Peter Lougheed
The Honourable
Peter Lougheed, PC, CC, QC,
MBA, LL.D, (born
1928) is a Canadian lawyer, politician and professional football player. He served as premier of
Alberta from
1971 to
1985. After two years playing with the
Edmonton Eskimos and a brief period practising law, he was elected leader of the Alberta
Progressive Conservative Party in
1965. The party, which had not been a political force for over 40 years, became the opposition in
1967 and won 49 of 75 seats in
1971. As premier, he encouraged development of oil and gas in the province while increasing royalties paid to the province, and started the Alberta Heritage Fund. He also introduced the Alberta Bill of Rights. In
1986 he was named a Companion of the
Order of Canada.