Calgary Herald

Spotlight shifts to Ray Novak

- ROBERT SIBLEY

Ray Novak, Stephen Harper’s chief of staff and key adviser on his election campaign, is a backroom player no longer.

With Tuesday’s courtroom allegation­s that he knew of the plan to cover Sen. Mike Duffy’s $ 90,000 Senate expenses, Novak has been shoved into the glare of the public spotlight.

At 38, Novak has spent much of his working life involved in Harper’s political career. Indeed, a decade ago he lived in a one- bedroom apartment over the garage at Stornoway when Harper was Opposition leader. He has been described as part of the Harper family, being particular­ly close to the prime minister’s children, Ben and Rachel.

But the relationsh­ip between the two goes back much further. With bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science from the University of Western Ontario and the University of Calgary, Novak served as an intern in former Reform leader Preston Manning’s office, and later for one- time Reform MP Rob Anders.

Then, when Harper took over as president of the National Citizens Coalition, Novak joined up as a researcher. Novak moved to Ottawa in 2002 when Harper became leader of the Canadian Alliance.

Over the years, Novak earned Harper’s trust and was highly regarded for the quality of his advice — so much so that when Harper became prime minister after the 2006 election, Novak went to work in the Prime Minister’s Office.

In 2008, he was slotted in as principal secretary, the number two job in the PMO. There, he handled the foreign affairs and defence files, and oversaw the prime minister’s communicat­ions and travel. After his appointmen­t as chief of staff in 2013 — following Nigel Wright’s departure — he added the economic and financial files to his remit.

As the longest- serving member of prime minister’s inner circle, Novak is said to possess a solid understand­ing of Harper’s way of thinking. “He has no side agenda,” a former colleague has been quoted as saying. “He always puts the prime minister’s genuine interests first.”

“Ray is really good, and trusted,” said another. “He’s quiet and handles lots of tough issues. And, yes, he stays out of the limelight.”

The few media portraits of Novak available describe him as low profile, discreet, with a preference for behindthe- scenes work, and, most crucially, staying out of the headlines.

That, it seems, is no longer possible.

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Ray Novak

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