Meet Neil
“I love Ottawa, expect better than what we’re getting, and like you, am ready to do something about it.”
“I never aspired to hold public office, but we’ve reached the limit of what can be achieved from outside of City Hall.”
Neil was raised in the west end of Ottawa; he attended local schools, went on to study economics at Carleton University and completed further studies at the London School of Economics. He and his wife Kimberley have two daughters.
Values of service, responsibility, and community have shaped his life, and guided his work in community advocacy.
Neil was a champion leader in the fight against Lansdowne 2.0, advocating for the half billion dollars to be spent in community projects instead. He has also been a public advocate on a range of other issues including Tewin, Sprung Structures, income tax clinics, and environmental action. Throughout his advocacy, Neil has remained steadfast in his mission to support the public good and ensure everyone’s voice is represented at the decision making table.
Neil is a political outsider with the know-how to drive real change from the mayor’s office.
He built his career on understanding how public institutions work, and how they can work better. As an economist at Finance Canada he spent years in the public service creating new organizations, managing large investments, structuring complex deals, and getting public administrations to work. He later served as chief economist at the G20 Global Infrastructure Hub, tackling complex infrastructure and investment challenges on a global scale.
Now working as a community advocate, Neil supports local groups and organizations in their efforts to engage with municipal governments and advocate for change. He brings an outsider’s perspective with experience inside city hall. As mayor, he will bring a combination of technical expertise, real-world experience, and a practical understanding of how decisions at city hall affect people’s daily lives.
