Harry Enns

Harry Enns (November 30, 1931-) is a Manitoba politician. He served as a Cabinet Minister in the governments of Dufferin Roblin, Walter Weir, Sterling Lyon and Gary Filmon, and was an unsuccessful candidate for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in 1971. A long-serving member of the Manitoba legislature, he retired from public life in 2003.

Enns was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and worked as a rancher before entering politics. He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in 1966, for the rural riding of Rockwood-Iberville. A Progressive Conservative, he was appointed Minister of Agriculture by Dufferin Roblin on July 22, 1967. Enns retained this position when Walter Weir replaced Roblin as Premier later in the year, also becoming the Acting Minister of Highways. On September 5, 1968, he was moved to the Ministry of Mines and Natural Resources.

In 1969, redistribution placed Enns in the riding of Lakeside, where he defeated Liberal leader Robert Bend by about 350 votes. The Lakeside riding had previously been held by former Premier Douglas Campbell for 47 years. Enns would hold it for 34 years, being re-elected in 1973, 1977, 1981, 1986, 1988, 1990, [[1995] and 1999. On no occasion after 1969 would he have any difficulty retaining the seat.

In 1971, Enns declared himself a candidate to replace Walter Weir as leader of the Manitoba Progressive Conservatives. The resulting leadership contest featured a stark contrast in ideologies: Enns, who represented a rural and conservative wing in the party, lost to urban progressive Sidney Spivak by 46 votes.

In 1976, Enns nearly derailed plans by the Schreyer government to bring a series of Russian artworks from Leningrad's Hermitage and the State Russian Museum to Manitoba, during a North American tour. His position was grounded in an opposition to Communism and the Soviet Union, though he eventually withdrew his objections and allowed the display to take place.

Enns was a prominent cabinet minister in the government of Sterling Lyon. He served as Minister of Public Works and Minister of Highways from October 24, [[1977] to October 20, 1978, Minister of Highways and Transport (a renamed position) from October 20, 1978 to November 15, 1979, Minister of Government Services from April 12, 1979 to January 16, 1981, and Minister of Natural Resources from January 16, 1981 to November 30, 1981. He was not a candidate to succeed Lyon as party leader in 1983, however.

During the mid-1980s, Enns emerged as a prominent opponent of bilingualism within Manitoba (a policy initiative then being pursued by the New Democratic government of Howard Pawley). Ironically, his seat was targeted by the anti-bilingualism Confederation of Regions Party in 1986, although this challenge ultimately came to very little.

Enns was not named to Gary Filmon's first cabinet, but became Minister of Natural Resources on April 21, 1989. He held this position until September 10, 1993, when he became Minister of Agriculture for a second time (after a gap of twenty-five years). He continued to hold this portfolio until the Filmon government was defeated in 1999, and was responsible for managing the AIDA and NISA files during the flood emergency of 1997.

A philosophical conservative, Enns was also responsible for weakening market board control over Manitoba's hog farms, and appears to have had similar intentions regarding its fishing industry. In 1995-96, he was accused of approving illegal fishing activities by the Spirit River Fish Company, though he denied this charge.