Seek Wisdom. Conquer Fear. Do Justice.

In 1995, to honour her public service, Kim Campbell was granted a personal coat of arms by the Queen. In the center of the crest is the international symbol of the woman with balanced scales of justice attached. Thus did Kim Campbell put her commitment to justice and equality for women at the center of the symbol of her life and career. She continues to live by her motto: “Seek wisdom, conquer fear, do justice”.


The following is a list of policies developed or influenced by Kim Campbell when she served in the three levels of Canadian government: Municipal, Provincial & Federal.


Member of the Vancouver School Board, 1981

  • Introduced International Baccalaureate Program into Vancouver Schools


Member of the Legislative Assembly, Vancouver, B.C., 1986

  • Successfully convinced Health Minister to change wording of new provisions of the Health Act that were causing concern in the gay community
  • Chaired a task force on heritage conservation. The task force came to be known as Project Pride; the work done by the task force was the basis of a new Heritage Act later passed by the NDP government
  • Chaired the review of the Builders’ Lien Act; conducted public hearings that informed the amendments for the Builders Lien Act. “The process of reviewing the Builders’ Lien Act was a good example of the kind of work backbenchers do in all legislatures that doesn’t make headlines but contributes to good policy-making” (p. 76 Time and Chance)
  • Spoke out publicly against Premier Vander Zalm’s decision to cut provincial funding for abortions


Minister of State for Indian Affairs and Northern Development, January 30, 1989 – February 22, 1990

  • Served on the ad hoc Committee on Sales Tax Reform
  • Took the lead on British Columbia issues focusing on housing and policing
  • Supported the Meech Lake Accord, which addressed Quebec’s concerns about codifying constitutional amendments throughout Canada which might endanger the province’s desire to preserve French language and culture
  • Renewed the stalled negotiating process for resolving the 18 land claims in British Columbia


Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Priorities and Planning, and Political Minister for BC, February 23, 1990 – January 3, 1993

  • First Female Justice Minister and Attorney General in Canada.
  • Led the appointment of 125 Superior Court Justices in Canada, 25% of which were women.
  • Modeled a “Politics of Inclusion”, bringing different groups together to discuss the issues, and working towards compromise
  • Co-chaired with the Minister of Justice of the Yukon Territory a national symposium on Aboriginal Justice, Whitehorse, 1992
  • Major and comprehensive amendments to gun control legislation (stricter requirements for ownership, storage of firearms), 1992
  • Introduced the Rape Shield Law, which protects a person’s sexual past from being explored during trial and Oversaw Bill C-49, rape shield legislation (aka ‘No Means No’ law), 1992
  • Referred David Milgaard’s Section 690 (Miscarriage of Justice) application to the Supreme Court of Canada


Minister of National Defence and Minister of Veterans Affairs, Cabinet Operations Committee, January 4, 1993 – June 24, 1993

  • First female Minister of National Defence
  • First female Minister of Veterans Affairs
  • Attended the Munich Defence conference
  • Attended a NATO meeting for defence ministers that included ministers from former Warsaw Pact countries


Prime Minister: June 25, 1993 – October 24, 1993

  • First female Canadian Prime Minister
  • Cut the size of the cabinet from over 35 to 23 and consolidated ministries by creating three new portfolios: Health, Canadian Heritage and Public Security
  • First prime minister to convene a First Ministers’ conference for consultation prior to representing Canada at the G7 Summit
  • Spoke at United Nations assembly when Boutros Boutros-Ghali was the Secretary General of the United Nations
  • Prime Minister Campbell met one-on-one with President Bill Clinton to discuss Canada-US Relations
  • Received the highest approval rating for a prime minister in 30 years


Other Activities and Notes

  • In 2004, Prime Minister Campbell was included in the Almanac of World History’s list of fifty most important political leaders. The Almanac is published by the National Geographic Society.
  • In 2006, Prime Minister Campbell led a delegation from the Middle Powers Initiative (MPI) to Canada to advocate for the MPI’s goal. The MPI is dedicated to the worldwide reduction and elimination of nuclear weapons, in a series of well-defined stages accompanied by increasing verification and control. Through the MPI, seven international non-governmental organizations are able to work primarily with “middle power” governments to encourage and educate the nuclear weapons states to take immediate practical steps that reduce nuclear dangers, and commence negotiations to eliminate nuclear weapons. The delegation met with key ministers and public servants in the Canadian government and testified before the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. In addition, Prime Minister Campbell met privately with Prime Minister Harper to brief him on the issue.
  • On being Canadian: “I’m very proud to be a Canadian and I like to think that I’m an ambassador for Canadian values in whatever I do” (interview with Linda Mastalir 10 Oct 2006).
Scroll to Top