Politics on the Edge: The Remarkable Career of Paul MacEwan

Ian Stewart

A Co-pubication of CBU Press and Nimbus Publishing

The Beaton Institute, Cape Bretoniana Research Series

The Remarkable Career of Paul MacEwan

By Ian Stewart, PhD

Paul MacEwan represented the working-class, multicultural, and environmentally despoiled constituency of Cape Breton Nova, primarily Whitney Pier. At the edge of political and economic power, even other Cape Bretoners often considered “The Pier” to be back of beyond.

MacEwan fought a protracted battle to keep Cape Breton’s coal and steel economy from the edge of extinction. He pursued his constituents’ interests with a zeal bordering on obsessive and compulsive, often straying perilously close to the edge in the means employed to seek an advantage. Yet MacEwan was on the cutting edge of many political innovations, transforming the role of an MLA in Nova Scotia.

From this book emerges a complex portrait. Paul MacEwan was undeniably an adroit parliamentarian, whose skills were widely acknowledged by his peers, but he arguably won the respect of only some of his colleagues, the affection of a few, and the friendship of even fewer. Even after thirty-three years in office, he remained on the edge of all social networks at Province House. In sum, Paul MacEwan lived and breathed politics on the edge.