Guess Who? And win... (vol. I)

Today begins Samara's bi-weekly "Guess Who?" contest, where we'll reveal a quote from one of our MP exit interviews. Guess which of the 65 participating MPs spoke the words below before noon EST on Thursday July 22nd. We'll choose one winner from among the correct guesses, and send him or her a book of their choosing from the list of the Best of Canadian Political Writing.

Below is a quote from one MP, reflecting on what provoked his or her initial interest in politics:

"One motivation was the opportunity. [When I was first elected], I was a backbencher. I went to see the minister responsible for national parks, and said, 'You'll make a terrible mistake not making the west coast trail a national park.'  He said, "Province is against it. Timber company is against it. I'm told that you wouldn't get enough land to make it a national park." I said, 'Well, come and see it.'

[The minister] and I flew out to the west coast and hiked part of the trail. It was dismal weather: rain, cold, horrible. He'd borrowed my mother's boots, which were a size too small for him. We get out there and he looked around at the six or seven hundred foot [forest] ceiling. Spray was coming in off big waves. It was grey, cold, miserable. We got a fire started at the beach, and he said, 'I can't promise anything but, you know, you're right. This is really magnificent.'

So in my mind, I [helped make this] a national park. How long would you have to work, and how likely is it that a person would be able to acquire [the money] to create the park? I did that as a backbencher. These are the opportunities you get... You get chances in public life you really don't get in private life.  Say I had retired as the head of the biggest company in Canada, and given the golden handshake. I could say, 'Let me now do my big gesture.' It's pretty rare that you get that chance. But in public life, you get chances like that."

Click here for the contest rules and to submit your guess.  And for a bonus book, who was the minister?