DENIS LOSIER

He was born on June 14, 1952, in Tracadie.

After completing his schooling in Tracadie, Mr. Losier obtained a Bachelor of Arts in 1973 and a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Economy) in 1974 from the University of Moncton. He continued his studies at the University of Western Ontario, where he received a Master's of Arts (Economy).

He started his career as an economist by accepting a position at the former Federal Ministry for Regional Industrial Expansion. He then went on to become President of the Société des Acadiens du Nouveau-Brunswick. From 1984 to 1986, he was First Secretary for Industrial Cooperation at the Canadian Embassy in Paris. He returned to Canada to accept the position of Executive Director of the Conseil Économique du Nouveau-Brunswick; in June 1988, he was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Economic Development in Premier Frank McKenna's office.

On November 14, 1988, Mr. Losier was elected MLA in the constituency of Tracadie and was reelected in September 1991.

On June 15, 1989, Mr. Losier was appointed Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture. On October 9, 1991, he was appointed Minister of Commerce and Technology and Minister of Tourism, Recreation and Heritage, after the two departments were combined. This department was subsequently renamed Department of Economic Development and Tourism. Mr. Losier was a member of the Cabinet Policies and Priorities Committee as well as of the Budget Committee and co-chairman of the Ministers' Committee on Internal Trade, a federal-provincial-territorial committee.

Mr. Losier was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Assumption Mutual Life Insurance Company of Moncton on September 1, 1994. Mr. Losier is also Chairman of Assumption Life's subsidiaries and Louisbourg Investments, a company specializing in pension fund management, with assets of more than $1.3 billion under management.

Assumption Life is one of the major insurance companies in the Maritimes, with assets in excess of $600 million and has 50,000 policyholders in Canada and 16,000 in the United States.

Mr. Losier is a member of the Board of Canadian National, National Statistics Council, Corporate Communications Ltd., Enbridge Gas NB, the Greater Moncton Economic Commission, le Conseil économique du N.-B., the Canadian Unity Council, la Fondation Dr Georges-L. Dumont, the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, the Workers Investment Fund; member of the Moncton Rotary Club.

He has one daughter, Andrée Pascale.