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Scott Tannas

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The Honourable
Scott Tannas
Leader of the
Canadian Senators Group
Incumbent
Assumed office
November 4, 2019
DeputyDennis Patterson
Rebecca Patterson
Preceded byPosition established
Senator from Alberta
Incumbent
Assumed office
March 25, 2013
Nominated byStephen Harper
Appointed byDavid Johnston
Personal details
Born (1962-02-25) February 25, 1962 (age 62)
High River, Alberta, Canada
Political partyCanadian Senators Group (since 2019)
Other political
affiliations		Conservative Party of Canada (2013–2019)
SpouseTaryn McCormick
Children4
ProfessionFinance executive

Scott Tannas (born February 25, 1962) is a Canadian senator and, since November 5, 2019, leader of the Canadian Senators Group, a parliamentary caucus.

Tannas is the former President/CEO[1][2] and founder of Western Financial Group[3] (formerly Hi-Alta Capital Inc.), an insurance brokerage, life insurance and banking company headquartered in High River, Alberta, Canada.[4] Tannas was elected as a senator-in-waiting in the 2012 Alberta Senate nominee election, and appointed to the Senate following the retirement of Senator Bert Brown on March 22, 2013.

Outside of politics, Tannas runs the Alberta-based Western Investment Company of Canada, a private equity firm.

Early life and education

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Tannas was born in High River, Alberta, Canada on February 25, 1962. He is the son of Donald Tannas, a school teacher/principal and Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, serving as Deputy Speaker[5] and Christine Tannas, a nurse.

Tannas has spent the majority of his life in High River, except for a 2-year period, where his parents served with the Canadian International Development Agency in Uganda.

Tannas attended and graduated from École Senator Riley School in 1979. Tannas also worked the local dance club scene as a DJ and was known for his sound system and light show. At the age of 26, Tannas got a job in the tourism industry working at the Banff Springs Hotel.[6]

Tannas attended both Mount Royal College (now called Mount Royal University), and the University of Calgary. While attending university, Tannas met Taryn McCormick, the daughter of Michael James Sr and Gweneth Helen McCormick, whose family started the Riley & McCormick Western Wear family in 1901.[7]

Businesses and career

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After leaving college, Tannas stayed in the Calgary and Banff area working in the tourism industry and taking side jobs to build up capital. Tannas had accumulated enough capital to move back to his hometown of High River and purchased Hi-Alta Agencies, an established insurance firm in town, which had been operating since 1905.

In May 1996, Hi-Alta changed its name to Western Financial Group to allow for expansion outside of Alberta.[8][9] In 2001, Western Financial Group's insurance division, WFG Agency Network Inc., became the largest insurance broker network in western Canada. That same year, Tannas started The Western Communities Foundation,[3] a non-profit organization created to support the communities in which Western Financial Group operates. In January 2003, Tannas, along with the board of directors at Western Financial Group, created their own bank: Bank West, which took in over $1 million in deposits in its first day of business.[10][11] In 2003, Tannas was awarded Ernst and Young's Prairies Entrepreneur of the Year for Professional/Financial Services.[12]

As of 2021, Tannas runs the Western Investment Company of Canada while serving as a senator.[13] He is also an honorary board member of SOS Children's Villages - Canada.[14]

Political career

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Tannas' first venture into politics was when he served as campaign manager for Ken Hughes, the Progressive Conservative MP for Macleod, in the 1993 federal election.[15]

In 2012, Tannas stood as a candidate in Alberta's Senate nominee election, as a Progressive Conservative.[16] He placed second out of three available positions, and was named a "senator-in-waiting". Following the retirement of Senator Bert Brown, Tannas was appointed to the Senate of Canada on March 22, 2013. On his appointement, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said that Tannas was supportive of the government's efforts at Senate reform, including imposing term limits on senators.[17] In 2017, Tannas said he intended to serve no more than ten years in the Senate: "For me and only me…I think hanging around longer than 10 years, I’m not going to add any more value."[18]

On November 4, 2019, Tannas became one of eleven senators who founded the Canadian Senators Group, a non-partisan parliamentary group in the Senate. At the same time, the CSG selected Senator Tannas as its interim leader.[19] By late 2020, Tannas became the CSG's full-time leader.

Over the 2020–2021 winter holidays, Tannas travelled to Hawaii despite public health advice discouraging non-essential international travel during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. Tannas said that he had followed all the rules and health protocols required to undertake international travel and that he would shortly be returning to Alberta.[13]

Personal life

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Tannas lives in High River, Alberta. He owns a timeshare property in Hawaii.[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Desjardins Financial Group Acquires 95.5% of outstanding common shares of Western Financial Group Inc". Newswire.ca. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  2. ^ "Company Listing". CBR.ca. 13 October 2009. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Scott Tannas | Alberta Venture Magazine, Alberta business, Canadian business, Business Awards, Alberta news, Alberta industry". Albertaventure.com. 1 July 2001. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  4. ^ "Western Financial Group - Directors & Management". Westernfinancialgroup.ca. 15 April 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  5. ^ "Powered by Google Docs". Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  6. ^ Keyser, Tom (27 June 2002). "Small-town banker cashes in on chutzpah - Business Edge News Magazine Archives". Businessedge.ca. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  7. ^ "Obituaries Calgary, AB". Putneys.tripod.com. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  8. ^ Canada. "Western Financial's struggles bring opportunity". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  9. ^ "Uniquely Lloydminster" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 April 2012.
  10. ^ Peter C. Newman (18 April 2005). "Fresh wind from the West | Macleans.ca - Columnists". Macleans.ca. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  11. ^ "Powered by Google Docs". Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  12. ^ "Western Financial Group - Our Story". Westernfinancialgroup.ca. Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  13. ^ a b c Tasker, John Paul; Rands, Chris (13 January 2021). "Senate caucus leader admits he travelled to Hawaii for holiday". CBC News. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  14. ^ "Our Honorary Board of Directors and Advisory Council". Soschildrensvillages.ca. 5 July 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  15. ^ "Alpine Insurance - Press 4". Driveit.clickspace.com. 4 June 2005. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  16. ^ "Latest Breaking News, Headlines & Updates | National Post".
  17. ^ "Harper appoints Scott Tannas to Senate to fill Alberta vacancy". CTV News. The Canadian Press. 25 March 2013. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  18. ^ "Tory Senators divided over whether they really agreed to term limits". Archived from the original on 24 October 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  19. ^ Martin, Don (4 November 2019). "Tannas on Wexit and Western Alienation". Power Play with Don Martin. CTV News. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
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