Harper named Time's top Canadian newsmaker

Last Updated: Sunday, December 17, 2006 | 4:04 PM ET

CBC News

The Canadian edition of Time Magazine has chosen Prime Minister Stephen Harper its 2006 Newsmaker of the Year.

Contributing editor Stephen Handelman writes that the prime minister who was "once dismissed as a doctrinaire backroom tactician with no experience in government has emerged as a warrior in power."

Handelman says Harper defied conventional wisdom about how to lead a minority government — "very, very cautiously" — instead pushing through "bold" changes, including:

• Slashing more than $1 billion in federal programs.
• Reshuffling the federal bureaucracy.
• Reopening the wounds of the national unity debate by supporting Quebec's right to declare itself a "nation."

At the same time, Handelman says, Harper introduced legislation that set a new standard of accountability for federal politicians, extended Canada's military mission in Afghanistan and negotiated an end to a long-simmering trade wrangle with the U.S. over softwood exports.

"If Harper wins the majority he craves, in the election expected sometime next year, he may yet turn out to be the most transformational leader since Trudeau," the magazine says.

The international edition of Time, also due on newsstands Monday, declined to name a single "Person of the Year" — instead honouring all internet users for contributing to a "digital democracy."

The Canadian Newsmaker of the Year is an annual editorial special that began more than 10 years ago.

Time defines the Newsmaker as the person, place, group, or thing that has the most impact — for better or for worse — on the news in Canada.