Robert Layton - Definition and Overview

Robert (Bob) E. J. Layton (December 25, 1925 - May 9, 2002) was a Canadian politician.

Robet Layton was born in Montreal and trained as an engineer and spent much of his career in Hudson, Quebec. The son of former Quebec cabinet minister Gilbert Layton, he became a political activist for the Liberal Party of Canada running unsuccessfully for the party's nomination for a seat in the Canadian House of Commons. In the 1980s, he joined the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada and was elected in the 1984 Canadian election from the Quebec riding of Lachine. He served as Minister of State for Mines in the federal cabinet of Brian Mulroney from 1984 to 1986. He was re-elected to the House of Commons in the 1988 Canadian election and retired from politics in 1993.

Layton's son, Jack Layton is leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada.