Jagrup Brar


Jagrup Brar is a Canadian politician. He is a former Member of the Legislative Assembly in British Columbia, Canada. He represented the ridings of Surrey-Panorama Ridge from 2004 to 2009 and Surrey-Fleetwood from 2009 to 2013 and since 2017 as a member of the New Democratic Party of British Columbia.

Background

Born in India, Brar moved to Canada for his studies at the University of Manitoba where he received a Master's degree in Public Administration. In 1994 he moved to Surrey.
For over a decade, Brar worked in both the public and non-profit sectors, helping professionals develop their careers, and working with employers to develop strategies meant for recruiting a highly skilled as well as multicultural workforce. As the former executive director of the Surrey Self Employment and Entrepreneur Development Society, he helped trained new entrepreneurs in developing and launching successful small business ventures.

Political career

He was first elected in October 2004 during a by-election with 6,740 votes He then became a member of British Columbia's 37th Legislative Assembly. He was also a member of BC's 38th Legislative Assembly after being elected in 2005 with 11,553 votes.
In early 2012 Brar participated in the Raise the Rates MLA Welfare Challenge by living on $610 for one month, the standard wage given to welfare recipients in B.C. at the time. Brar lived in a small room in Vancouver's notorious Downtown Eastside for part of the month-long challenge. He lost 26 pounds during the event and reported feeling constantly hungry and his mind "fuzzy" due to a lack of adequate nutrition and sleep. He kept a blog of his experiences and the media exposure surrounding the event significantly raised public awareness of welfare rates in B.C.
In August 2012, Brar was criticized by B.C.'s Liberal Party for praising Cuba's health and education system on a Punjabi radio station after a holiday in the communist country.
He was defeated in the 2013 provincial election by BC Liberal candidate Peter Fassbender. In the 2017 provincial election Brar defeated Fassbender in a re-match.

Electoral record