View source for Jim Prentice

{{Short description|Premier of Alberta from 2014 to 2015}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{About other people|about the Canadian politician|Jim Prentice|Jim Prentice (footballer)|Jim Prentice (game designer)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix    = [[The Honourable]]
| name                = Jim Prentice
| honorific-suffix    = {{post-nominals|country=CAN|PC|QC|size=100%}}
| image               = Jim Prentice full.jpg
| caption             = Prentice in 2014
| order               = 16th
| office              = Premier of Alberta
| monarch             = [[Elizabeth II]]
| lieutenant_governor = [[Donald Ethell]]
| term_start          = September 15, 2014
| term_end            = May 24, 2015
| predecessor         = [[Dave Hancock]]
| successor           = [[Rachel Notley]]
| office2             = [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta#Party leaders|Leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta]]
| term_start2         = September 6, 2014
| term_end2           = May 5, 2015
| predecessor2        = [[Dave Hancock]] (interim)
| successor2          = [[Ric McIver]] (interim)
{{Collapsed infobox section begin |last=yes |[[28th Canadian Ministry]]
 |titlestyle=border:1px dashed lightgrey;}}{{Infobox officeholder |embed=yes
| office3             = [[Minister of Environment and Climate Change|Minister of the Environment]]
| primeminister3      = [[Stephen Harper]]
| term_start3         = October 30, 2008
| term_end3           = November 4, 2010
| predecessor3        = [[John Baird (Canadian politician)|John Baird]]
| successor3          = John Baird
| office4             = [[Minister of Western Economic Diversification]]
| primeminister4      = Stephen Harper
| term_start4         = October 30, 2008
| term_end4           = November 4, 2010
| predecessor4        = [[Rona Ambrose]]
| successor4          = Rona Ambrose
| office5             = [[Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry|Minister of Industry]]
| primeminister5      = Stephen Harper
| term_start5         = August 14, 2007
| term_end5           = October 30, 2008
| predecessor5        = [[Maxime Bernier]]
| successor5          = [[Tony Clement]]
| office6             = [[Minister of Crown–Indigenous Relations|Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]]
| primeminister6      = Stephen Harper
| term_start6         = February 6, 2006
| term_end6           = August 14, 2007
| predecessor6        = [[Andy Scott (politician)|Andy Scott]]
| successor6          = [[Chuck Strahl]]{{Collapsed infobox section end}}}}
{{Collapsed infobox section begin |last=yes |Parliamentary constituencies
 |titlestyle=border:1px dashed lightgrey;}}{{Infobox officeholder |embed=yes
| office11            = [[Member of the Legislative Assembly#Canada|Member]] of the<br />[[Legislative Assembly of Alberta]]<br />for [[Calgary-Foothills]]
| term_start11        = October 27, 2014
| term_end11          = May 5, 2015
| predecessor11       = [[Len Webber]]
| successor11         = [[Prasad Panda]]
| parliament12        = Canadian
| riding12            = [[Calgary Centre-North]]
| term_start12        = June 28, 2004
| term_end12          = November 14, 2010
| predecessor12       = ''Riding established''
| successor12         = [[Michelle Rempel Garner]] (2011){{Collapsed infobox section end}}}}
| birth_name          = Peter Eric James Prentice
| birth_date          = {{birth date|1956|07|20|mf=y}}
| birth_place         = [[South Porcupine]], [[Ontario]], Canada
| death_date          = {{Death date and age|2016|10|13|1956|7|20|mf=y}}
| death_place         = [[Lake Country]], [[British Columbia]], Canada
| death_cause         = [[Aviation accidents and incidents|Plane crash]]
| party               = '''Provincial''':<br />[[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservative]]<br />'''Federal''':<br />[[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservative]] (1976–2003)<br />[[Conservative Party of Canada|Conservative]] (2003–his death)
| portfolio           = 
| profession          = [[Lawyer]]
| spouse              = Karen Prentice
| children            = 3
| residence           = [[Calgary]], [[Alberta]], Canada
| alma_mater          = {{unbulleted list|[[University of Alberta]]|[[Dalhousie University]]}}
| footnotes           = 
}}

'''Peter Eric James Prentice''' {{post-nominals|country=CAN|PC|QC}} (July 20, 1956 – October 13, 2016) was a Canadian politician who served as the 16th [[premier of Alberta]] from 2014 to 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/jim-prentice-officially-sworn-in-as-alberta-s-premier-1.2007122|title=Jim Prentice Officially Sworn In as Alberta's Premier|work=CTV News |location=Calgary |date=September 15, 2014 |access-date=15 September 2014}}</ref> In the [[2004 Canadian federal election|2004 federal election]] he was elected to the [[House of Commons of Canada]] as a candidate of the [[Conservative Party of Canada]]. He was re-elected in the [[2006 Canadian federal election|2006 federal election]] and appointed to the [[Cabinet of Canada|cabinet]] as [[Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (Canada)|Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]] and [[Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians]]. Prentice was appointed [[Minister of Industry (Canada)|Minister of Industry]] on August 14, 2007,<ref name="jimprentice.ca">{{cite web|url=http://www.jimprentice.ca/EN/7113/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230924145436/https://www.jimprentice.ca/EN/7113/|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 24, 2023|title=Jim Prentice's Official Website|work=jimprentice.ca}}</ref> and after the 2008 election became [[Minister of the Environment (Canada)|Minister of Environment]] on October 30, 2008.<ref name="jimprentice.ca"/> On November 4, 2010, Prentice announced his resignation from cabinet and as MP for [[Calgary Centre-North]]. After retiring from federal politics he entered the private sector as vice-chairman of [[CIBC]].

Prentice entered provincial politics in his home province of Alberta, and ran for the leadership of the [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta]] to replace [[Dave Hancock]], who was serving as interim Premier and party leader after [[Alison Redford]]'s resignation. On September 6, 2014, Prentice won the [[2014 Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta leadership election|leadership election]], becoming both the leader of the Progressive Conservatives and as such the Premier, as his party held a [[Majority government|majority]] in the [[Legislative Assembly of Alberta]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Alberta PC leadership vote: Jim Prentice wins on 1st ballot|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-pc-leadership-vote-jim-prentice-wins-on-1st-ballot-1.2758180|access-date=September 6, 2014|work=[[CBC News]]|date=September 6, 2014}}</ref>
As Premier of Alberta, Prentice formed a new [[Prentice cabinet|cabinet]] consisting of some members from the previous [[Redford cabinet|government]], but also new Ministers including two who did not hold seats in the Legislature—[[Stephen Mandel]] and [[Gordon Dirks]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Mertz|first1=Emily|title=Jim Prentice's cabinet: Who's in and who's out?|url=http://globalnews.ca/news/1564163/jim-prentices-cabinet-whos-in-and-whos-out/|website=Global News|access-date=19 February 2016 |date=September 15, 2014}}</ref> All three stood as candidates in by-elections scheduled for October 27, 2014, and all three were elected with Prentice becoming the MLA for [[Calgary-Foothills]]. After introducing his first budget in 2015, Prentice declared [[2015 Alberta general election|an early provincial election on May 5, 2015]]. In the election, Prentice's PCs suffered an unprecedented defeat, dropping to third place in the legislature with just 10 seats&nbsp;– ending 44 years of Tory rule in Alberta, the longest consecutive reign for any political party at the provincial level in Canada. Despite winning re-election in Calgary-Foothills, on election night Prentice resigned as both PC leader and MLA and retired from politics after results indicated that the [[Alberta New Democratic Party|Alberta NDP]] had won a majority government.<ref>{{cite news|title=Jim Prentice resigns after orange wave sweeps Alberta|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/elections/alberta-votes/jim-prentice-resigns-after-orange-wave-sweeps-alberta-1.3062789|access-date=25 February 2016|work=[[CBC News]]|date=5 May 2015}}</ref>

On October 13, 2016, Prentice and three others were killed when the aircraft in which they were travelling crashed shortly after taking off from [[Kelowna, British Columbia]].<ref name=death>{{cite news | url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/jim-prentice-plane-crash-killed-1.3804941 |title=Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice among 4 killed in B.C. plane crash | date= October 13, 2016 |access-date= October 14, 2016 |publisher=[[CBC News]] |last1=Fletcher |first1=Robson}}</ref> The flight was en route from Kelowna to Springbank Airport, just outside Calgary.

==Background==
Prentice was born to a large, [[blue-collar]] family in [[South Porcupine, Ontario|South Porcupine]], near [[Timmins, Ontario]]. The family then moved to [[Alberta]] in 1969.<ref name=death/> He was the son of Wilma Lyle Marea (Mawhiney) and [[Eric Prentice]], a professional [[ice hockey|hockey]] player who played five games in the [[National Hockey League]] (NHL) in the 1940s.<ref>[http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/calgaryherald/obituary.aspx?pid=167483831M]{{dead link|date=September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.ourontario.ca/timmins/2441681/data|title=Mawhinney, Wilma Lyle Marea and Prentice, Eric Dayton, (Married)}}</ref> His uncle [[Dean Prentice]] played in the NHL for more than 20 years. Prentice was educated at the [[University of Alberta]] (where he became a member of the [[Phi Gamma Delta]] fraternity<ref>[http://www.phigam.ca/join/who-else/ Who Else is a Fiji?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410155856/http://www.phigam.ca/join/who-else |date=2010-04-10 }} – www.phigam.ca – retrieved 8 December 2008</ref>) and [[Dalhousie University]]. He paid for his tuition by working as a [[coal miner]] in the summer months for seven years.<ref>[http://www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/ic1.nsf/en/01530e.html Speaking Points – The Honourable Jim Prentice – Canadian Council of Chief Executives Luncheon, Toronto, Ontario, November 21, 2007] – Industry Canada – retrieved 11 June 2008</ref>

As a lawyer, he served as a Law Commissioner of the Indian Claims Commission of Canada.<ref>[http://www.indianclaims.ca/pdf/ICCP/ICCP14/Commissioners-eng.pdf The Commissioners] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080627111116/http://www.indianclaims.ca/pdf/ICCP/ICCP14/Commissioners-eng.pdf |date=2008-06-27 }} – Indian Claims Commission –  retrieved 11 June 2008</ref>

In his personal life, Prentice served for seven years on the Board of Directors at the Calgary Winter Club, including stints as president and Chairman. He was an active member and volunteer leader in the Grace [[Presbyterian Church]]. Prentice and his wife Karen have three daughters and two grandchildren.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Michelle |last1=Lepage |url=https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/to-lose-two-family-members-at-once-is-unbelievably-painful-prentice-family |title=To lose two family members at once is unbelievably painful': Prentice family |work=[[The Edmonton Journal]] |date=14 October 2016 |access-date=14 October 2016}}</ref>

He was also a member of the [[Trilateral Commission]], a non-partisan organization that aims to increase cooperation within the developed world. In this capacity, Prentice was one of 20 Canadian members.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Trilateral Commission (membership list)|url=http://www.trilateral.org/download/file/TC_%20list_5-12%20(2).pdf |website=www.trilateral.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120526112706/http://www.trilateral.org/download/file/TC_%20list_5-12%20%282%29.pdf |archive-date=2012-05-26}}</ref>

==Early political career==
Prentice joined the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada]] in 1976, and was active in [[Tory]] circles ever since. In the [[1986 Alberta general election|1986 provincial election]], Prentice ran for the [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservatives]] in [[Calgary Mountain View]], being defeated by [[Alberta New Democratic Party|NDP]] candidate [[Bob Hawkesworth]].<ref>{{cite news|title=A 1986 photo of Jim Prentice|url=https://ottawacitizen.com/news/1986+photo+Prentice+Prentice+Progressive+Conservative+candidate+Calgary+Mountain+View+defeated+candidate+Hawkesworth+Prentice+wife+Karen+stare+glumly+election+results+Photo+Calgary+Herald+file+photo+originally+published+1986/10182250/story.html|access-date=19 February 2016|work=Ottawa Citizen|publisher=Postmedia|date=September 6, 2014|archive-date=November 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116091100/http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/1986+photo+Prentice+Prentice+Progressive+Conservative+candidate+Calgary+Mountain+View+defeated+candidate+Hawkesworth+Prentice+wife+Karen+stare+glumly+election+results+Photo+Calgary+Herald+file+photo+originally+published+1986/10182250/story.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

During the early 1990s, Prentice served as the governing federal PC party's chief financial officer and treasurer (1990–93).  Prentice first ran for Parliament as the nominated Progressive Conservative candidate in a spring 2002 [[by-election]] in the riding of [[Calgary Southwest]] that followed the retirement of [[Preston Manning]] as the riding's [[Member of Parliament (Canada)|Member of Parliament]] (MP). When newly elected [[Canadian Alliance]] leader [[Stephen Harper]] replaced nominated CA candidate [[Ezra Levant]] in the by-election, Prentice withdrew from the race, following common practice to allow a party leader to win a seat uncontested so they may lead their party within Parliament.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Plamondon|first1=Bob|title=Full Circle: Death and Resurrection In Canadian Conservative Politics|date=Nov 21, 2014|publisher=eBookIt.com|pages=370–375|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eZyMBQAAQBAJ|access-date=19 February 2016|isbn=9781456623166}}</ref>

He ran in the [[2003 Progressive Conservative leadership election]] to support the "[[United Alternative]]" proposal to merge the PC party with the Canadian Alliance. He was seen by many as an alternative to the "status quo" candidate and front runner [[Peter MacKay]]. A basic platform of Prentice's campaign was that "no one has ever defeated the Liberals with a divided conservative family."  Prentice entered the 2003 convention day with some momentum, after delivering a passionate speech to the assembled delegates that encouraged Tories to be proud of their accomplishments, despite recent setbacks, and that recalled the sacrifices of Canadian soldiers who fought in the [[Battle of Passchendaele]]. He also unexpectedly received the support of fellow leadership challenger [[Craig Chandler]], who withdrew early. Prentice ultimately emerged in second-place on the fourth ballot to the eventual winner MacKay.<ref>{{cite web|title=2003 PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE LEADERSHIP CONVENTION|url=http://www.cpac.ca/en/2003-progressive-conservative-leadership/|website=cpac.ca|access-date=19 February 2016|archive-date=October 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023223953/https://www.cpac.ca/en/2003-progressive-conservative-leadership/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Consistent with his positions during the leadership race, Prentice was a supporter of the merger endorsed by both the CA and PC parties in December 2003 that formed the new Conservative Party of Canada.<ref>{{cite news| first1=Robson |last1=Fletcher |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/jim-prentice-plane-crash-killed-1.3804941 |title=Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice among 4 killed in B.C. plane crash |work=[[CBC News]] |date=14 October 2016 |access-date=14 October 2016}}</ref>

Prentice was the first declared candidate for the leadership of the new Conservative Party,<ref>{{cite news |first1=Stuart |last1=Thomson |url=https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/jim-prentice-timeline-a-long-career-of-public-service |title=Jim Prentice timeline: A long career of public service |work=[[The Edmonton Journal]] |date=14 October 2016 |access-date=14 October 2016}}</ref> announcing his run on December 7, 2003, the day after the new party was ratified by members of the PC Party. Prentice began his campaign in Calgary and toured parts of Ontario, specifically visiting [[Kingston, Ontario]], the hometown of the first conservative leader Sir [[John A. Macdonald]].  However, he withdrew from the race on January 12, 2004, citing difficulty in raising new funds less than a year after his unsuccessful first leadership bid.<ref>{{cite news |first1=James |last1=Wood |first2=Chris |last2=Varcoe |url=https://calgaryherald.com/news/politics/jim-prentice-a-career-that-changed-conservative-politics |title=Jim Prentice: A career that changed Conservative politics |work=[[The Calgary Herald]] |date=14 October 2016 |access-date=14 October 2016}}</ref> The leadership election was won by [[Stephen Harper]], who later became [[Prime Minister of Canada]] after the [[2006 Canadian federal election]].

==Early parliamentary career==
Prentice ran in the riding of [[Calgary Centre-North]] in the 2004 election for the new Conservative Party, and won the seat with 54% of the popular vote.<ref>{{cite news|title=244 Calgary North Centre|url=http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes2004/riding/244/ | work=[[CBC News]]}}</ref>

After being sworn in as the MP for Calgary Centre North on July 16, Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper named Prentice to the [[Shadow Cabinet]] as the [[Official Opposition]] Critic for Indian and Northern Affairs. In that role Prentice opposed the [[Tli Cho]] land claim agreement, which he said would make Canadian law secondary to Tlicho local law.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=1394276&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=38&Ses=1#Int-991471 |title=38th Parliament, 1st Session. Edited Hansard, number 019, Monday, November 1, 2004 |publisher=.parl.gc.ca |access-date=2010-07-05}}</ref> Prentice was also a strong supporter of the proposed and controversial [[Alaskan Natural Gas Pipeline|Mackenzie Valley pipeline]].<ref>[http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/nr/spch/2006/cepaad_e.html Notes for an Address by The Honourable Jim Prentice to the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association Annual Dinner, Calgary, Alberta, May 23, 2006] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613185527/http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/nr/spch/2006/cepaad_e.html |date=June 13, 2011 }} – Indian and Northern Affairs Canada</ref><ref>[http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/mackenzievalley_pipeline/index.html The Mackenzie Valley pipeline], CBC, March 12, 2007</ref> He criticized the [[Liberal Party of Canada|Liberal]] government for its treatment of aboriginal women, and its alleged costs of administering the [[Canadian Indian residential school system|Residential School]] Claims program for aboriginal victims of abuse.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/prentice-s-appointment-as-inac-minister-welcomed-1.617715 |title=Prentice's appointment as INAC minister welcomed |work= [[CBC News]] |date=2006-02-06 |access-date=2014-04-15}}</ref>

Prentice described himself as a [[Red Tory]] in the Conservative Party<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/globe-politics-insider/jim-prentice-tries-to-counter-red-tory-label-with-high-profile-recruit/article18466964/|title=Jim Prentice tries to counter "Red Tory" label with high profile recruit|first=Kelly|last=Cryderman|publisher=The Globe and Mail|date=2014-05-05|access-date=2016-10-15}}</ref> and surprised many observers when he voted in favour of [[Civil Marriage Act|Bill C-38]] supporting [[same-sex marriage]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/scfcn/CTVNews/20050203/same_sex_050203/Canada/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20071120223819/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/scfcn/CTVNews/20050203/same_sex_050203/Canada/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 20, 2007 |title=Gay marriage bill reveals party divisions |publisher=Ctv.ca |date=2005-02-03 |access-date=2010-07-05}}</ref>

==Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development==
Prentice had been assigned the [[Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development]] in the [[39th Canadian Parliament|Conservative government]], and was sworn into this role on February 6, 2006, until August 13, 2007. One of his main challenges as Minister was to implement "The Nunavut Project," a 2006 report authored by [[Thomas R. Berger|Thomas Berger]], to show tangible, measurable results to increase [[Inuit]] representation in the Nunavut public services.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Jim |last1=Bell |url=http://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/berger_urges_big_bold_fix_for_inuit_educatio/ |title=Berger urges big, bold fix for Inuit education |work=[[The Nunatsiaq News]] |date=31 March 2006 |access-date=11 May 2018}}</ref>

===Kelowna Accord and residential schools===
In the fall of 2006, [[Phil Fontaine]], National chief of the [[Assembly of First Nations]], expressed disappointment over the Conservative government's refusal to honour the [[Kelowna Accord]], endorsed by 14 jurisdictions (the federal government, 10 provinces, and three territories). Fontaine previously described the federal government's point person on Kelowna, Jim Prentice, as an "honourable" person sensitive to native concerns. Prior to January 2006 election, Fontaine and two vice-chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations had a meeting with Prentice. "[Prentice] acknowledged all the hard work that went into Kelowna and (said) that the Conservative party would not put this aside," says Fontaine. "We took him at his word."<ref name="kelowna"/> Prentice did not recall saying that: "I've always been very, very careful about what I've said about Kelowna,"<ref name="kelowna"/> According to Fontaine, in their first meeting after the 2006 election, "(Prentice) wanted to apply a very focused approach to his responsibilities." In the federal budget of May 2006, Fontaine and other native leaders got a glimpse of what "focused" meant: just $450 million (over two years) was committed to implementing Kelowna, not the $1.64 billion for the first two years that [[Paul Martin]] had agreed to.<ref name="kelowna">
{{cite news
 |url=https://www.thestar.com/printArticle/154309
 |title=Just another empty white man's promise
 |publisher=The Toronto Star
 |access-date=2008-06-15
 |last=Urquhart
 |date=November 25, 2006
 |first=Ian
 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008001515/http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/154309
 |archive-date=2012-10-08
}}
</ref>

Prentice argued that there was actually $3.7 billion in spending on native peoples in the May 2006 budget, "more than the previous four budgets in total." That figure includes $2.2 billion in compensation for victims of abuse in residential schools (another deal that was worked out with the previous government) and $300 million for off-reserve housing.<ref name="kelowna"/>

On June 11, 2008, Prime Minister [[Stephen Harper]] thanked Jim Prentice for his work on addressing the matter of the [[Canadian residential school system|Indian residential schools]] and providing a government apology for the residential school system.  Stephen Harper's thanks to Prentice came before he made the apology to former students of the schools.<ref>Harper, Stephen J., "Apology to Former Students of Indian Residential Schools" House of Commons Debates, Official Reports (Hansard) 39th Parl., 2nd Sess. (June 11, 2008) (Online) [http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Pub=hansard&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=39&Ses=2#T1515]</ref>

==Minister of Industry==
In a cabinet shuffle on August 14, 2007, Prentice became [[Minister of Industry (Canada)|Minister of Industry]], succeeding [[Maxime Bernier]].<ref>"[https://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/premiers/j-prentice.html The Honourable Jim Prentice, PC, QC, 2014–2015]," [[Legislative Assembly of Alberta]], URL accessed 14 October 2016.</ref>

===Copyright legislation and controversy===
Bringing "Canada into [[WIPO]] treaty compliance" had been stated as one of Prentice's goals in future copyright legislation.<ref>{{cite video |people= Jim Prentice |date=2007-12-08 |title=Meeting Jim Prentice, the Minister of Industry |publisher= Andy Doan |location= Calgary, AB |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JF_dHu5fRAk |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/JF_dHu5fRAk| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|access-date=2008-06-05 |time=1:50 minutes}}{{cbignore}}</ref> It has been pointed out repeatedly, however, that at the time of Prentice's statement of his rationale for introducing amendments to the ''Copyright Act'', there was no international legal obligation to implement any provision of the [[World Intellectual Property Organization]] (WIPO) Copyright Treaty (WCT) or the WIPO Performances & Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) since neither had been ratified by Canada.<ref name=ablawgCP>{{cite web |last1=Hagen |first1=Gregory |url=http://ablawg.ca/2008/03/11/a-note-on-integrity-in-treaty-making-copyright-law/ |title=A Note on Integrity in Treaty Making & Copyright Law |work=Ablawg |date=March 11, 2008}}</ref> Prentice has promised to "put consumers first." claiming in an editorial that "(C-61) allows the recording of webcasts and TV and radio programs to be enjoyed at different times" while ignoring the fact that if the files are protected by [[digital rights management]] (DRM) it is illegal to break the DRM to make the recording.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.thestar.com/opinion/canadian-approach-to-copyright/article_ec7a9dcf-08de-59d8-b9c4-790c4aa167b5.html | work=The Star | location=Toronto | title=Canadian approach to copyright | date=June 17, 2008 | access-date=March 20, 2024}}</ref> [[Michael Geist]], Canada Research Chair of Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, has suggested that the core desire of the draft legislation is "to satisfy U.S. pressure by enacting something very close to the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act".<ref>{{cite news|first1=David |last1=George-Cosh |url=http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=558674 |title=Tories eye $500 fine for illegal downloads |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080703191414/http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=558674 |archive-date=2008-07-03|work=Financial Post|date=2 June 2008|access-date=11 June 2008}}</ref>

[[Image:Canada Bill C-61 Opposition.jpg|thumb|An opponent of the proposed Bill C-61 holds up a protest sign at a public breakfast event held during the [[Calgary Stampede]] by Canadian Industry Minister Jim Prentice.]]

Prentice did not immediately provide a rationale for not discussing the issue with CBC Radio Canada despite the hundreds of questions that flooded in from concerned Canadians.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/searchengine/blog/2007/12/jim_prentice_says_no.html |title=Jim Prentice says no |publisher=www.cbc.ca |access-date=2008-06-07 |last=CBC Radio |author-link=CBC Radio |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080422165936/http://www.cbc.ca/searchengine/blog/2007/12/jim_prentice_says_no.html |archive-date = April 22, 2008}}</ref> He also refused to talk to a group of protesters who went to his office to express their concern, stating "When [[Minister of Canadian Heritage|Canadian Heritage Minister]] [[Josée Verner]] and I have reached a consensus and we're satisfied, we will introduce a bill."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/new-canadian-copyright-bill-on-downloading-delayed-1.295743 |title=New Canadian copyright bill on downloading delayed |publisher=www.ctv.ca |access-date=2018-05-11 |last=The Canadian Press|date=14 May 2008 }}</ref> Prentice has also implied that he will not follow the Government's policy to table the WCT & WPPT 21 days prior to introducing copyright amendments designed to implement parts of these treaties contrary to the Government's policy on treaty implementation.<ref name=ablawgCP/> Industry Canada announced on June 11, 2008, that Prentice "will deliver brief statements and answer media inquiries shortly after the tabling of a bill to amend the Copyright Act ... [on] Thursday, June 12, 2008".<ref>[http://www.ic.gc.ca/cmb/welcomeic.nsf/0365f77a8a847e1e8525655d006e1f91/85256a5d006b9720852574650065cf5b!OpenDocument Government of Canada to Table Bill to Amend the Copyright Act] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080612120601/http://www.ic.gc.ca/cmb/welcomeic.nsf/0365f77a8a847e1e8525655d006e1f91/85256a5d006b9720852574650065cf5b!OpenDocument |date=June 12, 2008 }} – Industry Canada website. Retrieved 11 June 2008.</ref> After less than two hours, hundreds of Canadians and critics panned the new [[An Act to amend the Copyright Act (39th Canadian Parliament, 2nd Session)|Bill C-61]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Docid=3570473&file=4 |title=Bill C-61 – Government of Canada |publisher=www2.parl.gc.ca |access-date=2008-06-12 |last=Government of Canada}}</ref> as nothing more than pandering to US interests at the expense of Canadians.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/copyright-law-could-result-in-police-state-critics-1.707544 |title=Copyright law could result in 'police state,' critic warns |publisher=www.cbc.ca |access-date=2008-06-12 |last=CBC Radio |author-link=CBC Radio | date=June 12, 2008}}</ref>

On a 10-minute interview with the CBC's [[Search Engine (radio show)|Search Engine]] radio program he dismissed any question related to [[digital rights management]] as "extremely technical" and claimed that the market will take care of copy protected CDs.  Prentice then hung up mid question and refused to continue the interview at a later time.  Most notably, Jim Prentice hung up before answering Jesse Brown's final question about who, under this bill, would have the power to investigate potential copyright violations.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/searchengine_20080619_6331.mp3 |work=[[CBC News]] |title=Search Engine podcast: Jim Prentice Unlocked (1:00–11:00) |first=Jesse |last=Brown |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080627111116/http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/searchengine_20080619_6331.mp3 |archive-date=June 27, 2008 }}</ref>

=== Wikipedia controversy ===

During the period of May 27, 2008, to June 4, 2008, edits originating from an [[IP address]] belonging to [[Industry Canada]] were made to the Jim Prentice article on [[Wikipedia]]. The edits included the removal of references to new copyright legislation (claiming that it did not exist) and the addition of two passages about Prentice's recent accomplishments as Minister of Industry.<ref name=CBC1>{{cite news | first = Peter | last = Nowak | title = Government buffing Prentice's Wikipedia entry | url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/government-buffing-prentice-s-wikipedia-entry-1.703403 | publisher = [[CBC News]] | location = Canada | access-date = 2008-06-04 | date=June 4, 2008}}</ref> Specifically, information about the copyright controversy was deleted from Prentice's biography by someone using an Industry Canada IP address.<ref name=CBC1/>

Jay Walsh, spokesman for the [[Wikimedia Foundation]], said in an interview there are tens of thousands of living people with biographies on Wikipedia, "so challenges about information are not uncommon." Walsh said neutrality of language and guarding against conflicts of interest are two of the central pillars of Wikipedia. He said, "The edits which should be trusted would come from people who don't possess a conflict of interest, in this case, it would be worthwhile saying that if someone is making edits from a computer within the government of Canada … if it was someone within that ministry, that would theoretically constitute a conflict of interest."<ref name=wikimedia1>{{cite web|url=http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Politics/2008/06/05/5785791-cp.html |title=Rewrite war rages on Wikipedia over Prentice biography and copyright law |publisher=cnews.canoe.ca |access-date=2008-06-05 |last=Cheadle |first=Bruce |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://archive.today/20080607084459/http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Politics/2008/06/05/5785791-cp.html |archive-date=June 7, 2008 }}
</ref>

===Auto industry===
In a February 29, 2008, speech to the [[Toronto Board of Trade]] Prentice rejected the concept of direct subsidies to the auto industry, insisting that setting up a strong economic foundation is a better route to strengthen the business.<ref>
{{cite news
 |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/Page/document/v5/content/subscribe?user_URL=https://www.theglobeandmail.com%2Fservlet%2Fstory%2FRTGAM.20080229.wprentice0229%2FBNStory%2FrobNews%2F&ord=38473938&brand=theglobeandmail&redirect_reason=2&denial_reasons=none&force_login=false
 |title=Prentice rejects auto subsidies
 |work=The Globe and Mail
 |access-date=2008-06-04
 |last=Blackwell
 |first=Richard
 |location=Toronto
 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608162954/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/Page/document/v5/content/subscribe?user_URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theglobeandmail.com%2Fservlet%2Fstory%2FRTGAM.20080229.wprentice0229%2FBNStory%2FrobNews%2F&ord=38473938&brand=theglobeandmail&redirect_reason=2&denial_reasons=none&force_login=false
 |archive-date=2008-06-08
}}
</ref> Former Liberal Leader [[Stéphane Dion]] said Finance Minister [[Jim Flaherty]] should be fired after the planned shutdown of the GM truck plant in Oshawa, Ont., with Prentice and Flaherty expressing hope for a new GM plant.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Whittington |first1=Les |last2=Ferguson |first2=Rob |title=Liberals demand PM fire Flaherty |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2008/06/05/liberals_demand_pm_fire_flaherty.html |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=The Toronto Star |date=2008-06-05 |language=en}}</ref>

===Net neutrality===
While serving as a Federal Cabinet minister, Prentice received criticism that he was sidestepping the issue of Canada's [[net neutrality]] laws by not providing clear answers regarding the government's position on [[bandwidth throttling|internet throttling]] practices by national Internet Service Providers (ISPs).<ref name="Globe">{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080402.internet03/BNStory/Technology/home|title=Prentice mum on ISP throttling debate|publisher=The Globe and Mail|access-date=2008-06-09|location=Toronto|first=Matt|last=Hartley|date=April 2, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516050801/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080402.internet03/BNStory/Technology/home|archive-date=May 16, 2008|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> [[New Democratic Party]] MP [[Charlie Angus]] raised the issue to Prentice in the House of Commons and said the government's "hands off" approach was bad for Canadian innovation.<ref name="Globe"/>  Prentice said that the issue is being appropriately handled by the Federal government agency the [[Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission]] (CRTC), which invited the general public to an open debate on net neutrality.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/crtc-opens-net-neutrality-debate-to-public-1.696539|title=CRTC opens net neutrality debate to public|work=CBC News|access-date=2008-06-09 | date=May 15, 2008}}</ref>

===Text messaging fees===
After initially appearing to take a stand on the issue,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/industry-minister-calls-on-bell-telus-to-explain-new-text-charges-1.703023|title=Industry minister calls on Bell, Telus to explain new text charges|publisher=CBC News|date=July 9, 2008|access-date=March 20, 2024}}</ref>  Prentice refused to intervene when [[Telus Communications|Telus]] and [[Bell Canada|Bell]] started charging 15 cents for incoming [[SMS|SMS text messages]] despite widespread opposition by consumer groups. This decision was made after Prentice dialogued with senior Bell and Telus executives and suggested that consumers "seek alternatives", even in Canada's limited-competition cellular industry.<ref>[https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/government-won-t-interfere-in-wireless-texting-charges-prentice-1.699272 Government won't interfere in wireless texting charges: Prentice (2008.08.08)] – retrieved 2009.02.16</ref>

==Minister of the Environment==

On October 30, 2008, Prentice was sworn in as [[Minister of the Environment (Canada)|Minister of the Environment]] in the Conservative Government.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/bio.asp?id=58 |title=The Honourable Jim Prentice Minister of the Environment |publisher=Pm.gc.ca |access-date=2010-07-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100331155330/http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/bio.asp?id=58 |archive-date=2010-03-31 }}</ref> During his tenure, funding for the CFCAS ([[Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Sciences]]) was not renewed, which some argued lead to a [[Human capital flight|brain drain]] in the climate scientific community.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cyberpresse.ca/environnement/201001/10/01-937798-les-cerveaux-du-climat-desertent-le-canada.php |title=François Cardinal : Les cerveaux du climat désertent le Canada &#124; Environnement |newspaper=La Presse |date=10 January 2010 |publisher=Cyberpresse.ca |access-date=2010-07-05 |last1=Cardinal |first1=François }}</ref>

===Draft Prentice Movement===
Shortly after the Conservative government faced a possible defeat by the opposition over the Conservatives economic update, a "Conservatives for Prentice" website emerged, gaining a place on the [[Blogging Tories]] blogroll.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://conservativesforprentice.blogspot.com/2008/11/welcome-to-conservatives-for-prentice.html |title=Conservatives for Prentice: Welcome to CONSERVATIVES for PRENTICE! |publisher=Conservativesforprentice.blogspot.com |date=2008-11-28 |access-date=2010-07-05}}</ref> A posting from a person claiming to be David Higginbottom, Prentice's campaign manager in the last election, said, "It is unfortunate that at a time when Conservatives need to be working together to prevent what is a desperate power play by the opposition to seize control of our democratically elected government, that a site like this would be created."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/mysterious-websites-want-baird-prentice-for-leader-1.347368 |title=Mysterious websites want Baird, Prentice for leader – CTV News |publisher=Ctv.ca |date=2008-11-30 |access-date=2018-05-11}}</ref>

===Resignation===
On November 4, 2010, Prentice announced he was resigning as Environment Minister effective immediately and that he would be resigning as Member of Parliament for Calgary Centre-North by the end of the year to take a job as vice-chairman of the [[Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wingrove |first1=Josh |last2=Ibbitson |first2=John |title=Prentice quits cabinet, 'closes door on political life' |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/prentice-quits-cabinet-closes-door-on-political-life/article1216199/ |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=November 4, 2010}}</ref>

Prentice suggested that his departure was for family reasons; he had committed to spending 10 years in politics, and at that point he had. He expressed a desire to step down so he could explore new opportunities in his life. His resignation raised some questions with the opposition; NDP leader [[Jack Layton]] expressed concern over the apparent connection between Ministers and the large banks.<ref>{{cite web|title=Jim Prentice resigns from Harper cabinet|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2010/11/04/jim_prentice_resigns_from_harper_cabinet.html|website=The Star|access-date=19 February 2016 |first1=Les |last1=Whittington |first2=Richard J. |last2=Brennan |first3=Susan |last3=Delacourt |date=November 4, 2010}}</ref>

==Premier of Alberta==
{{see also|Prentice Ministry}}
[[File:Prentice and Smith.jpg|thumb|Prentice and [[Danielle Smith]] announcing that Smith and eight other [[Wildrose Party|Wildrose]] MLAs would be crossing the floor to join the [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservatives]]]]
Though previously rumoured to have been interested in succeeding [[Stephen Harper]] as federal Conservative leader,<ref>{{cite news|title='Draft Jim Prentice' movement urging ex-Harper minister to leave CIBC and run for Alberta PC leadership|url=https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/draft-jim-prentice-movement-urging-ex-harper-minister-to-leave-cibc-and-run-for-alberta-pc-leadership |access-date=May 6, 2014|newspaper=National Post|date=April 9, 2014}}</ref>  Prentice entered the [[2014 Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta leadership election|2014 Alberta Progressive Conservative leadership election]] on May 15, 2014.<ref>{{cite news|title=Prentice enters Alberta PC Party Leadership race|url=http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/prentice-enters-alberta-pc-party-leadership-race-1.1823250|access-date=May 15, 2014|newspaper=CTV News|date=May 15, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Jim Prentice forming team for Alberta Tory leadership race|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/jim-prentice-forming-team-for-alberta-tory-leadership-race-1.2624808|access-date=May 6, 2014|newspaper=[[CBC News]]|date=April 28, 2014}}</ref> At the time the Alberta PC party was lagging badly in polls behind the opposition Wildrose due to personal expense controversies with [[Allison Redford]], who resigned as premier and party leader after facing a revolt from the caucus and riding associations, with [[Dave Hancock]] serving in these roles for the interim. On September 6, 2014, Prentice won the leadership race with more than 76% of the vote on the first ballot (the leadership contest was conducted using [[Instant-runoff voting]]).<ref>{{cite news|title=Alberta PC leadership vote: Jim Prentice wins on 1st ballot|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-pc-leadership-vote-jim-prentice-wins-on-1st-ballot-1.2758180?cmp=rss|access-date=September 6, 2014|newspaper=[[CBC News]]|date=September 6, 2014}}</ref>

Prentice was formally sworn in as premier on September 15, 2014.<ref name=newway>[https://edmontonjournal.com/Prentice+names+Mandel+health+minister+member+cabinet/10205281/story.html "Prentice promises ‘new way of doing things’ as smaller cabinet sworn in"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006130519/http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Prentice%20names%20Mandel%20health%20minister%20member%20cabinet/10205281/story.html |date=2014-10-06 }}. ''[[Edmonton Journal]]'', September 15, 2014.</ref> He immediately named a 20-member [[Executive Council of Alberta]], smaller than the cabinet had been under recent premiers. His recommendations for cabinet appointments included two people, former Edmonton mayor [[Stephen Mandel]] and former [[Calgary Board of Education]] trustee [[Gordon Dirks]], who were not members of the Legislative Assembly.<ref name=newway/> Prentice was elected to the legislature in a [[by-election]] in [[Calgary-Foothills]], the seat formerly held by MLA [[Len Webber]].<ref name=foothills>[http://globalnews.ca/news/1587770/premier-prentice-to-make-byelection-announcement/ "Premier Prentice to run in Calgary-Foothills in October byelection"]. [[Global News]], September 29, 2014.</ref> The PCs won all four of the provincial by-elections held on October 27, 2014, in what was seen at the time as a major electoral success for Prentice.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/alberta-byelections-swept-by-jim-prentice-s-progressive-conservative-party-1.2815059|title=Alberta byelections swept by Jim Prentice's Progressive Conservative Party|author=CBC News|author-link=CBC News|date=27 October 2014|access-date=7 May 2015}}</ref>

On November 24, 2014, [[Wildrose Party]] MLAs [[Kerry Towle]], ([[Innisfail-Sylvan Lake]]), and [[Ian Donovan]], ([[Little Bow]]) [[cross the floor|crossed the floor]] to join the ruling PC Party's caucus giving the turmoil within the Wildrose Party, uncertainty about the leadership of [[Danielle Smith]] and confidence in Prentice as reasons for their move.<ref name=floorcross>{{cite news|title=Two Wildrose members crossing the floor to join Tories|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/alberta/two-wildrose-members-crossing-the-floor-to-join-tories-sources-say/article21733277/|access-date=November 24, 2014|work=[[The Globe and Mail]]|date=November 24, 2014|last1=Bennett |first1=Dean |agency=The Canadian Press |location=Edmonton}}</ref>

On December 17, 2014, in a highly unusual move within any parliament using the [[Westminster system]], [[Leader of the Opposition (Alberta)|Leader of the Opposition]] Danielle Smith confirmed that she and eight other Wildrose members&nbsp;– [[Rob Anderson (politician)|Rob Anderson]], [[Gary Bikman]], [[Rod Fox]], [[Jason Hale (politician)|Jason Hale]], [[Bruce McAllister (politician)|Bruce McAllister]], [[Blake Pedersen]], [[Bruce Rowe]] and [[Jeff Wilson (Canadian politician)|Jeff Wilson]]&nbsp;– would cross the floor to the Progressive Conservative caucus.<ref name=smithfloorcross>{{cite news|title=Nine Wildrose MLAs bolt for Alberta PC Party|url=http://metronews.ca/news/calgary/1242550/nine-wildrose-mlas-bolt-for-alberta-pc-party/|access-date=December 17, 2014|work=[[Metro International|Metro]]|date=December 17, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218030000/http://metronews.ca/news/calgary/1242550/nine-wildrose-mlas-bolt-for-alberta-pc-party/|archive-date=December 18, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> At a press conference, Smith said that her conversations with Prentice revealed that they shared so much common ground that it made little sense for her to continue in opposition. "If you’re going to be the official Opposition leader," she said, "you have to really want to take down the government and really take down the premier. I don't want to take down this premier. I want this premier to succeed."<ref>[https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2014/12/17/albertas_wildrose_leader_and_eight_members_join_prentice_government.html Alberta’s Wildrose leader and eight members join Prentice government]. [[Canadian Press]], 2014-12-17.</ref> The defections were termed by a journalist as "an unprecedented move in Canadian political history", although they did not change the overall make-up of the legislature – the Conservatives still held a vast majority of the seats, and the Wildrose Party remained the Official Opposition.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/nine-wildrose-mlas-%E2%80%94-including-leader-danielle-smith-%E2%80%94-cross-floor-to-prentices-tory-government/ar-BBgVxWl |title=Nine Wildrose MLAs — including Leader Danielle Smith — cross floor to Prentice's Tory government |work=[[Calgary Herald]] |last1=Wood |first1=James |date=December 18, 2014 |access-date=2015-01-28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218062749/http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/nine-wildrose-mlas-%E2%80%94-including-leader-danielle-smith-%E2%80%94-cross-floor-to-prentices-tory-government/ar-BBgVxWl |archive-date=2014-12-18 }}</ref>
[[File:Jim-Prentice-2015-Provincial-Election-Campaign.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Prentice at a campaign stop at the Whitemud Creek Community Centre in Edmonton during the 2015 election]]

Prentice's March 2015 budget "raised a plethora of taxes and fees to help pay the province's way out of its hole, but he refuses to touch corporate taxes, because he is spooked by the prospect of investors skipping over Alberta for their next billion-dollar energy project, in favour of some more clement petro-state somewhere else. This array of taxes on you and your friends, but not on the C-Suite in Calgary’s office-tower jungle, has provoked populists on the left and right".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wells |first1=Paul |title=Paul Wells in Alberta: Could Jim Prentice actually lose? |url=https://www.macleans.ca/politics/paul-wells-in-alberta-could-jim-prentice-actually-lose/ |work=[[Maclean's]] |date=2015-04-23 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Alberta Premier Jim Prentice (left) congratulates Robin Campbell (right), Alberta Minister of Finance, after Campbell delivered the provincial budget speech at the Alberta Legislature on March 26, 2015. |url=http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Alberta+Premier+Prentice+left+congratulates+Robin+Campbell+right+Alberta+Minister+Finance+after+Campbell+delivered+provincial+budget+speech+Alberta+Legislature+March+2015/10923100/story.html |work=[[Edmonton Journal]] |date=March 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190506211218/http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Alberta+Premier+Prentice+left+congratulates+Robin+Campbell+right+Alberta+Minister+Finance+after+Campbell+delivered+provincial+budget+speech+Alberta+Legislature+March+2015/10923100/story.html |archive-date=May 6, 2019}}</ref> In retrospect, Ron Kneebone of the [[University of Calgary]]’s School of Public Policy defended Prentice's budget saying "'We've got to look in the mirror.' He got tossed for it. But he was absolutely right because he said, 'You guys keep electing us for spending all this money.'"<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hudes |first1=Sammy |title=How Alberta went from Klein's 'paid in full' years to record debt in 2021 budget |url=https://calgaryherald.com/news/politics/how-alberta-went-from-kleins-paid-in-full-years-to-record-debt-in-2021-budget |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[Calgary Herald]] |date=February 26, 2021}}</ref>

On April 7, 2015, Prentice advised the Lieutenant Governor to call an early election for May 5 claiming that he needed to seek a new mandate in order to pass his budget, a full year before he was mandated to by the provincial fixed-election law of an election every four years (by the constitution, the incumbent government could run for up to five years before the writ had to be dropped in 2017).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/alberta/alberta-to-hold-election-on-may-5/article23821249/|title=Jim Prentice seeks mandate on May 5 in cautious Alberta election bid|author=Justin Giovannetti|date=7 April 2015|access-date=7 May 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Leong |first1=Ricky |title=Jim Prentice and Alberta Tories should remember Grit election disaster |url=https://edmontonsun.com/2015/04/06/jim-prentice-and-tories-should-remember-grit-election-disaster/wcm/1226f787-1272-45f8-a297-e5307d3787c3 |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=Edmonton Sun |date=April 8, 2015}}</ref> The Progressive Conservatives were already lagging in polls behind the resurgent Wildrose Party led by [[Brian Jean]], as Prentice's pre-election budget was deeply unpopular with both the left and right in the political spectrum while only "business leaders thought it was tough but fair". Several gaffes by Prentice hurt him and his party in the campaign, including a comment before the election call in which Prentice appeared to be blaming Albertans, telling them that they had to "look in the mirror" to understand the root cause of Alberta's "serious budget shortfall"; [[Alberta Party]] leader [[Greg Clark (Canadian politician)|Greg Clark]] dubbed this “Mr. Prentice’s [[Alice in Wonderland]] moment because it’s only in some alternate reality that the blame for decades of PC mismanagement can be placed squarely on Albertans".<ref name=electiongaffes>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/alberta/mirrors-and-miscalculations-five-alberta-election-moments-to-remember/article24254881/|title=Mirrors and miscalculations: Five Alberta election moments to remember|author=Allan Maki|date=7 April 2015|access-date=5 May 2015}}</ref> There was an "embarrassing miscalculation in the proposed NDP budget" released two days before the debate that Prentice planned to capitalize upon; during the televised leaders' debate Prentice said "I know math is difficult" to [[Alberta New Democratic Party]] leader [[Rachel Notley]] in criticizing the "multibillion-dollar hole in [her] proposed budget", however Prentice's remark came under fire for as being deeply patronizing as well as potentially [[sexist]].<ref name=electiongaffes/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/ndp-misses-by-a-year-on-balanced-budget-calculation|title=NDP misses by a year on balanced budget calculation|first=Karen|last=Kleiss|date=21 April 2015|access-date=4 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/alberta/mirrors-and-miscalculations-five-alberta-election-moments-to-remember/article24254881/|title=Mirrors and miscalculations: Five Alberta election moments to remember|first=Allan|last=Maki|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|date=7 April 2015|access-date=5 May 2015}}</ref>  While Prentice otherwise performed respectably ahead of Wildrose leader [[Brian Jean]] and interim Liberal leader [[David Swann]], the NDP gained momentum as a result of the debate and overtook Wildrose for the lead in polls.<ref>{{cite news |title=Report card: How the leaders did in the debate |url=https://edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/report-card-how-the-leaders-did-in-the-debate |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[Edmonton Journal]] |date=April 24, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Braid |first1=Don |title=Braid: Notley shines in the best-ever Alberta leaders' debate |url=https://calgaryherald.com/news/politics/braid-notley-shines-in-the-best-ever-alberta-leaders-debate |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[Calgary Herald]] |date=April 23, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gerson |first1=Jen |title=Alberta election debate 'math' remark could subtract voters for PC's Jim Prentice |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/math-remark-during-debate-could-subtract-voters-for-alberta-pcs-jim-prentice |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[National Post]] |date=April 24, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Bartko |first1=Karen |title=Notley emerges as winner of Alberta election leaders' debate |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/1958961/notley-emerges-as-winner-of-alberta-election-leaders-debate/ |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[Global News]] |date=April 24, 2015}}</ref>

The [[2015 Alberta general election|provincial election]] ended the Progressive Conservatives' 44-year run in government, with the Alberta New Democratic Party winning a [[majority government]], the first time the party had been elected to government in the province's history. The Progressive Conservatives fell to third place in the legislature, with 10 seats, behind both the NDP and the Wildrose Party.  While the PCs placed second in terms of the popular vote, their caucus was decimated due to being completely shut out in Edmonton and losing all but eight seats in Calgary. Thirteen members of Prentice's cabinet were defeated, though Prentice himself was re-elected in Calgary-Foothills.  However, with the overall result beyond doubt, he resigned as PC leader, disclaimed his seat (thus voiding the election result in his riding)<ref name=legbio>{{cite web|title=The Honourable Jim Prentice, PC, QC, 2014–2015|url=https://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/premiers/j-prentice.html|website=Legislative Assembly of Alberta|access-date=November 24, 2015}}</ref> and retired from politics.<ref>{{cite news|title=Alberta PC Leader Jim Prentice resigns after winning seat in Calgary-Foothills|url=http://globalnews.ca/news/1982058/alberta-pc-leader-jim-prentice-wins-seat-in-calgary-foothills/|access-date=May 5, 2015|work=Global News|date=May 5, 2015}}</ref>

During the transition of power, Prentice advised Premier-designate Notley to continue settlement talks with the [[Lubicon Lake Band]]. The band had been seeking an agreement for 80 years, and Prentice had reopened negotiations in the fall of 2014. Notley recalled "He saw a path forward and he advised me how to travel that path, for which I, and many, many others, are very grateful", and the land claim deal was reached in late 2018.<ref name="cbc20190204">{{cite news |last1=Bellefontaine |first1=Michelle |title=Jim Prentice's 'sense of vision' depicted in official premier's portrait |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/jim-prentice-premier-legislature-portrait-1.5005667 |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[CBC News]] |date=February 4, 2019 |location=Edmonton}}</ref><ref name="Global20190204">{{cite news |last1=Bennett |first1=Dean |title=Former premier Jim Prentice honoured with official portrait at Alberta legislature |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/4924639/alberta-legislature-jim-prentice-portrait/ |access-date=24 May 2021 |work=[[Global News]] |agency=The Canadian Press |date=February 4, 2019}}</ref>

==After politics==
Prentice served as a visiting global fellow at the Canada Institute at the [[Wilson Center]] in Washington, D.C., for a four-month term that begun in February 2016.<ref>{{cite news |title=Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice lands job at Washington think-tank |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/premier-jim-prentice-book-energy-issues-wilson-center-1.3441704 |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[CBC News]] |agency=The Canadian Press |date=February 10, 2016 |location=Calgary}}</ref> At the Wilson Center, he wrote the book ''Triple Crown: Winning Canada’s Energy Future'' with Jean-Sebastien Rioux that was published posthumously by [[HarperCollins]] on February 21, 2017.<ref>{{cite press release |title=HarperCollins to publish book by the late Jim Prentice |url=https://www.harpercollins.ca/press-releases/harpercollins-to-publish-book-by-the-late-jim-prentice/ |website=HarperCollins Canada |access-date=25 May 2021 |date=January 5, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Triple Crown: Winning Canada's Energy Future |url=https://www.harpercollins.ca/9781443424912/triple-crown/ |website=HarperCollins Canada |access-date=25 May 2021}}</ref>

Prentice was appointed as a senior advisor to private equity firm [[Warburg Pincus LLC]] in June 2016, specializing in the energy industry.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jim Prentice lands new job as energy analyst with Warburg Pincus |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/warburg-pincus-jim-prentice-energy-analyst-1.3633007 |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[CBC News]] |date=June 13, 2016 |location=Calgary}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Yedlin |first1=Deborah |title=Yedlin: Former premier Prentice enters private equity field |url=https://calgaryherald.com/business/energy/yedlin-former-premier-prentice-enters-private-equity-field |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[Calgary Herald]] |date=June 14, 2016}}</ref>

==Death==
{{Wikinews|Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice killed in plane crash}}
Prentice was among the four people killed in the October 13, 2016, crash of a twin-engine [[Cessna Citation 500]] [[business jet]] in [[Lake Country]], British Columbia, shortly after takeoff from [[Kelowna International Airport]] en route to [[Calgary/Springbank Airport|Springbank Airport]] near Calgary. He had spent the day golfing in the Kelowna area and was returning home.<ref>{{cite news|title=Former Alberta premier Jim Prentice dead in plane crash|last=Markusoff|first=Jason|date=October 14, 2016|publisher=Macleans|access-date=October 14, 2016|url=http://www.macleans.ca/news/jim-prentice-dead-plane-crash/}}</ref> In April 2018, the [[Transportation Safety Board of Canada]] reported that while no conclusive reason for the crash could be determined, it was likely that the pilot had experienced [[spatial disorientation]] shortly after takeoff, having had little experience flying at night.<ref name=death/><ref>{{cite web | url=http://globalnews.ca/news/3003223/jim-prentice-60-dies-in-kelowna-plane-crash/?sf38890255=1 | title=Jim Prentice, 60, dies in Kelowna plane crash | author=Scotti, Monique | publisher=Global News | date=October 14, 2016 | access-date=October 14, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Pullen |first=Lauren |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/3378176/6-months-later-investigation-into-plane-crash-that-killed-4-including-jim-prentice/ |title=6 months later: investigation into plane crash that killed 4, including Jim Prentice |publisher=Globalnews.ca |date=2017-04-13 |access-date=2018-05-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/rapports-reports/aviation/2016/a16p0186/a16p0186.asp |title=Aviation Investigation Report A16P0186 |publisher=Transportation Safety Board of Canada |date=2016-10-13 |access-date=2018-05-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alberta/article-cause-of-crash-that-killed-jim-prentice-will-remain-uncertain-without/ |title=Cause of crash that killed Jim Prentice will remain uncertain without flight recorder data: TSB |date=26 April 2018 |publisher=The Globe and Mail |access-date=27 April 2018 |last1=Cryderman |first1=Kelly |location=Calgary}}</ref>

A state funeral was held for Prentice on October 28, 2016. Numerous dignitaries were in attendance, including former Prime Minister [[Stephen Harper]], interim federal Conservative leader [[Rona Ambrose]], Alberta Premier [[Rachel Notley]], British Columbia Premier [[Christy Clark]], Calgary Mayor [[Naheed Nenshi]], Green Party Leader [[Elizabeth May]], former prime minister [[Joe Clark]] and former opposition leader [[Preston Manning]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fletcher |first1=Robson |title='A great Albertan, a great Canadian': Jim Prentice honoured in state memorial |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/jim-prentice-state-memorial-service-1.3825593 |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[CBC News]] |date=October 28, 2016 |location=Calgary}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gilligan |first1=Melissa |last2=Tucker |first2=Erika |title=Jim Prentice remembered at state memorial: 'he gave Canada and Alberta his very best' |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/3026508/jim-prentice-memorial-live-coverage-friday/ |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[Global News]] |date=October 28, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Graveland |first1=Bill |last2=Krugel |first2=Lauren |title='He was everything to our family': Daughter remembers Jim Prentice at memorial |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/he-was-everything-to-our-family-daughter-remembers-jim-prentice-at-memorial-1.3135524 |access-date=25 May 2021 |work=[[CTV News]] |agency=The Canadian Press |date=October 28, 2016 |location=Calgary}}</ref>

Prentice's official portrait as Premier of Alberta was unveiled on February 4, 2019.  Painted by [[David Goatley (artist)|David Goatley]], it depicts Prentice "standing on the third floor of the Alberta legislature, hands resting on the marble railing, eyes looking off in the distance.  The expression and gaze shows Jim's sense of vision. He's thinking of the future and not the past." At the ceremony of the portrait unveiling, his widow Karen recalled that Prentice was "one who couldn't resist meeting with school tours when they passed by his office.  He would invite them in, show them around, and give each of them the opportunity to sit in the premier's chair.  I honestly believe his hope was that the experience would inspire more than one of these children to become involved in politics one day, and perhaps even become premier".<ref name="cbc20190204"/><ref name="Global20190204"/>

== Electoral record ==
{{2008 Canadian federal election/Calgary Centre-North}}
{{2006 Canadian federal election/Calgary Centre-North}}
{{2004 Canadian federal election/Calgary North Centre}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Canadian Parliament links|ID=3507}}

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