Edgar Benson

The Honourable Edgar John Benson
Member of Parliament for Kingston (1962–1968); Kingston and the Islands (1968–1972)
In office 1962–1972
Preceded by	Benjamin Graydon Allmark
Succeeded by	Flora MacDonald
Personal details
Born	May 28, 1923 Cobourg, Ontario
Died	Ottawa, Ontario
Resting place	Beechwood Cemetery
Political party	Liberal
Spouse(s)	Marie Louise van Laer (1946–1974) Mary Jane Binks (1987–2011)
Alma mater	Queen's University (1949)
Profession	Chartered Accountant (1952)
Religion	Protestant
Military service
Service/branch	1st Canadian Survey Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery
Years of service	1941–1946
Rank	Sergeant

Edgar John "Ben" Benson PC FCA (May 28, 1923 – September 2, 2011) was a Canadian politician, businessman, diplomat, and university professor. He held four Cabinet posts, most notably that of Minister of Finance under Pierre Trudeau, where he was instrumental in reforming Canada's income tax law.

After serving overseas in the Second World War as a sergeant in the Royal Canadian Artillery, Benson attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, where he obtained his Bachelor of Commerce degree. He became a chartered accountant and partner in the accounting firm of England, Leonard, Macpherson and Company, and co-owner of CKLC. Prior to his entry into politics, he was also a lecturer in Business Administration at Queen's, in the capacity of Assistant Professor of Commerce.

Political life

He was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 1962 general election as the Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston, Ontario. Initially appointed in 1962 as Parliamentary Secretary to then Minister of Finance Walter Gordon, he entered the Cabinet of Prime Minister Lester Pearson in 1964 as Minister of National Revenue, and served concurrently from 1966 to 1968 as President of the Treasury Board.

He was an early supporter of Pierre Trudeau in the 1968 Liberal leadership campaign to replace the retiring Pearson, and, together with Jean Marchand, was co-chairman of Trudeau's leadership bid. He was later appointed Minister of Finance, serving from 1968 to 1972.

He served as Minister of National Defence from January to August 1972, when he retired from politics, choosing not to run in the 1972 election. He served as President of the Canadian Transport Commission from 1972 to 1982, and as Canadian Ambassador to Ireland from 1982 to 1985.

Impact as Minister of Finance

Benson wore a pair of new shoes on budget day in 1968, although he said, "He didn't buy them just for the budget." The following year he did not wear new shoes when delivering the budget, saying jokingly that he couldn't afford them, and in 1970 proudly displayed his worn soles on budget day.

Benson's balanced budget for 1969–70 would be the last until Paul Martin's budget of 1997–98. Later in 1969, he introduced his white paper on Canadian tax reform, which paved the way for:

• a capital gains tax that was severely criticized by the business community, particularly Israel Asper who wrote a book called The Benson Iceberg, which condemned the measure.
• a tax deduction for child care as a means of helping mothers enter the workforce.
• greater use of Registered Retirement Savings Plans.

The proposals were subjected to intensive debate that lasted more than a year, and were only passed after significant amendment, and then only through the use of closure. They came into effect in 1972.

He was also instrument in rolling out a national medical care plan and supplementary old age pensions, and played a key role in federal-provincial relations. Benson died on September 2, 2011 at the age of 88.

Honours

Benson was conferred honorary degrees as a Doctor of Laws from:

• the Royal Military College of Canada in 1973, and
• Queen's University in 2008

Electoral record

Kingston

Canadian federal election, 1962
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Edgar John Benson	16,828
	Progressive Conservative	Benjamin Allmark	13,599
	New Democratic	John McKinnon	1,468
	Social Credit	Ernest Hogan	214

Canadian federal election, 1963
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Edgar John Benson	18,425
	Progressive Conservative	J. Earl McEwen	12,879
	New Democratic	Denis Kalman	2,400
	Social Credit	Grace C.A. Gough	194

Canadian federal election, 1965
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Edgar John Benson	16,022
	Progressive Conservative	J. Earl McEwen	12,766
	New Democratic	John Meister	3,530

Kingston and the Islands

Canadian federal election, 1968
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	Edgar Benson	16,234	49.7
	Progressive Conservative	Boggart Trumpour	11,799	36.1
	New Democratic	Brendan McConnell	4,636	14.2
Total valid votes			32,669	100.0

External links

• Edgar Benson – Parliament of Canada biography

20th Ministry – First cabinet of Pierre Trudeau
Cabinet Posts (3)
Predecessor	Office	Successor
Donald Macdonald	Minister of National Defence 1972	Jean-Eudes Dubé
Incumbent	President of the Treasury Board 1968	Bud Drury
Mitchell Sharp	Minister of Finance 2003–2006	John Turner
19th Ministry – Cabinet of Lester B. Pearson
Cabinet Posts (2)
Predecessor	Office	Successor
New	President of the Treasury Board 1966–1968	Incumbent
George McIlraith	Minister of National Revenue 1964–1968	Jean Chrétien
Sub-Cabinet Post
Predecessor	Title	Successor
Heward Grafftey	Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance (1963–1964)	Lawrence Pennell
Parliament of Canada
New constituency	Member of Parliament for Kingston and the Islands 1968–1972	Succeeded by Flora MacDonald
Preceded by Benjamin Allmark	Member of Parliament for Kingston 1962–1968	Redistribution
Government offices
Preceded by Jack Pickersgill	President of the Canadian Transport Commission 1972–1982	Succeeded by John T. Gray
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Alan William Sullivan	Canadian Ambassador to Ireland 1982–1985	Succeeded by Gustav Gad Rezek