Chris Bittle

Chris Bittle
MP
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for St. Catharines
Assumed office
October 19, 2015
Preceded by Rick Dykstra
Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Assumed office
September 19, 2017
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Preceded by Arnold Chan
Personal details
Born Christopher Joseph Bittle
(1979-02-17) February 17, 1979
Niagara Falls, Ontario[1]
Political party Liberal
Spouse(s) Charlene Stirling
Children Ethan Bittle
Residence St. Catharines, Ontario[1]
Alma mater
Profession Lawyer

Christopher Joseph Bittle MP (born February 17, 1979) is a Canadian Liberal politician, who was elected to represent the riding of St. Catharines in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 federal election.[2] He serves as the current Deputy House Leader of the Government and is a member of the Subcommittee on the Code of Conduct for Members of the House of Commons: Sexual Harassment, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, and the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs [3]

Early life and career

Born in Niagara Falls, Chris graduated from St. Paul Catholic Secondary School [4] before attending Queen's University where he graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree. He then attended law school at the University of Windsor where he received a Bachelor of Laws. [5] [6] [7]

Before Chris was elected Member of Parliament, he worked at Lancaster, Brooks and Welch LLP,[8] as a civil litigator focusing in matters like commercial disputes, real state litigation defamation and landlord tenant matters. Chris also worked as an instructor in the Department of Continuing Education at Niagara College and as seminar leader at Brock University.[9]

Chris is passionate about helping others. He became Chair of Quest Community Health Center Board of Directors in St. Catharines,[10] a non-profit organization. Chris was also a regular volunteer with Courts in the Classroom,[11] an initiative developed to educate youth in the community about the justice system. This made him even more close to the community that he represents today.

Political career

Chris Bittle was elected as a first time Member of Parliament in October 2015. Bittle received 24,870 votes and defeated incumbent Rick Dykstra.

In September 2017 Chris Bittle was appointed Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. He is the youngest Member of Parliament to hold that position.[12]

Investments in Niagara

Chris has, on several occasions since being elected Member of Parliament, made announcements in Niagara highlighting the federal government's investments in St. Catharines and surrounding areas.

In March 2017 Chris Bittle, alongside Vance Badawey, announced the federal government was investing in public transit in Niagara. In 2018, the federal government followed up on that announcement when Chris Bittle announced an $82 million investment in Niagara's transit systems.[13]

Chris has, on behalf of the federal government, also made several project specific funding announcements including $180,000 for Centennial Gardens,[14] $2 million for a Skills Link program at Goodwill Industries,[15] and $100,000 in funding for two local wineries who expanded their services and increase employment opportunities [16]

Electoral record

Canadian federal election, 2015
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
LiberalChris Bittle24,87043.2+22.6–
ConservativeRick Dykstra21,63737.6-13.3–
New DemocraticSusan Erskine-Fournier9,51116.5-7.3–
GreenJim Fannon1,4882.6-1.2–
CommunistSaleh Waziruddin850.1-0.1–
Total valid votes/Expense limit 57,591100.0 $221,576.61
Total rejected ballots 243––
Turnout 57,834––
Eligible voters 84,474
Source: Elections Canada[17][18][19]

References

  1. 1 2 "Biography". Retrieved 23 October 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/2015/10/20/bittle-promises-real-change
  3. ↑ http://www.ourcommons.ca/Parliamentarians/en/members/Chris-Bittle(88934)/CurrentRoles
  4. ↑ http://www.spchs.ca
  5. ↑ https://cbittle.liberal.ca/biography/
  6. ↑ http://www.tourismstcatharines.ca/st-catharines-m-p-chris-bittle-‒-a-great-neighbour/
  7. ↑ https://www.niagarathisweek.com/news-story/5968330--we-did-it-eh-/
  8. ↑ http://lbwlawyers.com/about/history/
  9. ↑ https://rc-rc.ca/government-members-key-contacts/
  10. ↑ http://questchc.ca/#
  11. ↑ http://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/at-court/teachers-students/
  12. ↑ "Chris Bittle appointed deputy government house leader". NiagaraThisWeek.com. 2017-09-19. Retrieved 2018-03-25.
  13. ↑ https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/03/31/trudeau-liberals-earmark-18b-in-old-infrastructure-cash-for-go-transit-project.html
  14. ↑ https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/from-birds-to-belugas-feds-boost-conservation-funding-in-budget-1.3821302
  15. ↑ "https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FChrisBittleMP%2Fposts%2F871991196305364&width=500" width="500" height="442" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowTransparency="true">
  16. ↑ https://www.niagarathisweek.com/news-story/8142963-winery-investments-bring-new-jobs/
  17. ↑ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for St. Catharines, 30 September 2015
  18. ↑ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived August 15, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
  19. ↑ "Election Night Results - Elections Canada". p. Ontario, St. Catharines. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.