The NDP web site says of Angus

Catholic New Times, Sept 12, 2004

Charlie Angus is well-known across Canada as a passionate spokesman for Northern Ontario. As a writer, broadcaster and musician he has championed the resource-dependent communities of the North. The late Peter Gzowski referred to Charlie Angus as the "bard of Northern Ontario."

Angus has worked for the last three years with northern First Nations in neighbouring Quebec on issues of community development and economic opportunities. Angus's entry into Federal politics stems from his desire to stop the continual erosion of Northern Ontario's voice on the national scene.