David Peterson honoured at the Pearson Centre dinner – October 6, 2025
On October 6th , the Pearson Centre held a dinner to honour Hon David Peterson, the 20th Premier of Ontario who celebrated 40 years since becoming Premier and 50 years since being elected. The interview starts at about the 19:00 mark.
“I think the wellspring of government has to be kindness and decency and helping people that don’t have a voice of their own.”
This among the guiding principles that David Peterson described as shaping his political career. The sense of trying to help others was a recurring theme throughout his “fireside chat” discussion with journalist Steve Paikin presented by the Pearson Centre. Held in front of 200 people at One King West in Toronto on October 6, the discussion demonstrated Peterson’s engaging humour and how there are still some issues that fire him up.
“The challenge,” Paikin noted, “is to find something we have not talked about yet.”
A family interest in politics
So they began with a discussion of Peterson’s family, beginning with his father Clarence, whose life was shaped by the hardships of the Great Depression on the Prairies, and was a signatory of the Regina Manifesto that launched the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (the forerunner of the NDP) in 1933.
“He was a young activist. He just felt it was wrong that the world didn’t offer the support and help for people at that point.”
Clarence later moved to Ontario, raising his family and becoming a successful businessman. But he always kept in mind the tough times of his youth. “He never forgot that thing that the more you have, the more you owe,” Peterson reflected. “And that was very much part of our lives. It’s never about you. It’s about what you can do for other people.”
This environment helped inspire Peterson and his brothers Jim and Tim to pursue paths in politics, a path where they supported each other throughout their individual campaigns.
Paikin asked Peterson if he was irritated that William Davis has often received full credit for projects he initiated, such as full funding and the construction of the SkyDome, that were carried out by Peterson’s government. While Peterson did not respond directly to the question, he noted the historical conflicts surrounding public funding of Catholic education, how the Liberals had traditionally received Catholic support, and how he only had 20 minutes to prepare a response in the legislature after Davis announced full public funding of Catholic secondary schools in 1984, which the Peterson government then implemented. He praised Sean Conway’s work as Minister of Education, observing that “Sean handled that with an aplomb and a knowledge and a grace and consultation that is a model in how to do legislation in a complicated minority house.”
This provided Peterson an opportunity to praise his cabinet, which he feels was “the best ever assembled” in Ontario history. He acknowledged Jim Bradley, who recently passed away, in the environment portfolio for his initiatives with the pioneering provincial blue box program and his efforts to reduce acid rain. He also noted attorney-general Ian Scott’s work at making Ontario the first province to use its human rights code to end discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Doing the best you can
The conversation moved to whether premiers are upset by changes their successors make to programs they hoped would stay in place. “You can’t take that view,” Peterson observed. “You have to be respectful of the system. Things change understandably. Nobody’s got a divine right to go on forever. You make your case as best you can. Some people argue it’s a short space to change the state, a short time to change the world, but ultimately we’re accountable, and if we can’t make the case properly, we lose.” He felt that it’s not good mentally to dwell on regrets, and that today’s politicians take things too personally.
Peterson’s passion ignited when the discussion shifted to national unity. He still feels hurt by the defeat of the Meech Lake Accord in 1990, comparing its demise to watching one of his children walking across a road in front of a car knowing they would be fatally hit. He believed good relations between Ontario, Quebec, and the federal government were crucial to the overall health of the country, and that the accord fit the tradition of Canadians choosing compromises to make the nation work. “Canada’s ability to accommodate has made us the most advanced multicultural nation in the world, with those who don’t respect diversity getting shut out fast,” he declared. “We’re a hell of a lot better off together than we are apart.”
The actions of some current leaders in creating divisions, such as Alberta premier Danielle Smith, and polling showing a renewed interest in separatist parties in Quebec, led Peterson to conclude that the current state of national unity was only “fair.”
“We are being fragmented at a moment that needs strong, stable, and kind voices to speak.”
Ontario Liberals today
On the current state of the Ontario Liberals, Peterson noted how he had seen the party’s fortunes vary over the years. When he became leader in 1982 it had no money and a mostly rural caucus in the legislature. During the next three years, they refilled the coffers, recruited members, built trust, and established what Peterson called “the best research department in opposition this province had ever seen” outside of what Stephen Lewis developed for the NDP. He praised those in the room who were considering leadership runs and felt that the party was “in the right place intellectually and philosophically from a values point of view.”
Peterson reflected on how blessed he with his family, especially his children and grandchildren. He urged the room to not leave environmental and economic messes for future generations to fix, and that taking the easy way out always has a price. “We have to stand for moral responsibility. We have to stand for generational responsibility and do things to make it better for the kids.”
In conclusion, Peterson believed that what powered his government was its idealism and belief that they could change the world, which many of those he worked continued to strive for throughout their careers.
“Idealism is a more powerful fuel than money.”
