Clifford Huskilson

Clifford Huskilson died on Wednesday 11 November 2026, aged 73, surrounded by his family. No cause of death was made public. His death was reported by Your Halifax Now and other Nova Scotia outlets the following day. A funeral service was scheduled for Sunday 15 November 2026 at 2:30 pm at H.M. Huskilson's Funeral Home in Shelburne, followed by burial at Pine Grove Cemetery.

Clifford Brian Huskilson was born in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, on 11 February 1953. He was the son of Harold Huskilson, a Shelburne County funeral director who was elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly in 1970 and served as a cabinet minister in Gerald Regan's Liberal government, including in the social services portfolio. The family operated H.M. Huskilson's Funeral Homes, long established in Shelburne County.

Huskilson graduated from Dalhousie University with a Bachelor of Science degree and earned a diploma from the Nova Scotia Funeral Directors Association, preparing him to join the family business.

Huskilson was elected MLA for Shelburne in the 1993 provincial election, succeeding his father, who had held the riding since 1970. He was re-elected in 1998 and, after that election, was appointed to the Executive Council of Nova Scotia as Minister of Transportation and Public Works in the Liberal government.

The 1999 provincial election in Shelburne became one of the closest in Canadian history. On election night Huskilson led Progressive Conservative candidate Cecil O'Donnell by one vote. A judicial recount on 17 August 1999 left the two candidates tied, and the tie was broken when the riding's returning officer drew a name from a box. O'Donnell's name was picked, ending Huskilson's time in the legislature. He tried to regain the seat in the 2003 election but lost to O'Donnell by close to 600 votes.

Alongside and after politics, Huskilson spent more than 45 years working in the family funeral home business in Shelburne. He served as president of the Funeral Service Association of Nova Scotia.

Huskilson was married to Linda Huskilson. They had two children, and he had five grandchildren and a great-grandchild. Outside work he was an avid outdoorsman and a skilled carpenter who designed and built several properties, including the family funeral home on Bulkley Street in Shelburne. His obituary described him as a compassionate community member who enjoyed helping others, particularly families coping with the death of a loved one.

Huskilson was part of a father and son line that represented Shelburne for nearly three decades, from 1970 to 1999. His 1999 defeat, decided by a tied recount and a name drawn from a box, remains a frequently cited example of how close Canadian elections can be. In Shelburne County he was remembered as much for his decades of work as a funeral director, supporting grieving families, as for his years in provincial politics.