George Nowlan

Who was George Nowlan?

George Clyde Nowlan, PC was a Canadian member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister. A member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, he served from 9 August 1962–21 April 1963 as the Minister of Finance in the administration of John Diefenbaker, and was also responsible for the CBC.

In addition to serving as an MP, Nowlan was a soldier in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. After the war ended, he returned to the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia and attended Acadia University to study for a BA, graduating in 1920. He then studied law at Dalhousie University.

Nowlan was an MLA in the Nova Scotia Legislature in the 1920s, and was always known for his reputation as a hard worker and a Party Man. He served a term as the Progressive Conservative Party's president. While serving as Minister of National Revenue in 1962, he forbid Customs to censor or ban entrance to any publication unless a Canadian court had already ruled it to be "obscene", rather than using their own discretion. Five years later, this was overturned.