NDP politician celebrates Thatchers death, wishes she died sooner

An NDP politician in Alberta has celebrated the death of the first female British prime minister in the province's legislature.

Marlin Schmidt, who represents the riding of Edmonton-Gold Bar, said that he was "no fan of Thatcher. If nothing goes right for me in a day, Mr. speaker, I can still go on to enjoy the fact that Margaret Thatcher is dead."

"The only thing I regret about Margaret Thatcher's death is that it happened probably 30 years too late," added Schmidt ghoulishly.

Schmidt's comments were met with a great deal of criticism. The premier of Alberta, for instance, called Thatcher one of the "greatest leaders of the last century."

"Regardless of one’s politics, it‘s vile to celebrate her death, as the NDP did today," he concluded. After Schmidt made this remark, he apologized and withdrew.

Thatcher is a controversial prime minister, although she is routinely viewed by historians as an impressive figure. Not only was she the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom, but she defeated the Argentines during the Falklands War, rescued Britain from economic oblivion, and navigated the Cold War with Reagan.