Mary Ng


Mary Ng is a Canadian politician serving as Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade since 2018. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, she has been the Member of Parliament for the riding of Markham—Thornhill since a by-election on April 3, 2017.

Early life

Ng, born in British Hong Kong, is the eldest child of three. In the 1970s, Ng's parents immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong, later establishing a family-owned restaurant in Toronto, Ontario. Along with her brother and sister, Ng grew up working in the family's restaurant. She graduated with a B.A. from University of Toronto in 1996, majoring in political science.

Career

Ng has worked for 20 years in the public service, focusing on the areas of education, women's leadership, job-creation, and entrepreneurship.

Early career

From 1991 to 2003, Ng worked as a public servant in the Ministry of the Attorney General and Cabinet Office Ontario.

Ministry of Education

From 2003 to 2006, Ng served as the Director of Policy to the Minister of Education, Gerard Kennedy. In response to the previous years of unease in the education sector under the previous two governments, Ng worked to rebuild relationships with the students and teachers’ unions.

Ryerson University

From 2006 to 2008 and then again from 2011 to 2015, Ng served in the President's Office at Ryerson University.

Federal politics

Following the resignation of Markham—Thornhill member of parliament John McCallum, Ng announced in February 2017 her intention to seek the Liberal Party of Canada nomination for the riding, and won the nomination that March against two other candidates. She proceeded to win the seat at the riding by-election held on April 3 that year.

Member of Parliament

Ng helped to facilitate the government's commitment to invest in Canadian ideas and innovators in her riding by advocating for the inclusion of Markham's tech-innovation hub, VentureLabs, in the Southern Ontario Supercluster. The Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster is expected to have a GDP impact of more than $13.5 billion in the next ten years and create more than 13,500 quality middle-class jobs in the region.
Ng holds roles on Parliamentary Associations such as the Canada-China Legislative Association and the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association. In June 2019, Ng publicly announced Michael Chan as her re-election campaign co-chair, which led to questions of potential pro-Beijing influence in her campaign. She has written in the Toronto Star that Canadians bear an "insidious and underlying current of racism".

Cabinet minister

Ng was appointed Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion in July 2018. Following her re-election as MP in the 2019 federal election, she was named Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade.

Electoral record