John Williamson
- Born
- 1970
Based on publicly available information — may contain inaccuracies
Business & Financial Interests
Before entering federal politics, John Williamson had a career in communications and policy advocacy. He served as the National Director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, a non-profit advocacy group, from 2004 to 2008 and again from 2016 to 2018. He also worked as Director of Communications in the Prime Minister's Office under Stephen Harper. Williamson has also been associated with the Fraser Institute, a public policy think tank.
Key Relationships & Connections
John Williamson has a notable political connection to former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, for whom he served as Director of Communications from 2009 to 2011. This role placed him in a senior position within the Conservative government's inner circle. He also has long-standing ties to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, where he held a leadership position for several years.
Public Controversies
In March 2015, while serving as an MP, Williamson made comments at a conference that generated significant controversy. While discussing the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, he was quoted as saying it made no sense to pay "whities to stay home" while paying "brown people to work in these jobs." The remarks were widely condemned as racist and offensive. Williamson publicly apologized for the comments, stating they were foolish and offensive and that he had let his colleagues down.
Where John falls on key policy spectrums
Your Money
People & Society
How We're Governed
Land & Community
John Williamson won with 26,591 votes (53.1%)
Total votes cast: 50,092
How does John Williamson's voting record line up with your values?
We can deduce from that, then, that it is.... When you say inertia, you're talking about policy-makers, who aren't moving to update and modernize regulation so that there's a more level playing field. It's not like the weather. It's not just happening. There's no action to correct it.
There's no time to wait. Thank you. Would you say that the current government has made it easier or harder for fintech companies to compete with the big banks?
All right, so it's working against us by protecting our large banks. Are federal rules protecting incumbent banks from competition done at the expense of consumers?
I have a quick question for Ms. Bak, who's online. You remarked—I think I heard you correctly—that Canadian capital is financing U.S. growth. Is this a new phenomenon? Is it something that has developed in the last decade or so, or is this normal?
It is, and in your view, there's no reason to wait. There's no reason to drag our feet. We should join our near competitors if we want to be in a position to help consumers and attract greater capital.
All right. Is Canada the last country in the G7 to really implement robust open banking?
Would you say you're satisfied with the pace? I'm a bit unclear with that last answer. You would say we've been kind of dragging our feet and there's inertia, but now you sound like you're satisfied.
Sure. Are the federal rules—the guidelines, the oversight, the red tape—that protect the incumbent banks and their privileged position from competition being done...? Are consumers, families and businesses paying the tab for this, do you think?