Phil Gillies

Philip Andrew Gillies (born May 7, 1954 in Hertfordshire, England) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1981 to 1987 as a Progressive Conservative, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Frank Miller.

Gillies was educated at Queenborough in Kent, England. After moving to Ontario, he completed his education at the University of Western Ontario and worked as an advertising executive.

He first ran for the Ontario legislature in the 1977 provincial election, but lost to New Democratic Party candidate Mac Makarchuk in the constituency of Brantford. He ran again in the 1981 election, and defeated Makarchuk by over 3,000 votes.

Gillies served as a backbench supporter of Bill Davis's government, and endorsed Larry Grossman for the party leadership in January 1985. When Frank Miller became the Premier of Ontario on February 8, 1985, he named Gillies as a Minister without portfolio.

The Progressive Conservative Party was reduced to a tenuous minority government following the 1985 provincial election. Gillies himself was narrowly re-elected in Brantford, defeating NDP candidate Jack Tubman by 1,141 votes. He was promoted to Minister of Skills Development on May 17, 1985, and worked to establish a foundation for the new ministry in the limited time before the Miller government was defeated in the house. He formally resigned his portfolio on June 26.

In opposition, Gillies served as his party's critic for Skills Development, Labour and the Environment. Gillies took an interest in labour and human rights issues, and was one of the first P.C. MPPs to work for gay rights in Ontario. He was defeated in the 1987 provincial election, finishing third against Liberal candidate Dave Neumann.

After leaving politics, Gillies became a Vice President of Hill & Knowlton Public Relations. He later worked as a consultant for the Liquor Control Board of Ontario and the Royal Bank of Canada. Gillies has also served as the president of the Smokers' Freedom Society, a lobby group supported by the tobacco industry.