Parliamentary Scholar to Speak at U of G Feb. 8
February 01, 2010 - News Release
One of the country's pre-eminent scholars of the Canadian Parliament will give a free public lecture at the University of Guelph Feb. 8. Ned Franks, a professor emeritus in the Department of Political Studies at Queen's University, will discuss "Is Parliamentary Democracy in Peril?" at 7:30 p.m. in War Memorial Hall. Doors open at 7 p.m.
The lecture, which was prompted by Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s decision to prorogue Parliament, is sponsored by the Department of Political Science, Guelph Chapter of the Council of Canadians and the Central Student Association.
Franks, who taught at Queen’s for more than 35 years, has written and edited 13 books, including The Parliament of Canada and Dissent and the State. His works explore public administration, governmental accountability, relations between governments and Aboriginal people, and public service.
He helped to found the Association for the Study of the History of Canadian Science and Technology and was founding president of the Canadian Study of Parliament Group. He has conducted many studies for royal commissions, parliamentary and government agencies, and advised legislative groups in Vietnam and Russia.
In 2002, Franks was awarded the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal for his contributions to the understanding of parliamentary government in Canada. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.
He earned his BA and MA from Queen's University and a D.Phil. from Oxford University. He worked for four years for the Government of Saskatchewan, including as clerk assistant of the Saskatchewan Legislative Assembly.
For media questions, Communications and Public Affairs: Lori Bona Hunt, Ext. 53338, lhunt@uoguelph.ca, or Deirdre Healey, Ext. 56982, d.healey@exec.uoguelph.ca
