Lucie Pépin

Lucie Pépin (born September 7, 1936) is a Canadian nurse and former politician. Pépin served in both the House of Commons and Senate.

The Honourable Lucie Pépin
Speaker Pro Tempore of the Senate of Canada
In office October 8, 2002 – October 5, 2004
Speaker	Dan Hays
Preceded by	Rose-Marie Losier-Cool
Succeeded by	Shirley Maheu
Parliamentary constituencies Canadian Senator from Shawinegan In office April 8, 1997 – September 7, 2011 Nominated by Jean Chrétien Appointed by Roméo LeBlanc Preceded by Maurice Riel Succeeded by Ghislain Maltais (2012) Member of Parliament for Outremont In office September 4, 1984 – November 21, 1988 Preceded by Marc Lalonde Succeeded by Jean-Pierre Hogue
Personal details
Born	(1936-09-07) September 7, 1936
Political party	Liberal

Career

A Registered Nurse by profession, in the 1960s, Pépin served as head nurse in the gynecology department and then at the family planning clinic of Notre-Dame Hospital in Montreal, and was cross-appointed to the Université de Montréal's faculty of medicine. In the 1970s, she was an administrator at the Canadian Committee for Fertility Research in Montreal, and a lecturer at the Université de Montréal. From 1979 until 1984, Pépin was vice-president and then president of the Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women.

Politics

Pépin entered the House of Commons of Canada in the 1984 election when she became the Liberal Member of Parliament for Outremont, Quebec succeeding Marc Lalonde. She was defeated in the 1988 election, during which abortion was a key issue. Some have suggested that she lost the ultra-conservative Hasidic vote, and thus the seat, because of her pro choice stance.

From 1993 to 1997, she was a commissioner on the national parole board. In 1997, she was appointed to the Senate of Canada on the recommendation of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, and served as Speaker pro tempore of the Upper House from 2002 to 2004. Until her retirement, she was a member of the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology.

On September 7, 2011, Pépin retired from the Senate upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75.

External links

• Official website (Archived)
• Lucie Pépin – Parliament of Canada biography