Murray, Glen (politician)

Born October 26, 1957 in Montreal. He graduated from John Abbot College, and then - Concordia University . Prior to joining politics, he worked as a volunteer in the field of prevention and treatment of HIV- infected and AIDS patients .

Political career

Since 1989, three times was elected to the local legislative body - the City Council of Winnipeg .

October 28, 1998 Glen Murray won the mayoralty of Winnipeg , 50.5% of the voters voted for him. In 2002, he was re-elected for a second term. Winnipeg was the largest city in the world, led by an open gay , until in 2001, Bertrand Delanoe became mayor of Paris .

Murray became famous for hosting the Pan American Games in Winnipeg in 1999 . He took over the management of the city with a high level of debt and high taxes. Over the six years as mayor, Murray has reduced the total debt of the city by half, and the systematic reduction of local taxes, combined with financial support for business, has led to an increase in business activity, an influx of investments and an increase in the city budget. He carried out large-scale construction in the city, in particular, the Millennium Library, the MTS business center, the Esplanade Riel cable-stayed bridge, the embankment residential area were built, the construction of a new national museum began, high-speed bus lines were allocated, and a city improvement financing system was created.

On May 7, 2004, Glen Murray announced his intention to run for the House of Commons (lower house of the Canadian Parliament ). He won the election of candidates from the Liberal Party and resigned as mayor of the city in connection with his participation in parliamentary elections, but lost them. Murray then moved to Toronto , where he took over as president of the Canadian Urban Institute and created a thriving consulting firm. He also teaches at the College of Messi at the University of Toronto .

In March 2005, Murray, by decision of Prime Minister Paul Martin, was appointed chairman of the National Roundtable on Environment and Economics.

Personal life

Glen Murray was aware of homosexuality long before he participated in the mayoral election. He never hid his orientation, appeared in public with his partner, with whom he adopted a child in the early 90s. In 1992, he and his son starred in the documentary "A Kind of Family", dedicated to the problems of same-sex families. As mayor, Murray has consistently pursued a policy of tolerance with LGBT people , and has also been actively involved in the fight against the spread of HIV infection and the treatment of AIDS patients.

• Encyclopedia of Manitoba. Glen Murray
• Documentary "A Kind of Family"
• Big city. All the gay mayors of the world