staff. In October 1997, Wilson was named as Minister of Energy, Science and Technology. After redistribution, Wilson ran for re-election in the 1999 provincial election in the new seat of Simcoe—Grey. He defeated his nearest opponent, Liberal Norman Sandberg, by over 19,000 votes. Eves Government He was retained in the Energy, Science and Technology portfolio until April 2002, when Ernie Eves replaced Mike Harris as Premier. Eves named Wilson as Minister of Northern Development and Mines, and Chair of the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation. On June 17, 2003, he was also named Minister of Environment. Opposition (2nd time) The Progressive Conservatives were defeated in the 2003 election, although Wilson retained Simcoe—Grey by a reduced margin. In 2004, he supported John Tory's successful bid to replace Eves as party leader. In 2009, he supported Tim Hudak's successful bid to replace Tory as party leader. He was re-elected to the Ontario Legislature on October 10, 2007, defeating his nearest opponent by 11,711 votes. He was re-elected again in the 2011 election for his sixth term defeating his nearest opponent by 14,935 votes. He was re-elected by a slimmer margin in the 2014 provincial election. Under Hudak, from 2011 to 2014, Wilson served as Opposition House Leader. Interim leadership Following Hudak's resignation, Wilson was chosen interim leader by caucus on July 2, 2014, defeating John Yakabuski and Randy Hillier and served until a leadership election was held in May 2015 which chose Patrick Brown as Hudak's permanent successor. In the fall of 2015, Wilson then returned to his role as Opposition House Leader. Ford government and resignation from PC caucus Wilson was sworn in as Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade when the ministry was formed. Wilson resigned from cabinet and the Progressive Conservative caucus on November 2, 2018. A statement from the Office of the Premier stated that his resignation was to "seek treatment for substance addiction". Media later reported that Wilson's resignation was related to allegations of sexual misconduct against him. The Premier's Office initially refused to confirm or deny the reports. However, Premier Doug Ford confirmed on November 7, 2018, that Wilson was asked to resign from caucus in response to allegations of sexual misconduct; Ford further added that his office had initially claimed publicly that Wilson's resignation was for substance abuse treatment to protect the complainant. In September 2020, after having served 30 years in the