Douglas Wiseman

Douglas Jack Wiseman (born July 21, 1930 in Smiths Falls, Ontario) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a Progressive Conservative from 1971 to 1990, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Bill Davis.

Life before politics

Wiseman was educated at Smiths Falls College, and worked as a farmer and small businessman. He developed a prominent cow-calf business in the region, and later opened a chain of discount shoe stores. Wiseman was also a public school board chair, and a trustee of St. Paul's United Church in Perth, Ontario.

Political career

He was first elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1971 provincial election, gaining an easy victory in the eastern Ontario constituency of Lanark. He was returned in the 1975 election, and was named parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health on November 19, 1975.

Wiseman was appointed as a minister without portfolio in Davis's government on January 21, 1978, and on August 30, 1979 was promoted to Minister of Government Services. His tenure in office proved to be unexpectedly controversial. Some senior government officials such as Hugh Segal claimed he was ineffective in cabinet, contributing almost nothing to policy debates. Within the Department of Government Services, some...
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