Barry Mather
| Barry Mather | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for New Westminster | |
|
In office September 1962 – June 1968 | |
| Preceded by | William McLennan |
| Succeeded by | Douglas Hogarth |
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Surrey | |
|
In office June 1968 – October 1972 | |
| Preceded by | District was created in 1966 |
| Succeeded by | District changed name in 1971 to Surrey—White Rock |
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Surrey—White Rock | |
|
In office October 1972 – May 1974 | |
| Preceded by | District changed name in 1971 from Surrey |
| Succeeded by | Benno Friesen |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
20 February 1909 Condor, Alberta, Canada |
| Died |
30 March 1982 (aged 73) Nerja, Spain |
| Political party | New Democratic Party |
| Profession | journalist |
Barry Mather (20 February 1909 – 30 March 1982) was a Canadian journalist, columnist, and politician.
Born in Condor, Alberta, he was a journalist for the Vancouver News Herald and a columnist with The Vancouver Sun before being elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 1962 federal election for the British Columbia riding of New Westminster. A member of the New Democratic Party, he was re-elected in the 1963, 1965, 1968, and 1972 elections in the ridings of New Westminster, Surrey, and Surrey—White Rock.
In 1965, he was the first Member of Parliament to introduce a freedom of information bill as a private member’s bill. Although it didn't pass, he would re-introduce the same legislation in every parliamentary session between 1968 and 1974. In 1983, an Access to Information Act would finally be passed.[1] Mather was also one of the first parliamentarians to call for restrictions on the sale of cigarettes; in 1969, he called for a ban on all cigarette advertising.[2]
He was the co-author of the 1958 book, New Westminster, The Royal City. He was married to Camille Mather, a former Co-operative Commonwealth Federation member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the riding of Delta. They had two daughters: Mary and Jane.
He died of a heart attack during a vacation in Nerja in 1982.
References
- "Barry Mather, ex-MP, dies in Spain at 73". The Globe and Mail. 1 April 1982.
- ↑ Access to Information: Making it Work for Canadians Archived 8 December 2004 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ Winnipeg Free Press, 17 January 1969, p. 6; Winnipeg Free Press, 7 February 1969, p. 7.