John Savage

Who was John Savage?

John Patrick Savage, OC, ONS was the 23rd Premier of Nova Scotia, Canada between 1993 and 1997. He was born in Wales, and educated in the United Kingdom and Ireland. He emigrated to Canada in 1967 and was a noted family physician in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. He became the mayor of Dartmouth in 1985, and won re-election twice. He then became the leader of the Nova Scotia Liberal Party in 1992 and stepped down as mayor. In 1993, he defeated the incumbent provincial government and became premier. Savage was a controversial premier, bringing in many reforms in taxation, regional government, and government hiring practices. He resigned as premier in 1997 due to his low approval ratings in public polls. He died of cancer aged 70 in 2003. He was the father of Mike Savage, current mayor of the Halifax Regional Municipality.