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Christian Paradis Politician

Christian Paradis, PC, MP (born January 1, 1974 in Thetford Mines, Quebec) is a Conservative Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons for Mégantic—L'Érable. He was first elected in the 2006 federal election and served as parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources until January 4, 2007, when he was appointed Secretary of State for Agriculture and Agri-food Canada and the Rural Secretariat. On June 25, 2008, Paradis was appointed Minister of Public Works and Government Services, retaining his position as Secretary of State for Agriculture until October that same year. On October 30, 2008, in a cabinet shuffle following the election, he would retain the Public Works portfolio. In addition, he succeeded Lawrence Cannon as Quebec Lieutenant and now sits directly beside Harper in the house of commons. On January 19, 2010, in a cabinet shuffle, Prime Minister Harper appointed him Minister of Natural Resources. On May 18, 2011, in a cabinet shuffle he was appointed to be the Minister of Industry. On July 15, 2013 in a cabinet shuffle, he was appointed as Minister of International Development and Minister for La Francophonie.A lawyer by profession, Paradis has a legal practice in Thetford Mines where he also served as president of the chamber of commerce. He is a graduate of the Université de Sherbrooke and has a masters degree in corporate law from Université Laval.Paradis has been a staunch defender of Canada's asbestos mines, but recently gave in to global pressure to list asbestos as a hazardous chemical.