The Honourable
John Efford
PC
Member of Parliament
for Avalon
Bonavista—Trinity—Conception (2002-2004)
In office
May 13, 2002 – January 23, 2006
Preceded byBrian Tobin
Succeeded byFabian Manning
Member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly
for Port de Grave
In office
April 2, 1985 – March 28, 2001
Preceded byRandy W. Collins
Succeeded byRoland Butler
Personal details
Born
Ruben John Efford

(1944-01-06)January 6, 1944
Port de Grave, Dominion of Newfoundland
DiedJanuary 2, 2022(2022-01-02) (aged 77)
Carbonear, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada
Political partyLiberal
OccupationBusinessman

Ruben John Efford PC (January 6, 1944 – January 2, 2022) was a Canadian politician. He first served as a member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly (MHA) from 1985 to 2001, representing Port de Grave electoral district and also serving as cabinet minister of various portfolios. After losing the 2001 leadership convention of the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador, he went into federal politics and served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 2002 until 2006 for the Liberal Party of Canada. He initially represented Bonavista—Trinity—Conception, before switching to Avalon after electoral redistribution prior to the 2004 federal election.

Early life

Ruben John Efford was born on January 6, 1944, in Port de Grave, Newfoundland and Labrador,[1] the son of Reuben John and Diana Efford.[2] He completed high school in his hometown,[3] before doing a business administration program. He went on to become the owner and operator of Efford’s Wholesale, Snow's Plumbing Ltd and the Della Lee retail clothing store.[4] He joined and actively participated in the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador during the early 1960s. He was elected to the District Liberal Association in 1969 and eventually became its vice-president.[3]

Provincial politics

Efford entered provincial politics in 1985, running in the election that year for the provincial Liberals.[4] He was elected to the House of Assembly, representing the riding of Port de Grave.[1] He was initially Opposition critic for consumer affairs, public works, fisheries, health and social services.[4] He later served as minister of social services, minister of works, services and transportation, and minister of fisheries and aquaculture after the Liberals won the 1989 provincial election.[1]

A founding member and chairperson of the United Fisherpersons of Newfoundland and Labrador, Efford opposed the federal cod moratorium that impacted the province's economy.[3][5] He accompanied Newfoundlander fish harvesters to Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto to protest the measure and argued for their rights to fish.[5] In his capacity as fisheries minister from 1996 to 2000,[1] Efford was a strong proponent of seal hunting, which was given conditional support from the federal government's fishery advisory committee – consisting of representatives from the industry and academia – as well as the House of Commons' fisheries committee.[6] He was perturbed by some students and scientists at Memorial University of Newfoundland who wrote to the federal fisheries minister requesting that the latter delay increasing the seal quota until a complete scientific review was conducted. Efford was of the opinion that they were undermining his efforts.[7]

Efford ultimately served as a MHA from 1985 to 2001.[1] He lost the 2001 leadership convention to become Liberal party leader to Roger Grimes by 14 votes in a divisive contest.[8][9] Despite Grimes offering him a senior cabinet position,[10] both Efford and fellow leadership contestant Paul Dicks subsequently left provincial politics, maintaining that they could not work with Grimes.[11]

Federal politics

Efford was elected to the House of Commons in a by-election in May 2002[12] and was re-elected in the 2004 general election. He was appointed Minister of Natural Resources in December 2003 and served in that role until February 2006.[13] During his tenure, the federal government came to a new agreement on the Atlantic Accord with the provincial government of Newfoundland and Labrador.[8] He also served as a member of the standing committees on Canadian Heritage, Fisheries and Oceans, on the standing committees of Human Resources Development, Status of Persons with Disabilities, Aboriginal Affairs, and Northern Development and Natural Resources.[1][13]

Retirement

After considerable speculation that he intended to resign his federal cabinet position due to ill-health, Efford announced on September 1, 2005, to much surprise, that he had no intention to resign. He later stated on NTV that he would not run again in the 2006 federal election or run for the leadership of the Newfoundland Liberal Party. In November 2005, it was reported that Efford was retiring from politics due to poor health from diabetes.[14][15]

In February 2011, Efford criticized the leadership of provincial Liberal Leader Yvonne Jones and called for her to consider resigning. Efford stated that her low poll numbers were the main reason for his request. He referenced a Telelink poll released that week by NTV, in which 11 percent of respondents said they would prefer Jones to lead the province. Jones responded by saying Efford was an absolute nuisance to the Newfoundland and Labrador Liberal party, and another poll done in March showed that Jones' popularity was now up to 18% from the 11% that the February poll showed.[16][17]

Personal life

Efford was married to Madonna until his death.[4][18] Together, they had three children: Jacqueline Ann, John III and Joseph Lee.[4]

Efford revealed in 2019 that he had been battling Alzheimer's disease for two years.[19] He died on January 2, 2022, at a hospital in Carbonear, four days shy of his 78th birthday.[18][8]

Electoral history

2004 Canadian federal election: Avalon
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalR. John Efford18,33558.34+12.41$47,245
ConservativeRick Dalton9,21129.31-10.37$50,104
New DemocraticMichael Kehoe3,45010.98-3.24$2,472
GreenDon C. Ferguson4301.37–$746
Total valid votes/expense limit 31,246100.0  –$74,947
Total rejected, declined and unmarked ballots 3361.06
Turnout 31,76249.83
Eligible voters 63,745
Liberal notional hold Swing +11.39
Changes from 2000 are based on redistributed results. Change for the Conservatives is from the combined totals of the Progressive Conservatives and the Canadian Alliance.

Source:[20]

By-election on May 13, 2002[21][22]

On Brian Tobin's resignation, January 25, 2002

Party Candidate Votes
LiberalJohn Efford18,665
Progressive ConservativeMichelle Brazil5,281
New DemocraticJim Gill588
AllianceDavid Tulett166
GreenChristopher John Bradshaw139
IndependentBrent Rockwood106
1999 Newfoundland and Labrador general election[23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
LiberalJohn Efford4488
Progressive ConservativePaul Cooper1026––
  NDP Steve Quigley 185

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Hon. Ruben John Efford, P.C., M.P." Ottawa, Canada: Library of Parliament. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  2. ↑ O'Handley, Kathryn (1997). Canadian Parliamentary Guide. ISBN 1-896413-43-9.
  3. 1 2 3 "New Cabinet Sworn In". Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. March 14, 1996. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "John Efford". Liberal Party of Canada. Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Smellie, Sarah (January 2, 2022). "'A force': Politicians remember former N.L. and federal cabinet minister John Efford". The Daily Courier. Kelowna. The Canadian Press. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  6. ↑ Pearlstein, Steven (September 19, 1999). "Sealing the Seal's Fate". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Students reject Efford's attack". CBC News. April 14, 1999. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 "Former cabinet minister John Efford dies at 77". CBC News. January 2, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Efford keeping keen eye on Liberal leadership". CBC News. October 10, 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  10. ↑ DeMont, John (February 19, 2001). "Newfoundland's new premier likes tackling the tough jobs". Maclean's. Toronto. Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  11. ↑ "The Grimes Government, 2001-2003". Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage. Memorial University.
  12. ↑ "Canadian byelections 2002". www.politicswatch.com. May 14, 2002. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  13. 1 2 "Roles – Hon. Ruben John Efford". House of Commons of Canada. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Efford won't run in next election". CBC News, November 18, 2005.
  15. ↑ Armstrong, Jane (November 23, 2005). "Ailing Efford calls it quits". The Globe and Mail.
  16. ↑ "Efford an 'absolute nuisance': Jones". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. February 18, 2011. Archived from the original on February 20, 2011.
  17. ↑ "Jones won't become premier: Efford". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. February 17, 2011.
  18. 1 2 Connors, Michael (January 2, 2022). "Former cabinet minister John Efford dies at age 77". St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada: CJON-DT. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  19. ↑ Bird, Lindsay (November 7, 2019). "John Efford goes public with Alzheimer's diagnosis: 'I'm dealing with it in a positive way'". CBC News. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Past results – Avalon (Newfoundland and Labrador)". Gatineau: Elections Canada. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  21. ↑ "The results". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. May 14, 2002. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  22. ↑ Hill, Tony L. (2002). Canadian Politics, Riding by Riding: An In-depth Analysis of Canada's 301 Federal Electoral Districts. Prospect Park Press. p. 14. ISBN 9780972343602.
  23. ↑ "Complete Newfoundland election results". Medicine Hat News. The Canadian Press. February 10, 1999. p. 6. Archived from the original on January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
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