Lunn named Natural Resources minister

Gary Lunn, a Conservative member of Parliament who represents the riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands in British Columbia, was named minister of natural resources when Prime Minister Stephen Harper recently announced his 27-member cabinet.

Lunn, 48, once served as a construction superintendent at mines in B.C. and the Northwest Territories. Lunn is also a lawyer who once worked as a safety officer for Crestbrook Forest Industries.

He was first elected to the House of Commons in 1997 as a member of the Canadian Alliance. He won seats in each subsequent election and was appointed aboriginal affairs critic in 2004. He has also served as critic of other ministries including Social Development, Fisheries and Oceans, National Revenue, and International Trade.

It’s not yet known what approach the new Conservative minority government will take with mining but the party’s platform called for an extension of the investment tax credit for exploration (ITCE) — the so-called “super” flow-through shares — which ended on Dec. 31, 2005.

“Obviously, statements made in an election campaign don’t necessarily follow through, but we were encouraged by that sort of approach to our industry,” said Peter Dimmell, outgoing president of the Toronto-based Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada.

Some industry leaders have called for more investment in geoscience — an item that has suffered as a result of government cutbacks.

Lunn lives in Sidney, B.C. with his wife, Alexis, and their two children, David and Victoria.