Home > Prominent Figures > André Marier (1932-) and Jacques Parizeau (1930-)
André Marier (1932-) and Jacques Parizeau (1930-)
A number of people worked on the establishment of the Caisse de dépôt et de placement du Québec. However, from the onset, the idea to create the organization originated with André Marier; his colleague, Jacques Parizeau, was the sponsor.
André Marier, an economist and senior civil servant, participated in some of the great reforms of the Quiet Revolution such as the nationalization of electricity working with René Lévesque, old age security and the Quebec pension plan. In the mid-60s, he headed a group mandated to develop a new mining policy that led to the creation of the la Société québécoise d'exploration minière. During the following decade, Marier was named president and general manager of flagship organizations such as the Centre de recherche industrielle du Québec and the Société québécoise d'initiatives agro-alimentaires. In 1973, he entered the world of municipal politics as a counsellor for the City of Québec; a few years later he became the vice-president of the Executive Committee.
After studying law in Paris and economics in London, Jacques Parizeau became a professor at the École des hautes études commerciales de Montréal in 1955. He was only 25 years of age. At the onset of the Quiet Revolution, his services were called upon as economic and financial adviser to the Premier and Council of Ministers. Like Marier, Parizeau was associated with several policies and reforms that transformed Quebec in the 1960s. Then he went into politics. Defeated in the elections of 1970 and 1973, he was elected MNA for the Parti québécois in 1976. Over the years, he was Minister of different departments (Revenue, Finance, financial institutions and cooperatives). He left politics in 1984 but returned in 1988 as leader of the Parti québécois. Parizeau was Premier of Quebec from 1994 to 1996.
Both André Marier and Jacques Parizeau may justly be considered as artisans of the Quiet Revolution.
