Leo Housakos

The Honourable Leonidas Housakos
Speaker of the Senate
In office May 4, 2015 – December 3, 2015 Acting: April 24, 2015 – May 4, 2015
Nominated by	Stephen Harper
Appointed by	David Johnston
Preceded by	Pierre Claude Nolin
Succeeded by	George Furey
Senator for Wellington, Quebec
Incumbent
Assumed office January 8, 2009
Nominated by	Stephen Harper
Appointed by	Michaëlle Jean
Preceded by	Aurélien Gill
Personal details
Born	(1968-01-10) January 10, 1968 Montreal, Quebec
Political party	Conservative (federal) Conservative (provincial)
Other political affiliations	Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (before 2000) Canadian Alliance (2000–2003)
Spouse	Demi Papapanagiotou
Children	Peter and Tasso
Residence	Montreal
Alma mater	McGill University
Profession	businessman

Leonidas "Leo" Housakos (born January 10, 1968) is a Canadian politician and a Conservative member of the Senate of Canada.

He was appointed acting Speaker of the Senate of Canada on April 24, 2015, following the death of Pierre Claude Nolin. On May 4, 2015, he was appointed as Pierre Claude Nolin's successor permanently. He was succeeded as Speaker by Senator George Furey on December 3, 2015, on Furey's appointment to the position by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Background

Leo Housakos was born in Montreal, Quebec.

Prior to entry to politics, Housakos worked as the president of Terrau Inc., the presidency of Quadvision International and Sales at Constant Laboratories. He was also a member of the North America Advisory Board for the Alexander Proudfoot Company, an organization specializing in the productivity of corporations.

Housakos graduated from McGill University with a Bachelor of Arts in 1992 and worked as a ministerial staffer in the Ministry of Multiculturalism under Gerry Weiner. Soon after, he became involved with the Hellenic Congress of Quebec and served two terms as its Vice-President, National Issues between 1998 and 2000.

He co-founded the Hellenic Board of Trade in 1993, an organization dedicated to the development of business opportunities and networking in the Greater Montreal Area. Housakos was an advisor to the Mayor of Montreal between 2001-2002.

In 2007, he was appointed to the Board of Directors of Via Rail and served for a year.

Personal life

He has been married to Demi Papapanagiotou for over 19 years and is the father of two children, Peter and Tasso.

Political career

Housakos was appointed to the Canadian Senate by Prime Minister Stephen Harper on December 22, 2008, as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada. He has sponsored one piece of legislation. In the 43rd Canadian Parliament, he introduce Bill S-221 which, if approved, would have inserted a provision into the Criminal Code to make committing mischief in relation to a monument or similar structure that honours first responders an indictable offence subject to specified minimum fines and imprisonment.

Senate Committees

Current Chair of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (AEFA). Former Chair of Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration (CIBA). Former member of the Transport and Communications (TRCM) Former Chair of the Rules, Procedures and the Rights of Parliament (RPRD) Former member of the Agriculture and Forestry (AGFO) Former member of the Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources (ENEV) Former member of the Scrutiny of Regulations (joint) (REGS)

He was a candidate for the Canadian Alliance in the 2000 federal election, in the riding of Laval West, where he has lived for over twenty years.

Housakos worked for the fundraising arm of Quebec’s ADQ.

Housakos formerly worked as a staff member to the Honourable Gerry Weiner.

Political Positions

Official Bilingualism

Breaking ranks with his party in September 2011, Housakos was the first Conservative Party parliamentarian to openly and publicly oppose the nomination of unilingual Michael Ferguson as Auditor General of Canada, stating, "there are certain positions in the federal government that are so symbolic to what Canada is all about and I just believe they have to be filled by people who are functionally bilingual."Arguing that the appointment sets a dangerous precedent that threatens bilingualism in Canada, he said, "I think that bilingualism is so fundamental to this country, not just from the point of view of national unity, but I think it’s a tool that should be used as a positive attribute, both in terms of our diplomatic strategies and our commercial strategies around the world."

Multiculturalism

In October 2012, Housakos published The Challenges of Integration and Multiculturalism, where he voices concerns regarding the difficulties recent immigrants have had in being both accepted and integrated within North American society and, more specifically, the challenges the Muslim communities after 9/11. He argues that the Canadian government should provide prospective new immigrants a clear understanding of the norms and values of their adoptive new home, because Canada is a country based on the separation of Church and state and the equality of men and women.

Housakos published Multiculturalism's an Outdated Insult, in March 2013, where he argues that official Multiculturalism became a state-financed marketing program where the government uses tax dollars to buy photo ops with ethnic leaders. He suggested that multiculturalism should be replaced with a policy of integration.

Charter of Quebec Values

Housakos later spoke out against the Parti Québécois government's Charter of Quebec Values, on the basis that it negates respect for individual rights.

"Other than just a political ploy on the part of the Parti Québécois to chase down nationalist votes that have maybe left to go to other more radical nationalist parties in the last couple of elections, there's no other benefit (from introducing a new charter)," said Housakos. "So the only people that see a need for this is the Parti Québécois. And the need is for political expediency."

Foreign policies

In December 2019, Housakos and Senator Thanh Hai Ngo tabled a motion to sanction Chinese officials on actions in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, citing their concern for "violation of human rights Hong Kong" and for the "treatment of minority Muslims in China".

A Digital Plan for Canada

Commenting on the release of the report, Housakos said, "We need a multi-targeted policy approach to prepare the way for a digital society. We need a principle of true universality to avoid the creation of 'information haves' and 'information have-nots'." NDP industry critic Brian Masse welcomed the report, insisting a national digital policy was overdue for Canadians and contained many ideas his party wants to explore further.

Rejected corruption allegations

Housakos served as the president of the fundraising committee of the Action démocratique du Québec. In October 2013, a witness with the Charbonneau Commission insinuated to the CBC that Housakos gave him illegal contributions collected in 2008 in favour of the party. Housakos denied any wrongdoing, describing the allegations as "a hatchet job of the worst degree." The Charbonneau Commission has long since completed its work and released its report. The false allegations were proven untrue and Housakos' name does not appear anywhere in the report.

In December 2017, The Globe and Mail reported that Housakos, along with Senator Victor Oh and Don Plett, were subject to a Senate ethics probe regarding an all-expenses-paid trip to China without declaring it as a sponsored travel or a gift. In February 2020, the Ethics Officer released his report and reiterated that Housakos and Plett were not the subjects of his investigation and that they were exonerated on the basis that Senator Oh had not made them aware of the source of funding for the trip.

Community involvement

Housakos does charity work for the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), where they help raise funds for children’s causes in the Montreal area.

He helped to organize a charity ball for Giant Steps, an association dedicated to helping autistic children.

He has also been coaching a youth hockey team for over 10 years. In 2009, his team became the champions of the 33rd Brossard Provincial Atom hockey tournament.