John Cummins

John Martin Cummins (born March 12, 1942) is a Canadian politician. He was the leader of the British Columbia Conservative Party from 2011 until resigning after the 2013 election. He was the Conservative Member of Parliament for the riding of Delta—Richmond East in British Columbia from 1993 until 2011, when he turned to provincial politics becoming the leader of the unaffiliated provincial party. Born in Georgetown, Ontario, he was first elected to the House of Commons in the 1993 election, as a Reform Party member. He was re-elected in 1997, 2000 (as a member of the Canadian Alliance), 2004, 2006, and 2008 (as a Conservative). Education Cummins obtained a bachelor's degree from the University of Western Ontario where he attended King's University College and a master's degree from the University of British Columbia. Before politics Before entering politics, Cummins worked in the pulp and paper industry in Ontario, the oil fields of Alberta and on the construction of the Bennett hydroelectric dam in Northern BC. He taught school in the Northwest Territories and in the Peace River district of Northern Alberta, then spent fifteen years teaching in Delta, British Columbia. Cummins is also a commercial fisherman; he owned and operated commercial fishing boats in BC for over 20 years.