Bill Rowe

For the British sound engineer, see Bill Rowe (sound engineer).

William N. Rowe QC
File:Bill-rowe.jpg Courtesy of Flanker Press
Personal details
Born	(1942-06-04) June 4, 1942 Grand Bank, Newfoundland
Residence	St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

William N. Rowe QC (born June 4, 1942) is a former politician, lawyer, broadcaster, and writer in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. He is married to Penelope Ayre Rowe of St. John’s, who is a member of the Order of Canada. They have a son, Dorian, a daughter, Toby, and three grandchildren.

Rowe was born in Grand Bank and is the son of the late Liberal Senator Frederick William Rowe and the late Edith Laura Butt.

Rowe attended Memorial University of Newfoundland where he earned a Bachelor of Arts. He studied for a Bachelor of Law at the University of New Brunswick on a Sir James Hamet Dunn Scholarship, and went on to become a Rhodes Scholar, graduating with an Honours M.A in Law from Oxford University.

He entered politics and was elected to the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly five times, first at the age of twenty-four. He was appointed, at twenty-six, as a Minister in the Government of Joey Smallwood and became responsible for several Departments. He was later elected as Leader of the Opposition, holding that position from 1977 to 1979. He resigned his position prior to the 1979 general election, in favour of Don Jamieson, but kept his own seat.

One of Rowe's political aides while he was Opposition Leader was a young Brian Tobin.

In 1982, Bill Rowe lost his seat in the Newfoundland general election, which saw the Progressive Conservatives under the leadership of Brian Peckford, win by a landslide, taking 44 seats.

After leaving politics, Rowe resumed his law practice. As a lawyer, he practiced in St. John's for over three decades, concentrating for years on labour-management arbitrations. During the 1980s he was retained by the federal Minister of National Revenue to conduct a nation-wide inquiry into fishermen’s perceived income tax problems with Revenue Canada.

Rowe was appointed to Queen's Counsel in 2007.

A long-time public affairs commentator, Rowe has appeared regularly on national and local television and radio. He has hosted a daily call-in show on VOCM and CFCB radio for nearly thirty years, which focuses on public issues and is carried throughout the province and around the world. Rowe was instrumental in exposing the Mount Cashel Orphanage scandal when he was host of VOCM's Open Line radio show.

Rowe also wrote weekly public affairs columns for St. John's daily newspaper, The Telegram, the Corner Brook Western Star, and other newspapers.

In 2004, Premier Danny Williams appointed him Provincial Representative in Ottawa, where he advised the Premier during the crucial negotiations with the Government of Canada that led to the Atlantic Accord, which secured more than two billion dollars for Newfoundland and Labrador.

Rowe has written four books: Clapp’s Rock, a best-selling novel published by McClelland and Stewart of Toronto and serialized on CBC national radio; The Temptation of Victor Galanti, a second novel published by McClelland and Stewart; and Is That You, Bill?, a volume of essays on politics and public affairs published by Jesperson Press of St. John's. In 2010, Flanker Press published his best-selling political memoir, Danny Williams: The War with Ottawa.

Rowe is a member of the Writers’ Union of Canada and has served on the executive of the Writers’ Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador.

On June 22, 2011, Rowe announced on his radio show his intention to retire from VOCM after nearly thirty years to write full-time. He has agreed to fill in periodically for the regular talk show hosts.

His last day as host of his show, BackTalk, was Friday, June 24, 2011. Paddy Daly took over for him on August 1, 2011.

Rowe is currently sitting in as host for the Fall Season of VOCM's Nightline.

Bill Rowe released a book in the fall of 2011. Danny Williams, Please Come Back is a compilation of his columns and commentaries written between 2005 and 2007. The launch is scheduled for September 22nd.

He is currently writing another novel which will be published in 2012.