glen Abbey golf course started in 2015. MPP Crawford, alongside MPP Triantafilopoulos, campaigned to save this green space from development. MPP Crawford's efforts included  engaging with community organizations, suggesting an impactful letter-writing campaign that generated thousands of emails, and voicing his anti-development stance in the legislature through statements. Due to MPP Crawford’s advocacy to Premier Ford, ministers, and provincial colleagues, the Ontario government saved Glen Abbey in July 2021.