Michael Wilson

"He’s one of the world’s great storytellers, but woven within those stories are some pretty important political lessons about focusing on the long term and taking on big challenges"

As Canadians prepare for former prime minister Brian Mulroney’s state funeral on March 23, the University of Toronto is remembering his legacy and will lower flags on all three campuses for the event.

Mulroney, the Conservative leader who served as the country’s 18th prime minister from 1984 to 1993, visited �鶹��Ƶ on numerous occasions over the years. That includes the G7 summit in 1988, when he met with U.S. president Ronald Reagan and British prime minister Margaret Thatcher at Hart House alongside other world leaders.

(courtesy of Hart House)

He also made several public appearances at �鶹��Ƶ after retiring from politics, including taking part in a conference on antisemitism in 2003 and a conference on diplomacy in the digital age in 2011. More recently, in September 2022, Mulroney visited the Rotman School of Management for an event celebrating the legacy of Michael Wilson, �鶹��Ƶ’s 33^rd chancellor, who served as finance minister in Mulroney’s government.

A week after the Rotman event, Mulroney visited the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy for a conversation with Professor Peter Loewen, director of the Munk School, during which he reflected on his prime ministerial tenure and discussed Canada’s role in the world and the future of democratic societies.

�鶹��Ƶ News spoke with Loewen about Mulroney’s achievements and the legacy of his leadership.

Sen. Pamela Wallin and Brian Mulroney at the Rotman School of Management (photo by Johnny Guatto)

You recently wrote an article in The Conversation in which you described Brian Mulroney’s stance against apartheid in South Africa as one of his biggest achievements. Why?

This was, in Mulroney’s telling, and the telling of many others, one of the greatest achievements of his prime ministership. Brian Mulroney, in concert with Canadian mainstream opinion, was deeply opposed to apartheid. He thought it was an unacceptable form of racial separation within South Africa and was unbecoming of a democracy. That opposition, by the way, went all the way back – several governments – to John Diefenbaker’s Conservative government which opposed the imposition of apartheid when he was prime minister.

Mr. Mulroney became prime minister at a time when the issue was really coming to a head. It was deeply dividing South African society. The imprisonment of Nelson Mandela and many other political prisoners was, by that point, widely recognized internationally as unacceptable. So for Mulroney, it was an opportunity in foreign policy for Canada to play a role in trying to right one of the great wrongs of the world.

He was opposed in that effort, though, by two of his otherwise closest allies and, indeed, closest political friends: Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, who opposed opposing apartheid ostensibly for anti-communist reasons. They felt that the ANC [African National Congress] was an ally of communists and they still saw themselves locked deeply in the Cold War. So, this made it difficult for Mulroney – and yet he took up the challenge of opposing it. He was joined in that opposition by most Canadians indeed and by other Commonwealth leaders, including Bob Hawke in Australia.

How did Mulroney enlist global organizations in the fight against apartheid?

South African anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela arrives in Ottawa for an official visit June 17, 1990 (photo by Renaud Giroux/AFP via Getty Images)

Mulroney’s international leadership was key. In 1987-1988, Mulroney had positioned himself to hold the chairmanship of three different organizations: the Commonwealth, the Francophonie (Organisation internationale de la Francophonie) and the G7. When you hold the chairmanship of those organizations, you’re in a position to set the agenda for the things to be talked about.

It was at that point that he brought the Commonwealth nations together as well as G7 countries – minus the United Kingdom and the United States – to really bring the full pressure of a sanctions regime on the South African government. And this eventually led to much economic difficulty and really squeezed the South Africans so that they had to release Mandela.

[Then-president of South Africa] F.W. De Klerk announced in February 1990 that he would unilaterally release Mandela without conditions. Mandela was released seven days later and one of the first phone calls he made internationally was to Brian Mulroney; indeed, the first parliament he visited after his freedom outside of South Africa was the Canadian Parliament, where he thanked not only Mulroney but all Canadians.

This was a moment of great international leadership by Mr. Mulroney. It’s one in which he marshaled all the support of Canadian public opinion. He often ran against public opinion – in this case he was on the right side of it and he marshaled all that support to this great international action.

What are some other examples of how Mulroney operated on the world stage?

The North American Free Trade Agreement was initialled in San Antonio on Oct. 7, 1992, with U.S. president George H.W. Bush (centre), Mexican president Carlos Salinas de Gortari (left) and Canadian prime minister Brian Mulroney (right) in attendance. Michael Wilson, Canada's minister of international trade, is seen seated in front of Mr. Mulroney (photo by Bettmann/Getty Images)

During the first Gulf War – Operation Desert Storm, the American-led mission to push back Saddam Hussein’s Iraq out of Kuwait – Mulroney was very influential in using multilateral relationships to set the terms of engagement for that war. He made it largely possible for other countries like Canada and Australia to have conditions under which they could join that alliance.

Then there’s the other sets of things which weren’t multilateral initially, but bilateral – that is, his agreements with the United States over free trade in 1987 and 1988 that then led to the multilateral NAFTA, which has set the framework for North American trade across all of the Americas. It’s taken a longer time for that vision to be realized, but that template of bilateral and then trilateral trade agreements has really formed the basis for a lot of the trade agreements that Canada now holds throughout the Americas.

How do you reflect on your conversation with Mulroney at the Munk School in 2022?

It was a thrill to have spent the time with him. He’s one of the world’s great storytellers. But woven within those stories are some pretty important political lessons about focusing on the long term and taking on big challenges.

I reflected with [TVO journalist] Steve Paikin – we were chatting after Mulroney’s passing – that I think I may have been the only person to have ever asked Mulroney a question in a public interview that stumped him. I asked him essentially whether there were things he wished he had spent more time on. He couldn’t answer the question.

I don’t know if it was an unfair question, but I think the answer was very telling in that Mr. Mulroney didn’t waste a minute when he was in office. And I think he left with no regrets over all the things that he got done. And that’s a lesson to political leaders today: that you have to really grasp that unfailing minute, and if you don’t make use of all 60 seconds of it, that you will have regrets in your career – but I think Brian Mulroney had none.

Brian Mulroney hails legacy of Michael Wilson, former finance minister and �鶹��Ƶ chancellor

rahul.kalvapalle — Fri, 16 Sep 2022 16:12:32 +0000

Brian Mulroney hails legacy of Michael Wilson, former finance minister and �鶹��Ƶ chancellor

rahul.kalvapalle Fri, 09/16/2022 - 12:12

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Speaking at an event at the Rotman School of Management, former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney said Michael Wilson, �鶹��Ƶ's 33rd chancellor, was Canada's most impactful finance minister (photo by Johnny Guatto)

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Rotman School of Management

A principled human being, a proud Canadian and the country’s most impactful finance minister – that’s how history will remember the late Michael Wilson, says former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney.

Mulroney made the remarks at an event this week – hosted by the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management and co-presented by CFA Societies Canada – that focused on the legacy and impact of Wilson, who served as finance minister from 1984 to 1993 and as �鶹��Ƶ’s 33^rd chancellor from 2012 to 2018.

“The big-ticket items for which Michael was responsible are the things that live on in history because they are the policies which shaped the nation,” Mulroney said during a conversation with Sen. Pamela Wallin.

“[Canada is] 155 years old – and 155 years from today, there will be people – historians – who will be writing that if we have this kind of prosperity and foundational strength today, there was a guy way back when – his name was Michael Wilson – and he was responsible for this.”

Mulroney also discussed several anecdotes that Wilson shared in Something within Me, a memoir that was published posthumously by University of Toronto Press earlier this year – and which features a foreword by Mulroney.

A Trinity College alumnus, Wilson graduated from �鶹��Ƶ with a degree in commerce before embarking on a successful career in finance. He was first elected to Parliament in the late 1970s and served as finance minister for seven years beginning in 1984, during which he was involved in negotiations of the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement and the implementation of tax reforms and the GST.

Wilson served as chancellor of Trinity College from 2003 to 2006. He became �鶹��Ƶ’s chancellor in 2012 and served two full terms. Between his chancellorships of Trinity College and �鶹��Ƶ, he served three years as Canada’s ambassador to the U.S.

He died in February 2019, aged 81.

Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney shared anecdotes about the late Michael Wilson’s time in cabinet during a conversation with Sen. Pamela Wallin at the Rotman School of Management (photo by Johnny Guatto)

“Michael left a lasting impression on the university through his tireless service as an ambassador to the alumni community and beyond,” said Janet Ecker, chair of �鶹��Ƶ’s Governing Council, in her opening remarks at the event.

“He had a richly deserved reputation for genuine warmth and humanity and for regularly engaging students and faculty in meaningful ways.”

Ecker noted Wilson was also a prominent advocate of awareness of and support for mental health issues following the tragic loss of his son, Cameron.

Sen. Wallin then began the conversation with Mulroney, who set the tone early by labeling Wilson the greatest finance minister in Canada’s history.

“Why do I say what I do? Not simply because I loved Michael Wilson, which I did; not simply because I knew Michael Wilson as the most principled, honourable, decent colleague that a prime minister could ever have – but by the results.”

Those results, Mulroney said, included the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement; tax reform and the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST); privatization of companies ranging from Air Canada to Petro Canada; controlling government expenditure; and more.

Mulroney shared several recollections of Wilson’s involvement in negotiations over the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement – particularly the tension around Canada’s insistence on an independent dispute-settlement mechanism, which caused the American negotiators to balk.

He recalled phoning Wilson in Washington, D.C., as the deadline for negotiations loomed, and asking for his thoughts on how to handle the situation.

“He said to me, ‘Hang in there, prime minister, hang in there.”

A few minutes later, U.S. negotiators agreed to the key mechanism – an example, Mulroney said, that highlights the close relationship between the two countries at the time.

“To give you an idea of the relationship we had of complete trust and confidence: at that moment, with 15 minutes to go before the end of the ball game, Michael and I spoke and he said to me, ‘Hang in there,’” Mulroney said. “And that’s what I did. And that’s why we got the deal.”

Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, right, accompanies Finance Minister Michael Wilson on the way to the House of Commons on Feb. 26, 1986 (photo by Boris Spremo/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Mulroney said he and Wilson prioritized Canada interests above political considerations, which is why they decided to forge ahead with the implementation of GST in 1991 despite it being a politically unpopular move.

“We knew the catastrophic political consequences of this,” Mulroney said. “But the question in Michael’s mind – and in mine – always was: ‘Is this good for Canada? If it’s good for Canada, we’re going to do it. If it’s not good for Canada, we’re not going to touch it.’”

Mulroney also used the event to pay tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, with whom he said he had “a very good relationship.”

The first of their many meetings, he recalled, took place in New Brunswick just five days after Mulroney was first elected prime minister in 1984. “I found her to be resolute, charming and knowledgeable – very knowledgeable,” Mulroney said.

Sen. Wallin noted Wilson’s memoir included recollections about engagements with the Queen and with Prince Philip – one of which served as an example of Wilson’s dry sense of humour. “Prince Philip once came over to [Wilson] and said, ‘And what do you do?’” Sen. Wallin said. “And Michael’s response was: ‘I work for your wife.’”

Mulroney added: “We all did.”

�鶹��Ƶ Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson's memoirs released posthumously: The Hill Times

geoff.vendeville — Tue, 28 Jun 2022 13:57:24 +0000

�鶹��Ƶ Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson's memoirs released posthumously: The Hill Times

geoff.vendeville Tue, 06/28/2022 - 09:57

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Michael Wilson, who served as �鶹��Ƶ's 33rd chancellor, was elected to Parliament in the late 1970s and served as minister of finance under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney (photo by Christopher J. Morris/Corbis via Getty Images)

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Our Community

Michael Wilson

Politics

University of Toronto Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson – a businessman, politician, diplomat and mental health advocate – had his memoirs published posthumously this spring, The Hill Times reports.

Wilson graduated from �鶹��Ƶ's Trinity College in 1959 with a degree in commerce and embarked on a career in finance. He was elected to Parliament in the late 1970s, served as minister of finance under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and later as ambassador to the United States, among other roles. He died in 2019 at the age of 81.

“If a prime minister of Canada is lucky – and I mean really lucky – he will wind up with a Michael Wilson in his cabinet, ideally as minister of finance,” Mulroney says in the foreword to Wilson's memoirs, Something Within Me: A Personal and Political Memoir (University of Toronto Press, 2022).

'A role model to us all': Remembering Michael Wilson

noreen.rasbach — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 21:08:34 +0000

'A role model to us all': Remembering Michael Wilson

noreen.rasbach Mon, 02/11/2019 - 16:08

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Michael Wilson and �鶹��Ƶ President Meric Gertler at Wilson's last convocation as chancellor in June (photo by Steve Frost)

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Faculty of Arts & Science

Rotman School of Management

Former prime minister Brian Mulroney credits the late Michael Wilson – his former finance minister and the University of Toronto’s Chancellor Emeritus – for nothing less than laying the foundations of “a new Canada that we enjoy today.”

Mulroney says Wilson’s efforts as finance minister in the 1980s had a “transformative” impact and set the country up for decades of future success.

That includes everything from helping to negotiate the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement and, later, the North American Free Trade Agreement, to deregulating Crown Corporations like Air Canada and Petro-Canada.

Often the policies Wilson pursued weren’t politically popular – including the creation of the GST, which replaced a costly hidden manufacturers’ sales tax that made Canadian exports uncompetitive.

“He and I agreed on pretty well everything,” Mulroney told �鶹��Ƶ News in the wake of Wilson’s death on Sunday at age 81.

“But we agreed fundamentally on the following statement: We’re not going to act for easy headlines in 10 days. We’re going to act for a better Canada in 10 years.”

It was a principled, long-term outlook that seemed to guide Wilson in everything he did – both in and out of politics. An alumnus of Trinity College, Wilson was first elected as �鶹��Ƶ’s 33^rd chancellor in 2012 and served a full two terms. In the role, he not only helped chart a course for the university’s international ambition, but acted as �鶹��Ƶ’s ambassador to more than half a million alumni around the world and presided over scores of convocation ceremonies.

It was the part of the job he loved most,” �鶹��Ƶ President Meric Gertler said during an interview on CBC today.

“We would see him just light up at convocation. He would relish that opportunity to have that private conversation with each graduate who came up to the stage.”

Read Michael Wilson's closing remarks to students at convocation ceremonies

Wilson also made an indelible impact in the realm of mental health, particularly after his son, Cameron, took his own life in 1995 at the age of 29.

At the time, it was rare for people of Wilson’s generation to speak openly about mental health and grief. But Wilson felt the need to do everything in his power to help.

“One of the things that was said to me is that, if I’m willing to tell my story, I will get a lot more exposure than someone who hasn’t spent 14 years in federal politics,” he told the Globe and Mail in 1999.

“If it will help make a difference, then I am willing to do this.”

Wilson first arrived at �鶹��Ƶ in 1955 to study at Trinity College, earning a degree in commerce. Soon after, Wilson landed a job in Ottawa working in the finance department and then worked his way up the ladder on Bay Street.

University of Toronto mourns death of Michael Wilson

Heartfelt tributes to Michael Wilson recount his compassion, leadership and advocacy

Mulroney says he first crossed paths with Wilson in the 1970s.

“We were just about the same age,” Mulroney recalls. “I was starting the practice of law in Montreal and he was starting at Dominion Securities in Toronto.”

While the two may have started off as acquaintances, it wouldn’t be long before their lives would become intertwined on the national stage. After being elected to Parliament in 1979, Wilson ran for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party in 1983, challenging Mulroney and a half dozen other contenders.

Wilson ultimately stepped aside and threw his support behind Mulroney and was rewarded with his senior cabinet post as finance minister. He would also serve as a minister for international trade and a minister of industry, science and technology.

“I was extremely grateful to him, obviously, but he then went on to play an extremely indispensable role in the government of Canada,” Mulroney says.

Michael Wilson addresses reporters at Toronto's Gerstein Crisis Centre in 2004. Wilson supported short-term safe houses for people with mental health issues and was behind the Edmond Yu Project, named after Yu, a mentally ill person who was shot by police in 1997 for wielding a hammer at police in a TTC streetcar (photo by Rene Johnston/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Joe Martin, an adjunct professor at �鶹��Ƶ’s Rotman School of Management, cites the creation of the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, or OSFI – Canada’s banking regulator – under Wilson’s watch as a yet another signature achievement.

During the 2008 financial crisis, when the world’s financial institutions were imploding, “the thing that saved the Canadian markets was the fact that we had OSFI in place,” Martin says.

Wilson had a front row seat during this period, too, having been tapped by Stephen Harper’s government to serve as Canada’s ambassador to the United States, a position he held for more than three years.

On a personal level, those who knew Wilson well describe him as a person of principles and integrity, and someone who placed a high value on education.

“Michael fundamentally believed in the value of education and learning,” President Gertler told CBC. “He used to say at our convocation ceremonies that students should use their learning throughout the rest of their lives to make the world a better place – and to leave every situation they came into contact with in better shape than it was when they found it.

“For him, learning was at the core of his very being.”

Similarly, Tiff Macklem, the dean of the Rotman School of Management, called Wilson “a role model for us all to aspire to in business, in politics, and in building better communities for everyone.”

For those working in the field of mental health, meanwhile, Wilson’s legacy is described as nothing short of game-changing.

Until he came along, it was difficult to get people in the corridors of power to pay attention, says Dr. Paul Garfinkel, a professor and former chair of �鶹��Ƶ’s psychiatry department.

In his role as CEO of the Clarke Institute, one of the facilities that merged into the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Garfinkel says he struggled to find donors and people to join the hospital’s board.

“You can’t imagine how lonely it was. We could have board meetings in a phone booth,” Garfinkel says.

Wilson opened the door to glass tower boardrooms in Toronto and Montreal as well as government offices in Ottawa. When he spoke, people around the table listened, Garfinkel says – in part because most already knew him.

Wilson would speak movingly of his son’s death and go on to describe current research. “He had an amazing mind,” Garfinkel recalls. “You could brief him on the way into the meeting and he could go bang, bang, bang with every fact accurately.”

Wilson led multimillion-dollar fundraising campaigns, served on provincial task forces on mental health and, in 2015, became board chair of the Mental Health Commission of Canada.

“He was a real mentor and I learned so much from him,” says Louise Bradley, the president and CEO of the commission.

Read Michael Wilson's poignant last op-ed for the Toronto Star

Under his tenure, the board was restructured to include more people with backgrounds in finance, law and a lived experience of mental illness. He also helped increase the representation of Indigenous people, Bradley says.

“He wasn’t a figurehead by any stretch of the imagination.”

At �鶹��Ƶ, Wilson was instrumental in finding support for a chair in depression studies named in memory of his son. Dr. Robert Levitan, a professor of psychiatry and physiology in the Faculty of Medicine and senior scientist at CAMH, currently holds the chair. He’s an expert on atypical subtypes of mood disorders characterized by depressed mood and eating behaviour.

�鶹��Ƶ psychiatry Professor David Goldboom preceded Wilson as chair of the Mental Health Commission of Canada. “The thing about Michael is he had such an aura of gravitas,” Goldbloom said. “Here was a guy who was accomplished in so many spheres of public life… The fact that he made this his cause of choice carried weight.”

Wilson could be blunt and didn’t sugar coat the need for change, Goldbloom says. “I think Michael definitely thought we were making progress.

“But he was enough of a realist to know there was a long journey ahead.”

Heartfelt tributes to Michael Wilson recount his compassion, leadership and advocacy

Romi Levine — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 17:34:42 +0000

Heartfelt tributes to Michael Wilson recount his compassion, leadership and advocacy

Romi Levine Mon, 02/11/2019 - 12:34

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Michael Wilson was first elected chancellor of �鶹��Ƶ for a three-year term in 2012 and renewed for a second term of three years in 2015 – the maximum allowed by the University of Toronto Act (photo by Tim Fraser)

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Michael Wilson’s leadership in business and politics, advocacy for mental health awareness and compassion as a colleague and friend are being remembered today by everyone from prime ministers to members of the University of Toronto community.

Here are some of the messages and memories shared online:

Justin Trudeau meets with Michael Wilson in the Prime Minister’s Centre Block office in 2016 (photo by Adam Scotti)

“Michael Wilson’s dedicated service to Canadians – including his important work as Minister, Ambassador, and passionate advocate for mental health – will leave a lasting impact on our country. We’ve lost a truly great Canadian. My condolences to his family and friends.”
- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Former prime ministers share their condolences

“This is a sad day. Michael Wilson served Canada with exceptional skill and dedication. From the Cabinet table to serving our country with dignity and wisdom as Ambassador in Washington, Mike embodied the best of public service. Laureen and I extend our heartfelt condolences.”
- Stephen Harper

Michael Wilson with Brian Mulroney, the former prime minister, in 2017 (photo by Vince Talotta/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

“I think Canada has just suffered a major loss. Michael Wilson was an outstanding minister of finance, a highly admired ambassador to the United States, and a principled and visionary leader in the field of research into mental health in Canada – and also in education, with his role as chancellor of the University of Toronto.”
- Brian Mulroney to �鶹��Ƶ News

Read: �鶹��Ƶ community mourns death of Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson

“Michael Wilson was one of Canada’s most able, upright, accomplished, highly principled and inspirational citizens, in public life and private example. I mourn and regret his death and celebrate his friendship and his life.”
- Joe Clark

On CBC News, Paul Martin said that Wilson was a “tremendous finance minister," and that "he took mental health out of the shadows and he took it into the mainstream and he did it with huge compassion.”

Wilson’s mental health advocacy remembered

“Michael Wilson talked about his son’s suicide at a time when very few, especially at his stature, talked about suicide. He became a powerful advocate for ending stigma around mental illness. A great legacy.”
- Matt Galloway, host of CBC's Metro Morning

“Very saddened by the passing of @UofT Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson – a remarkable person and a champion for mental health. He leaves behind an incredible legacy at #UofT & beyond.”
- Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Trevor Young

“A Canada without Michael Wilson is a smaller place. #Citizen #Leader #Advocate #MentalHealthIsHealth”
- Catherine Zahn, CEO of CAMH

'A truly nice person in a world that often wasn’t'

“Michael Wilson was one of the most intelligent, decent people I have ever met, inside or outside of politics and public life… if it's possible he may have contributed even more in his life after politics when he became a pioneer in raising awareness of mental illness and for his incredible contributions to post secondary education through the University of Toronto. Michael Wilson was a gentle, considerate giant in business, in public life, as a diplomat in Washington, & in our community. He will be sadly missed & on behalf of the people of the City of Toronto, I express sincere condolences to his wife Margie & the entire Wilson family.”
- Toronto Mayor John Tory

“We have lost an outstanding Canadian today with the passing of Michael Wilson. Former Minister, Ambassador to the [U.S.], Companion of the Order of Canada, and tireless mental health advocate, Mr Wilson will be missed by many. Sincere condolences to his family, friends & colleagues.”
- Julie Payette, Canada’s governor general

Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland with �鶹��Ƶ Chancellor Michael Wilson in April (photo by Lisa Sakulensky)

“My thoughts are with the family and loved ones of Michael Wilson. Michael was a distinguished MP, Minister and diplomat, who negotiated the first NAFTA. More recently, he did outstanding work as a tireless mental health advocate and Chancellor of @UofT.”
- Chrystia Freeland, Canada’s minister of foreign affairs

“Michael Wilson was not only an incredibly dedicated politician, he was also an exemplary and tireless advocate for mental health. My sincere condolences to his family and friends. "We need to shore up the belief that sickness isn't weakness."
- Catherine McKenna, Canada’s minister of environment and climate change

“Sad to learn that the ranks of U.S.-Canada ambassadors lost a beloved member yesterday. Michael Wilson was a tireless champion for Canada and will be remembered as one who strove to bring our two countries ever closer together. My deepest condolences to his family and loved ones.”
- U.S. Ambassador to Canada Kelly Craft

“Michael Wilson will be remembered for his countless contributions to Canada. An incredibly capable Minister and former Ambassador, he will also be remembered for his groundbreaking work bringing mental health out of the shadows. My deepest condolences to his wife and family.”
- Ontario Premier Doug Ford

“I covered Michael Wilson’s first nomination meeting back in the late 1970s. The attention was on him because he was Joe Clark’s ‘star candidate’ for the next election. He was nervous but you could tell he was special. A truly nice person in a world that often wasn’t.”
- Peter Mansbridge

Michael Wilson

Remembering Brian Mulroney: Munk School's Peter Loewen reflects on the former prime minister's legacy

Brian Mulroney hails legacy of Michael Wilson, former finance minister and �鶹��Ƶ chancellor

�鶹��Ƶ Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson's memoirs released posthumously: The Hill Times

Read more in the Hill Times (subscription required)

'A role model to us all': Remembering Michael Wilson

Read Michael Wilson's closing remarks to students at convocation ceremonies

University of Toronto mourns death of Michael Wilson

Heartfelt tributes to Michael Wilson recount his compassion, leadership and advocacy

Read Michael Wilson's poignant last op-ed for the Toronto Star

Heartfelt tributes to Michael Wilson recount his compassion, leadership and advocacy

Former prime ministers share their condolences

Read: �鶹��Ƶ community mourns death of Chancellor Emeritus Michael Wilson

Wilson’s mental health advocacy remembered

'A truly nice person in a world that often wasn’t'