Greg MacDougall

W. Greg MacDougall (born 1947) is a former Canadian politician who served on Ottawa City Council from 1980 to 1985. He served as the city's deputy mayor from 1981 to 1982 and was briefly acting mayor in 1985.

Dr. Greg MacDougall
Ottawa Alderman
In office
1980–1985
Preceded byDon Kay
Succeeded byDarrel Kent
ConstituencyAlta Vista Ward
Personal details
Born1947
Political partyLiberal Party of Canada
Spouse(s)Barbara
ResidenceFerncroft Cres, Guildwood Estates (1980)
Hanoi, Vietnam (2003)

Early career

Prior to entering politics, MacDougall was a medical doctor, specializing in family medicine. He studied in Scotland. He had practised medicine for eight years prior to 1980, and had lived in Alta Vista for 20 years prior. He continued to practise medicine, in a scaled down capacity while serving on council.[1]

First term

MacDougall ran in the 1980 municipal election on a law and order and crime control platform. He ran in Alta Vista Ward, which had been divided in half due to redistribution, with its incumbent Don Kay opting to run in Canterbury Ward instead.[2] At the time of the election he was living on Ferncroft Cres. in Guildwood Estates. He was married and had two children.[3] MacDougall defeated former school board trustee Roy Bushfield, winning 43% of the vote to Bushfield's 31% in an upset.[4]

While describing himself as "not really a right-wing guy", MacDougall was a member of the "gang of nine" on Ottawa City Council that formed a conservative majority opposing the agenda of left leaning mayor Marion Dewar.[5] MacDougall was elected as deputy mayor of Ottawa in a council vote on November 18, 1981, defeating Marlene Catterall in a 9-7 vote, and served a half-year term.[6] He served in that capacity until May 1982 when Catterall was elected.[7] During his first term on council, he started a community organization, a neighbourhood newspaper and a Neighbourhood Watch system, which shed a "74-per-cent reduction in house break-ins".[8]

Second term

MacDougall ran for re-election in the 1982 municipal elections. He ran on a platform on fixing infrastructure, recreation facilities for youth and the creation of a drop-in centre for senior citizens. He was opposed by Earle McPhail, who was a strong supporter of the creation of the "Alta Vista Parkway", and opposed MacDougall's support for the rapid-transit bus route, the Transitway. On election day, MacDougall easily defeated McPhail winning 79% of the vote to McPhail's 21%.[9]

Following his re-election in 1982, MacDougall served on the Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton executive committee.[10] During his second term on council, the body moderated itself compared to the polarization of the previous council. MacDougall himself "emerged as an influential power broker" during this period.[11] In 1983, MacDougall was appointed to the newly created race relations committee to "better communicate with minorities".[12] In 1984, MacDougall was appointed to the city's police commission.[13] He briefly served as acting mayor of the city when Dewar was on holiday in 1985.[14] While sitting on council, MacDougall ran for the Liberal Party of Canada nomination in Ottawa—Carleton for the 1984 Canadian federal election. The nomination meeting was held on August 1, 1984, and MacDougall finished third out of four candidates, winning 280 votes, behind winner Albert Roy's 1,072 votes and Eugene Bellemare's 476 votes.[15] MacDougall had joined the Liberal Party in 1976, and was president of the Ottawa and District Liberal Association.[16] He was elected to that position earlier in the year.[17] MacDougall's politics were described as "[f]iscally conservative [with a] strong streak of the civil libertarian". He supported affirmative action, and withstood opposition in the ward for supporting a grant to the Gays of Ottawa.[18]

MacDougall decided to not run for re-election in 1985, opting to return full time to his medical practice.[19] He endorsed Jim Durrell for mayor in the 1985 mayoral election.[20]

Post politics

In the late 1990s, he left his family practice and attended the University of Ottawa, and got a masters degree in health administration and also worked for the Ottawa Heart Institute. He then enrolled at Carleton University's Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. MacDougall moved to Hanoi, Vietnam around 2000 to become chief medical officer for International SOS Hanoi, an organization designed to deliver medical services to expatriates. There, he was instrumental in helping contain an outbreak of the SARS virus.[21]

Personal life

MacDougall married Barbara and had two children.

References
  1. Ottawa Citizen, April 11, 1983, p. 8, "The alderman as Mulroney aide"
  2. Ottawa Citizen, September 11, 1980, p. 43, "Two seeking council seats"
  3. Ottawa Citizen, November 3, 1980, p. 71, "MacDougall stands apart"
  4. Ottawa Citizen, November 11, 1980, p. 48, "MacDougall upsets Bushfield"
  5. Ottawa Citizen, November 16, 1981, p. 55, "City hall tyros keep tight rein on purse strings"
  6. Ottawa Citizen, November 19, 1981, p. 37, "Deputy mayor elected"
  7. Ottawa Citizen, May 22, 1982, p. 42, "Ottawa mayor gets new deputy"
  8. Ottawa Citizen, November 1, 1982, p. 53, "Ward no burning battleground"
  9. Ottawa Citizen, November 9, 1982, p. 17, "Election results"
  10. Ottawa Citizen, December 8, 1982, p. 28, "Few clouds loom as new regional council set to take office"
  11. Ottawa Citizen, June 30, 1984, p. 18, "Ottawa council: split narrows"
  12. Ottawa Citizen, May 19, 1983, p. 25, "Ottawa names 10 to race relations committee"
  13. Ottawa Citizen, February 16, 1984, p. 23, "Alderman named to police commission"
  14. Ottawa Citizen, March 1, 1985, p. C2, "Region given a month to bid for teacher's college"
  15. Ottawa Citizen, August 2, 1984, p. 5, Roy gets Liberal nod"
  16. Ottawa Citizen, July 17, 1984, p. 4, "Ottawa alderman in race for Pepin's seat"
  17. Ottawa Citizen, January 27, 1984, p. 33, "Secretarial change"
  18. Ottawa Citizen, September 7, 1985, p. B8, "Election will bring in new faces at City Hall"
  19. Ottawa Citizen, February 6, 1985, p. C3, "Dewar's future hot topic at city hall"
  20. Ottawa Citizen, November 16, 1985, p. B7, "Friends suggest Durrell's drive well suited to mayor's job"
  21. Ottawa Citizen, May 30, 2003, p. E6, "Ottawa doctor helps contain SARS in Vietnam"
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