On August 6, 2010 Vancouver Island North MP John Duncan was appointed as Canada's Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. Duncan was first elected to the House of Commons in 1993 and re-elected in 1997, 2000 and 2004 before losing to the NDP's Catherine Bell in 2006. He defeated Bell in the October, 2008 federal election to win the seat for a fifth time. Under leader Preston Manning, Duncan was the Reform Party's Aboriginal Affairs critic from 1994 to 1997. Then-Opposition leader Stephen Harper re-appointed him to the position with the Canadian Alliance Party in 2003. He's been parliamentary secretary to Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl since returning to office in 2008.