Bill Davis

The Honourable Bill Davis PC CC OOnt QC
Davis in 1979
18th Premier of Ontario
In office March 1, 1971 – February 8, 1985
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Lieutenant Governor	William Ross Macdonald Pauline Mills McGibbon John Black Aird
Preceded by	John Robarts
Succeeded by	Frank Miller
Executive Council of Ontario Minister of University Affairs In office May 14, 1964 – March 1, 1971 Premier John Robarts Preceded by Riding established Succeeded by John White Minister of Education In office October 25, 1962 – March 1, 1971 Premier John Robarts Preceded by John Robarts Succeeded by Bob Welch
Parliamentary constituencies Member of the Ontario Provincial Parliament for Brampton (Peel North; 1967–1975) (Peel; 1959–1967) In office June 11, 1959 – May 2, 1985 Preceded by Thomas Laird Kennedy Succeeded by Bob Callahan
Personal details
Born	William Grenville Davis (1929-07-30)July 30, 1929 Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Died	August 8, 2021(2021-08-08) (aged 92) Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Political party	Progressive Conservative
Spouses	Helen MacPhee ​ ​ (m. 1955; died 1962)​ Kathleen MacKay ​ (m. 1964)​
Children	5
Alma mater	University College, Toronto (BA) Osgoode Hall Law School (LLB)

William Grenville Davis, PC, CC, OOnt, QC (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Behind Oliver Mowat, Davis was the second-longest serving premier of Ontario.

Born in Toronto, Davis was a lawyer before being elected as a Progressive Conservative member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincial election. He was a backbencher in the Conservative caucus until 1962, when he was appointed minister of education under John Robarts. During this period, Davis created the community college system and the educational television network now known as TVO.

In 1971, he succeeded Robarts as the premier of Ontario and held the position until resigning in 1985. He led the Progressive Conservatives to victory in four consecutive elections, winning two majority governments and two minority governments. As premier, Davis was responsible for the cancellation of the Spadina Expressway, the funding of Catholic secondary schools through grade 12, the formation of Canada's first Ministry of the Environment, and rent control, as well as playing a large role in the patriation of the Constitution of Canada.