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Whitby is 402 kilometres from Ottawa, an almost four-hour drive from Parliament Hill. Highway 401 and the Canadian Pacific Railroad both run through the riding.
The riding’s southern border sits on the shores of Lake Ontario. Whitby also has two large conservation areas, Lynde Shores and Heber Downs.
About 23% of the riding’s population are immigrants, with some of the largest populations born in the United Kingdom, Jamaica, and India.
Italian, Urdu, and Spanish are the most common non-official mother tongues in the riding.
Approximately 1.5% of the riding’s population identify as Aboriginal.
Average individual income is $54,958.
Whitby residents have access to over 950 acres of parkland, 1,000 acres of open area and beaches, and 60 kilometres of trails. There are also a number of recreation programs offered by the town for all ages and there are pick-up sports leagues and fitness classes available at a number of locations. The town has a public boat launch at the Port Whitby Marina on Lake Ontario which is run by the town and open year-round.
The riding is home to the volunteer-driven Whitby Brass Band, which has been operating in the town since 1863.
According to the Town of Whitby, the Iroquois Park Sports Centre is “Canada’s largest municipally owned and operated recreation facility,” with two swimming pools, six tennis courts, five baseball diamonds, and a half-dozen skating arenas in one location.
Sectors that employ the most people in this riding are retail trade, health care and social assistance, educational services, manufacturing, and finance and insurance.
Almost 58% of the workforce in this riding have a post-secondary education of some kind, and in 2011 the unemployment rate was 7.3%.
Lynde Shores Conservation Area, which is 272 hectares and sits on the shores of Lake Ontario, is a good nesting spot for birds and an important stopover for migratory birds.
Lynde Shores has two provincially significant marshes: Lynde Creek Marsh and Cranberry Marsh.
During the Second World War, Whitby was home to Camp X, Canada’s elite spy training school. The camp was created by William Stephenson, considered a possible real-life inspiration for James Bond. “Hydra,” an advanced telecommunications system found on the base that connected Allied agents around the world, was so top secret that any unauthorized people approaching the site were to be shot on sight.
