Ziad Aboultaif Explained

Ziad Aboultaif
Honorific-Suffix:MP
Riding1:Edmonton Manning
Parliament1:Canadian
Term Start1:October 19, 2015
Predecessor1:Riding Established
Birth Date:10 September 1966
Birth Place:Aiha, Lebanon
Profession:Businessman
Party:Conservative
Residence:Edmonton, Alberta
Spouse:Elizabeth
Children:2

Ziad Aboultaif (Arabic: زياد أبو لطيف; born 10 September 1966) is a Canadian politician first elected to represent the riding of Edmonton Manning in the House of Commons in the 2015 federal election.[1]

Before politics

On first coming to Canada, Aboultaif started working as a labourer. He learned the business from the ground up, moving from warehouse to office - eventually opening a business of his own.[2] He was co-owner and co-managed Axxess Furniture Inc., an Edmonton-based furniture distribution business, for 12 years.[3] [4]

Federal politics

Aboultaif was first elected in 2015, campaigning on his credentials as a small business owner. He pledged support for small business and to lower taxes.

From 2015 to 2017 he was shadow minister of National Revenue, followed by two years as shadow minister for International Development, then a year as shadow minister for Digital Government.[5] [6]

He has served on a number of Parliamentary committees, including International Trade, Government Operations and Estimates, COVID-19 Pandemic, Foreign Affairs and International Development, Finance and National Revenue.[7]

He won re-election in 2019, partially on a platform focused on cost of living and support for pipeline development.[8] In early 2021 he introduced a symbolic motion in Parliament supporting Canada's oil and gas sector industries.[9]

He voted in support of Bill C-233 - An Act to amend the Criminal Code (sex-selective abortion), which would make it an indictable or a summary offence for a medical practitioner to knowingly perform an abortion solely on the grounds of the child's genetic sex.[10]

Organ donation

In 2003 Aboultaif made a partial-liver donation to his son. In Parliament, he has worked to increase awareness of organ and tissue donation. His ultimately unsuccessful Private Members Bill, C-223, would have established a Canadian Organ Donor Registry to coordinate and promote organ donation throughout Canada.[11]

Personal life

Originally from Lebanon, Aboultaif immigrated to Canada in 1990. He has been married to his wife Elizabeth since 1991 and together they have two sons. His work on community boards earned him both an Alberta Centennial Medal (2005), and a Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012). Aboultaif is Druze.[12]

Aboultaif holds Dual-citizenship with Lebanon.[13]

External links

Parliament of Canada Website: Ziad Aboultaif

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Riding profile: Edmonton-Manning - Edmonton Journal. Paige Parsons. 8 October 2015.
  2. Web site: Ziad Aboultaif Member of Parliament / Député Edmonton Manning. 2021-01-21. 2022-01-03.
  3. Web site: About. www.axxessfurniture.com. April 3, 2019. April 3, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190403051235/http://www.axxessfurniture.com/about?mid=766. dead.
  4. Web site: Riding profile: Edmonton-Manning.
  5. Web site: Three Edmonton-area Conservative MPs named to new shadow cabinet.
  6. Web site: Riding profile: Edmonton-Manning.
  7. Web site: Ziad Aboultaif - Member of Parliament - Members of Parliament - House of Commons of Canada. ourcommons.ca. 2022-01-03.
  8. Web site: Riding profile:Edmonton Manning.
  9. Web site: M-61 Support of oil and gas sector 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session - Members of Parliament - House of Commons of Canada. ourcommons.ca. 2022-01-03.
  10. Web site: House of Commons of Canada . Feb 26, 2020 . BILL C-233 An Act to amend the Criminal Code (sex-selective abortion) . LEGISinfo.
  11. News: Conservative MP to table bill calling for national organ donor registry after transplant saved his son. National Post. 19 February 2016. 2022-01-03. MacLeod. Ian.
  12. Web site: The CDS Fundraiser is this Saturday and we added another Special Guest! - Canadian Druze Society. druze.net. 2022-01-03. March 6, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160306095819/http://druze.net/2016/02/19/the-cds-fundraiser-is-this-saturday-and-we-added-another-special-guest/. dead.
  13. Web site: As Australia ousts MPs with dual citizenship, Canada's Parliament embraces many in its ranks . CBC . 8 December 2017 . 10 August 2023.