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Will Amos

Will Amos
Member of Parliament
for Pontiac
In office
October 19, 2015 – September 20, 2021
Preceded byMathieu Ravignat
Succeeded bySophie Chatel
Personal details
Born
William Amos

(1974-12-04) December 4, 1974 (age 49)
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Political partyLiberal
SpouseRegina Amos
Children2
ResidenceChelsea, Quebec
Alma materMcMaster University (BASc)
University of British Columbia (MA)
McGill University (JD, BCL)
Profession
  • Lawyer
  • lecturer

William Amos (born December 4, 1974) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for the riding of Pontiac, Quebec from 2015 to 2021. A member of the Liberal Party, he was first elected in the 2015 federal election and was re-elected in the 2019 federal election. In December 2019, Amos was appointed parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry.

In May 2021, he temporarily stepped away from his role after two on-camera incidents during parliamentary sessions: one in which he was naked on a non-public video feed and a second in which he urinated into a coffee cup on camera during a non-public session. Amos described both incidents as accidental and apologized for them, while also calling for an investigation into how a photo of the first incident was leaked to the press. In June 2021, Amos's urination incident was ruled a prima facie case of contempt against the House of Commons by Speaker Anthony Rota, and the matter was referred to the chamber's Procedure and House Affairs Committee. In August 2021, he announced that he would not seek re-election.[1]

Before entering politics, Amos was a lawyer for Ecojustice Canada, a lecturer at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, and director of the uOttawa Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic.

Education and career

Amos attended McMaster University, earning a Bachelor of Arts and Science degree and a Master of Arts degree from the University of British Columbia. He went on to attend McGill University's civil/common law program, graduating in 2004.[2][3] Amos was called to the bar in both Ontario and Quebec and worked for a large Montreal law firm. He advised former Cabinet minister David Anderson on issues related to species at risk and worked in the Prime Minister's Office under Jean Chrétien.[4][5][6]

Ecojustice Canada and University of Ottawa

By 2007, Amos was a lawyer for Ecojustice Canada, an environmental law charity which had partnered with the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) Faculty of Law to create the uOttawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic, which provided legal advice to individuals and community groups involved in environmental law cases.[5] During his time at the environmental law clinic, Amos collaborated as an author on four books, three of which were about the mining industry in Quebec, and one on holding the Canadian government accountable for environmental enforcement.[7] Amos was a part-time lecturer and staff lawyer at the University of Ottawa before being promoted to director of the uOttawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic in August 2010.[5][8]

Political career

In October 2014, Amos won the Liberal nomination to run in Pontiac for the 2015 federal election.[9] He won the riding in the 2015 election, unseating incumbent Mathieu Ravignat of the New Democratic Party (NDP).[10][11] At the time of his election, Amos was teaching law at the University of Ottawa as the director of the uOttawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic.[2][12]

Amos was re-elected following the 2019 election.[13] On December 12, 2019, Amos was appointed parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, with a focus on science.[14] On August 8, 2021, Amos announced he would not seek re-election.[15]

On-camera incidents

On April 14, 2021, Amos apologized for appearing naked during a hybrid parliamentary session with other members of parliament.[16] He stated that he had just gone out for a jog and that his video was "accidentally turned on." In response to the incident, Bloc Québécois member Claude DeBellefeuille said that members should remember always to be fully clothed, and Anthony Rota, Speaker of the House of Commons, replied by saying that members should "always be vigilant when they are near a camera and a microphone."[17]

The incident occurred on a video feed that only Members of Parliament and House of Commons staff can see, separate from the public-facing video system. It is against House of Commons rules to share video or images of non-public parliamentary proceedings. On April 15, Liberal House Leader Pablo Rodriguez called the leak of the photograph potentially "criminal" and an act of "callous disrespect". Rodriguez also called for an investigation into the leak of the photograph to be conducted by House Speaker Anthony Rota. Amos issued a statement on April 15, supporting the call for an investigation. Liberal Whip Mark Holland said that his counterparts from the NDP and Bloc reached out saying that the image had not originated from any of their offices.[18] On April 21, 2021, Bloc MP Sébastien Lemire apologized for taking the image of Amos that had been spread online and said he was not sure how the image reached the media.[19]

On May 27, 2021, Amos released a statement apologizing for urinating while on camera the day before,[20] saying that while it was accidental and not visible to the public, it was still unacceptable. He also announced that he was temporarily stepping aside from his role as parliamentary secretary to Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne and from his committee work to seek assistance.[21][22] On June 7, 2021, Speaker Rota ruled that Amos's urinating incident was a prima facie case of contempt of the House of Commons, and said that the procedure and House Affairs committee should investigate further. A motion to refer the incident was then passed without objection.[23] On June 8, Amos's office stated that Amos was receiving help with stress and time management.[24]

Personal life

Amos currently resides in Chelsea with his wife and two children.[9] He is fluently bilingual.[5]

Electoral record

2019 Canadian federal election: Pontiac
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Liberal Will Amos 30,217 48.9 -5.64 $95,087.19
Conservative Dave Blackburn 10,416 16.8 +2.87 $17,989.25
Bloc Québécois Jonathan Carreiro-Benoit 9,929 16.1 +9.19 $2,059.60
New Democratic Denise Giroux 6,503 10.5 -12.01 none listed
Green Claude Bertrand 3,762 6.1 +4.36 none listed
People's Mario Belec 775 1.3 $0.00
Veterans Coalition Shawn Stewart 194 0.3 none listed
Marxist–Leninist Louis Lang 51 0.1 -0.07 $0.00
Total valid votes/expense limit 61,847 100.0
Total rejected ballots 661
Turnout 62,508 68.2
Eligible voters 91,656
Liberal hold Swing -4.26
Source: Elections Canada[25][26]
2015 Canadian federal election: Pontiac
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Liberal Will Amos 34,154 54.54 +39.35 $127,717.07
New Democratic Mathieu Ravignat 14,095 22.51 -24.76 $47,758.81
Conservative Benjamin Woodman 8,721 13.93 -12.26 $35,653.16
Bloc Québécois Nicolas Lepage 4,327 6.91 -2.64 –
Green Colin Griffiths 1,089 1.74 +0.11 $7,418.25
Strength in Democracy Pascal Médieu 131 0.21 – $379.41
Marxist–Leninist Louis Lang 108 0.17 – –
Total valid votes/expense limit 62,625 100.0   $254,590.45
Total rejected ballots 467 – –
Turnout 63,092 – –
Eligible voters 87,365
Source: Elections Canada[27][28]

References

  1. ^ "3 Liberal MPs say they will not run in the next federal election | CBC News".
  2. ^ a b Schmitz, Cristin (November 6, 2015). "Lawyers back with a vengeance, business people will cede power". Lawyers Weekly. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  3. ^ "Twenty-five McGillians off to Parliament : McGill Reporter". publications.mcgill.ca. October 21, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  4. ^ Berthiaume, Lee (January 25, 2016). "Pontiac MP Will Amos on caring for the local environment". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d Turnbull, Amanda. "Will Amos New Director of uOttawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic | Common Law Section News". dev15.commonlaw.uottawa.ca. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  6. ^ Mandel, Charles (October 21, 2015). "Warren Kinsella dishes on who will be Trudeau's Minister of Environment". National Observer. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  7. ^ "PARLINFO - Parliamentarian File - Complete File - AMOS, William". Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  8. ^ "New uOttawa-Ecojustice Clinic Director announced - Ecojustice". Eco Justice. Ecojustice Canada. August 24, 2010. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  9. ^ a b McCooey, Paula (August 12, 2015). "Will bellwether Pontiac keep riding the orange wave?". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  10. ^ Will Amos rafle Pontiac, La Presse, October 19, 2015.
  11. ^ "Liberals win decisive victory in the Pontiac". Ottawa Citizen. October 16, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  12. ^ Smyth, Catrina (October 20, 2015). "Sea of red washes over orange crush". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  13. ^ "Liberal Will Amos victorious in Pontiac". CBC News. October 21, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  14. ^ Blewett, Taylor (December 13, 2019). "Mandate letters and parliamentary secretaries: What the NCR needs to know". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  15. ^ Amos, Will (August 8, 2021). "Statement by Member of Parliament Will Amos". Facebook. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
  16. ^ Levesque, Catherine (April 14, 2021). "Liberal MP issues apology after appearing naked in virtual House of Commons". Global News. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  17. ^ Jones, Ryan Patrick; Rands, Chris (April 14, 2021). "Liberal MP apologizes after appearing naked on House of Commons video feed". CBC News. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  18. ^ Tunney, Catharine (April 15, 2021). "Government House leader calls for investigation into leaked photo of naked Liberal MP". CBC News. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  19. ^ Raycraft, Richard (April 21, 2021). "Bloc MP apologizes for taking picture of naked House of Commons colleague". CBC News. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  20. ^ Austen, Ian (May 28, 2021). "Canadian Lawmaker Is Exposed on Camera for a Second Time". The New York Times. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  21. ^ "Liberal MP caught on camera — again — during virtual House of Commons". CBC News. The Canadian Press. May 27, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  22. ^ Cousins, Ben (May 27, 2021). "MP says he urinated on camera 'without realizing' month after being caught naked". CTV News. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  23. ^ Bryden, Joan (June 7, 2021). "Speaker rules conduct of urinating MP constitutes prima facie case of contempt". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  24. ^ "MP who exposed himself seeking help for stress and time management". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. June 8, 2021. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
  25. ^ "List of confirmed candidates". Elections Canada. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  26. ^ "Election Night Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  27. ^ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Pontiac, 30 September 2015
  28. ^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates
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