Life as a Member of Parliament - before, during and after

Join us to hear from former MP Rahim Jaffer about what life is like as an federal leader in Canada before, during and after his role in Ottawa. 

Rahim Jaffer has a unique set of experiences that stems from years of work in both senior government and senior business management. Mr. Jaffer was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons on June 28, 1997, representing the Federal Electoral District of Edmonton Strathcona.  At the age of 25, he was one of the youngest Members of Parliament ever elected in Canada and the first Muslim MP.  He was re-elected in the subsequent federal elections of 2000, 2004 and 2006, serving nearly a dozen years in office.

Mr. Jaffer served as Chairman of National Conservative Caucus (Jan 2006-Oct 2008), Deputy Leader of the Official Opposition (Dec 01- Apr 02), Opposition Critic of Intergovernmental Affairs, Environment, Industry, Border Security. He served as a Member of the Standing Committees of Environment, Industry, Immigration and Scrutiny of Regulations. During his three years of service with the Government, he held the position of National Caucus Chair, named by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.  This position played a crucial role in facilitating communication between Members of Parliament and the Prime Minister (PM).

More recently, overcoming the challenges of Covid, an economic slowdown and inflation, it is his vast experience that has allowed him to create successful opportunities in small business, regardless of these circumstances. He has extensive experience in the area of small business management in Canada and the USA. This stretches over an array of ventures from real estate, healthcare, manufacturing and retail business. Through these experiences, he has been fortunate to have a long history of successful collaborations across internal and external teams.