Robert Stanfield | |
|---|---|
 Stanfield in 1967 | |
| Leader of the Opposition | |
| In office November 9, 1967 – February 21, 1976 | |
| Preceded by | Michael Starr |
| Succeeded by | Joe Clark |
| Leader of theProgressive Conservative Party of Canada | |
| In office September 9, 1967 – February 21, 1976 | |
| Preceded by | John Diefenbaker |
| Succeeded by | Joe Clark |
| Member of Parliament forHalifax | |
| In office June 25, 1968 – May 21, 1979 | |
| Preceded by | Riding created |
| Succeeded by | George Cooper |
| Member of Parliament forColchester—Hants | |
| In office November 6, 1967 – June 24, 1968 | |
| Preceded by | Cyril Kennedy |
| Succeeded by | Riding abolished |
| 17thPremier of Nova Scotia | |
| In office November 20, 1956 – September 13, 1967 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Lieutenant Governor | Alistair Fraser Edward Chester Plow Henry Poole MacKeen |
| Preceded by | Henry Hicks |
| Succeeded by | G. I. Smith |
| Member of theNova Scotia House of Assembly forColchester | |
| In office June 9, 1949 – September 13, 1967 Serving with G. I. Smith | |
| Preceded by | Gordon Purdy Robert F. McLellan |
| Succeeded by | Gerald Ritcey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert Lorne Stanfield (1914-04-11)April 11, 1914 Truro, Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Died | December 16, 2003(2003-12-16) (aged 89) |
| Resting place | Camp Hill Cemetery Halifax,Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Political party | Progressive Conservative |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 4 |
| Relatives | Frank Stanfield (father) John Stanfield (uncle) Frank Thomas Stanfield (brother) |
| Alma mater | |
| Profession |
|
Robert Lorne StanfieldPC QC FRCGS (April 11, 1914 – December 16, 2003) was a Canadian politician who served as the 17thpremier of Nova Scotia from 1956 to 1967 and theleader of the Official Opposition and leader of theProgressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1967 to 1976.
Born into an affluentNova Scotiaclothing manufacturing and political family inTruro, Stanfield graduated fromDalhousie University andHarvard Law School in the 1930s. He was a lawyer before becoming the leader of theNova Scotia Progressive Conservative Party in 1948, with the goal of reviving the party that did not have a single seat in the legislature. After a rebuilding period, Stanfield led the party to amajority government in1956; their first victory since1928. Leading the party to four majorities in total, Stanfield's government establishedIndustrial Estates Limited (IEL) to attract new industry in Nova Scotia, introduced hospital insurance and a provincialsales tax (PST) to fund half of it, prioritized human rights forBlack Nova Scotians, and drastically increased funding for education.
In 1967, he resigned as premier andwas elected the leader of the federal Progressive Conservative (PC) Party, thus becoming the leader of theOfficial Opposition. In the1968 federal election, he suffered alandslide defeat to the incumbent Liberals led byPrime MinisterPierre Trudeau. In1972, Stanfield recovered the PCs' standing and narrowly lost to Trudeau for a second time. In1974, he lost to Trudeau's Liberals for a third time by a wide margin. Stanfield was a strong supporter ofbilingualism, putting him at odds with some members of the PC Party. He resigned as leader in1976 and from politics in1979.
In retirement, he lived mostly inOttawa, and campaigned for theMeech Lake Accord, theCharlottetown Accord, andfree trade in the 1980s and early 1990s. He died in Ottawa in 2003 from complications due to pneumonia. He was one of only several people granted the style "The Right Honourable" who were not so entitled by virtue of an office held.
Stanfield was born inTruro, Nova Scotia, the son of Sarah Emma (née Thomas) and entrepreneurFrank Stanfield, and was named afterRobert Borden, a fellowNova Scotian who wasprime minister at the time.[1] Stanfield's family ownedStanfield's Limited, a large textile company.[2] Stanfield studied economics and political science atDalhousie University and was awarded theGovernor General's Silver Medal for achieving the highest standing when he graduated in 1936 with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree.[3]
Stanfield then studied atHarvard Law School, where he was an honours student near the top of his class and the first Canadian editor of theHarvard Law Review.[4] During his student days in the 1930s, he witnessed the poverty that theGreat Depression produced, causing him to become interested inJohn Maynard Keynes's economic theories. Stanfield then considered himself asocialist.[5] Over time, he was less attached to socialism, but its influence on him remained, as he was considered aRed Tory for his appreciation of thecommon good.[5] Stanfield graduated from Harvard in 1939 and wascalled to the bar in 1940. From 1939 to 1945 duringWorld War II, he worked as a member of the Wartime Prices and Trade Board's Halifax staff.[6]
Stanfield decided to enter Nova Scotia politics. In 1947 he became president of theProgressive Conservative Association of Nova Scotia (PCs) which was in poor shape as it did not have a single seat in the legislature,[6] while theLiberals dominated the province. In 1948, Stanfield was elected leader of the party, and began the process of reviving the party. In the1949 election, the PCs won 8 seats and in1953, they won 12. In the1956 election, the PCs won amajority government, their first victory since1928. This ended 23 consecutive years of Liberal rule.
Known as "Honest Bob" for his straightforward manner,[7] Stanfield served aspremier of Nova Scotia, governing as a moderate andpragmatist. He led reforms on education, human rights, and health care. He led the PCs to three re-elections in1960,1963, and1967, each time with larger majorities.[1]
In 1957, Stanfield's government established thecrown corporationIndustrial Estates Limited (IEL) to attract new industry in Nova Scotia. By the time Stanfield left office in 1967, the IEL had invested $74 million into 25 new firms and created nearly 2,300 jobs in the province.[8]
In 1963, Stanfield's government established the Nova Scotia Voluntary Planning Board to assist the minister of finance in creating measures to increase the rate of economic growth through voluntary economic planning.[9]
Stanfield's government raised the limit on agricultural loans from $8,000 to $100,000. To aid livestock farmers in building a million dollar slaughterhouse, his government contributed three dollars for every dollar the farmers raised.[10] His government also created a provincial parks system.[1]
Stanfield's government introduced hospital insurance, as well as a provincialsales tax (also known as the Hospital Tax) to fund half of it (with the other half being funded by the federal government). The PST, which became effective on January 1, 1959, was initially 5 percent but was later raised to 7 percent. The PST applied to all goods and services except food and children's clothing.[11][12]
Stanfield strongly opposed theBell Telephone Company's takeover bid of Nova Scotia's Maritime Telegraph and Telephone Company (M.T. & T.) in 1966, arguing that a takeover would lead to sharp increases in the cost of the service. After the Bell declined to negotiate with his government within a five-day time frame, Stanfield called aspecial session in the legislature; during the session, the legislature passed a bill that prevented the Bell from taking control of M.T. & T., allowing the latter to remain in Nova Scotian control.[13][14]
Stanfield prioritized human rights, particularly forBlack Nova Scotians. In 1959, Stanfield's government passed theFair Accommodation Practices Act to protect against discrimination in public spaces.[15] In 1962, Stanfield created and led the Interdepartmental Committee on Human Rights[16] to support the work ofWilliam Oliver and other Black Nova Scotians. The year later, Stanfield's government codified and extended earlier legislation in the firstHuman Rights Act of 1963.[17] In 1965, the Stanfield government established the Education fund for Negros and in 1967, created theNova Scotia Human Rights Commission with Oliver.[18]
Stanfield's government increased funding for schools and training colleges.[1] His government started to contribute funding towards universities beginning in 1960; between 1960 and 1967, the Stanfield government's contributions towards universities jumped from $250,000 to $25,000,000.[19] His government also introduced a capital assistance program in which the government would fund up to 90 percent of the cost of university buildings. In addition, Stanfield's government improvedFrench-language education in Nova Scotia by introducing French textbooks (previously, Nova Scotia schools only offered English textbooks) and expanding French-language education to Grade 12 (up from Grade 8).[20]
Stanfield did not express interest in entering federal politics during the early and mid-1960s. He turned down thefederal Progressive Conservative Party (PC Party) leader and then-prime ministerJohn Diefenbaker's proposal that he should enter federal politics in the1962 federal election, and did not express interest in becoming party leader (when the idea was suggested by former PC ministerAlvin Hamilton) following the Diefenbaker-led PCs' second defeat in the1965 federal election.[21]
In the mid-1960s, the federal Progressive Conservative Party was racked by disunity between supporters and opponents of Diefenbaker. A vocal opponent of Diefenbaker was party presidentDalton Camp, who forceda leadership convention for 1967.[22] Camp was a strong proponent of a potential Stanfield leadership bid. After months of hesitating, Stanfield finally bowed to Camp's pressure and on July 17, 1967, announced his intention to run for leader, on the condition that his finance ministerGeorge Isaac Smith agrees to succeed him as premier. Stanfield had strong delegate support in theAtlantic provinces but struggled in thePrairies andQuebec. Nonetheless, on the convention that was held on September 9, he led on the first four ballots, and won on the fifth ballot, taking 54.3 percent of the delegate vote. Stanfield resigned as premier on September 13.[23]
Stanfield was elected to theHouse of Commons in aby-election for the riding ofColchester—Hants on November 6, 1967.[24] He brought the Progressive Conservatives high in the polls, prompting many to expect him to defeat theLiberal government of the agingLester B. Pearson. In February 1968, Stanfield almost forced an election after defeating Pearson's government on a tax bill, leading to several days of confusion over whether or not this counted as ade factomotion of no confidence in the government. Ultimately, it was ruled by theGovernor General,Roland Michener that it did not, and while Stanfield immediately called an explicit motion of no confidence in Pearson's government, it failed to pass after theNew Democratic Party andRalliement créditiste declined to support it.[25]
Pearson would soon retire, prompting the Liberals to chooseJustice MinisterPierre Trudeau as its new leader in April 1968. Trudeau subsequently calledan election for June 25. Trudeau was a charismatic intellectual and perfectly bilingual. Stanfield's unilingualism and uninspiring speaking style (according to Stanfield biographerGeoffrey Stevens) contrasted poorly with the new Liberal leader. The PCs started the election campaign with an internal poll showing them trailing the Liberals by 22 points.[26][27]
Stanfield proposed introducing guaranteed annual income, though failed to explain the number of citizens that would be covered, the minimum income level, and the cost to implement it. Due to concerns that the term "guaranteed annual income" soundedsocialist, he eventually switched to using the term "negative income tax". These mistakes made the policy impossible for voters to understand and harmed the PCs. What also damaged the PCs was the idea ofdeux nations (meaning that Canada was one country housing two nations -French Canadians andEnglish-speaking Canadians).Marcel Faribault, the PCs'Quebec lieutenant andMP candidate, was unclear on whether he supported or opposeddeux nations and Stanfield did not drop him as a candidate. This led to the Liberals positioning themselves as the party that supported one Canada. In mid-June, they ran a full-page newspaper advertisement that implied that Stanfield supporteddeux nations; Stanfield called the ad "a deliberate lie" and insisted he supported one Canada.[28]
On election night, the Liberals increased their support to form a strong majority government. Though the PCs' popular vote share slightly dropped from 32.4 percent in 1965 to 31.4 percent, their seat count considerably reduced from 94 to 72. The PCs dominated Atlantic Canada but saw a significant decline in popularity in Ontario (as the party's performance in that province was the worst in their history), Quebec, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan.[29]
After losing the 1968 election, Stanfield vacationed in Quebec where he participated inFrench immersion classes. He vigorously backedofficial bilingualism and the Liberals' 1969Official Languages Act which made French an official language in Canada, arguing the act would strengthen Canadian unity. To his disappointment, 17 out of 72 PC MPs (including his predecessor as leader, John Diefenbaker), voted against the bill.[30]
In 1969, Stanfield was one of 12 out of 72 PC MPs to vote in favour of the Trudeau government'sBill C-150, which decriminalized homosexuality and allowedabortion under certain conditions.[31]
Stanfield initially supported the Trudeau government's October 1970 invocation of theWar Measures Act to deal with theOctober Crisis but later regretted doing so.[32]
In theelection of 1972, Stanfield's Tories campaigned on the public's perception that the Liberals were mismanaging the economy as a result of rising unemployment. Though the Liberals started with a 10-point lead over the Progressive Conservatives, the election, held on October 30, saw the PCs win 107 seats and come two seats behind the Liberals who won 109 seats; this was one of the closest elections in Canadian history. The Liberals were able to form aminority government due to them getting support from theNew Democratic Party led byDavid Lewis.[34] In the election, Stanfield refused to sign the nomination papers of formerMoncton mayorLeonard Jones; Jones had won the party nomination but he refused to support official bilingualism which was part of PC policy.[35]
In May 1974, the House of Commons passed amotion of no confidence in the Trudeau government, defeatingits budget bill after Trudeau intentionally antagonized Stanfield and Lewis.[36] This triggeredan election for July 8. The election focused mainly on thecurrent economic recession, and Stanfield proposed to immediately introduce 90-daywage and price controls to help reduce the increasing inflation of the era. Trudeau mocked the proposal, saying to a newspaper reporter that it was the equivalent of a magician saying "Zap! You're frozen", and instead promoted a variety of small tax cuts to curb inflation.[37][38] According to Trudeau’s biographerJohn English, NDP supporters scared of wage controls moved toward the Liberals during the campaign.[39] Trudeau, in an abrupt reversal, would implement wage and price controls in December 1975 through the passing of theAnti-Inflation Act.[40]
During the campaign, on May 30, 1974, a photo by photojournalistDoug Ball showing Stanfield fumbling a football thrown byGeoffrey Stevens at a stopover inNorth Bay, Ontario, became one of the defining images of his career. To this day, Canadian political commentators still point to this incident as one of Canada's foremost examples of "image politics", because the photo was chosen for the front pages of newspapers across Canada even though many other photos of Stanfield catching the same football were also available.[41]
The election result showed the Liberals had boosted their support from a minority to a majority government, while the Progressive Conservatives' seat count dropped from 106 to 95. The Progressive Conservatives did well in theAtlantic provinces, and in theWest, but strong Liberal support in Ontario and Quebec ensured a Liberal majority government.[42]
Political science professorRon Dart described Stanfield's political philosophy in the 1968 election as a "sort ofPink Toryism".[43] HistorianJ. Murray Beck wrote about Stanfield, "Eschewing highly doctrinaire politics, his conservatism, which caused him to be called a "pink" if not aRed Tory, was above all a compassionate conservatism with a genuine concern for the disadvantaged."[44] In a 1976 interview withMaclean's, Stanfield stated, "Increasing the size of theGNP is important, but it is not in itself a sufficient goal for a civilized society."[1]
On August 14, 1974, over a month after the election, Stanfield announced his intention to resign as party leader. During the news conference, he stated his preference for aFrench Canadian successor as leader. He served as leader of the PCs and leader of the Opposition until February 22, 1976, when he waspermanently succeeded as leader byJoe Clark. Stanfield retired from Parliament in theMay 1979 election which finally brought the Progressive Conservatives to power (though they would lose theFebruary 1980 election to the Trudeau-led Liberals who won a majority).[45]
After his retirement, Stanfield stayed out of politics until the constitutional debates, when he endorsed and campaigned for theMeech Lake Accord, theCharlottetown Accord, andfree trade. He said that the Meech Lake Accord was a second chance to save Canada from disaster. "I'm not at all sure that I would want to live in a country that rejected Meech Lake," he said at the time. "It wouldn't be the Canada I grew up in. It wouldn't be the country with the values that I've loved during my life." Prime MinisterBrian Mulroney wanted to appoint Stanfield asU.N. ambassador saying, "I tried to engage him further but he was leading a vigorous life and a very active life and he didn't want to change after a while."[46]
From 1983 to 1987, Stanfield served as chairman of theInstitute for Research on Public Policy. He also served as the first Canadian chairman of theCommonwealth Foundation from December 1986 to 1991.[47]
In 1996, Stanfield suffered a debilitating stroke that left him severely disabled. He died on December 16, 2003, atMontfort Hospital inOttawa, from pneumonia, only nine days after the Progressive Conservative Party merged with theCanadian Alliance to form the newConservative Party of Canada. Fellow Nova Scotian — and final PC Party Leader —Peter MacKay suggested in an interview onCBC Newsworld's December 17, 2003 Morning Show that he had not personally spoken to Stanfield in regard to his opinions on the merger.[48][49] It is unknown what Stanfield thought of the creation of the new Conservatives. His funeral service was held in Ottawa, and then he was buried inCamp Hill Cemetery,Halifax,Nova Scotia, next to his first wife Joyce Frazee, mother of his four children: Sarah, Max, Judith and Miriam, and with his second wife Mary Hall.[50]
Stanfield married Joyce Frazee in 1940, but she died in a car accident in 1954. During his term as premier, Stanfield remarried, exchanging vows with Mary Hall in 1957. Mary Stanfield died of cancer in 1977, and the following year, Stanfield married his third wife, Anne Austin.[4] Anne Austin Stanfield died, age 89, April 22, 2021.
In July 1967, Stanfield and other provincial premiers were sworn into theQueen's Privy Council for Canada[51] on the occasion of Canada's centennial.
On July 1, 1992, as part of Canada's 125th anniversary celebrations, the Queen on advice of Prime MinisterBrian Mulroney granted Stanfield and six former cabinet ministers (Alvin Hamilton,Ellen Fairclough,Jack Pickersgill,Paul Martin Sr.,Jean-Luc Pepin andMartial Asselin) the right to use the title "The Right Honourable".[52] He was one of nine Canadians entitled to the title without having held an office which such title is automatically conferred.In 2007,Halifax Robert L. Stanfield International Airport was named after him by Prime MinisterStephen Harper. He was also a Fellow of theRoyal Canadian Geographical Society (FRCGS).
Robert Stanfield was awarded several honorary Degrees in recognition of His service to Canada, These Include
| Location | Date | School | Degree |
|---|---|---|---|
 Nova Scotia | 1967 | Dalhousie University | Doctor of Engineering (D.Eng)[53] |
 Quebec | 11 October 1967 | McGill University | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[54] |
| Nova Scotia | 12 May 1969 | Saint Mary's University | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[55] |
 Ontario | May 1985 | McMaster University | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[56] |
| Ontario | June 1988 | University of Toronto | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[57] |
 New Brunswick | 1990 | Mount Allison University | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[58] |
 |
| 1974 Canadian federal election:Halifax | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Stanfield | 14,865 | 49.26 | -6.78 | ||||
| Liberal | Brian Flemming | 12,282 | 40.70 | +9.39 | ||||
| New Democratic | Alasdair M. Sinclair | 2,817 | 9.33 | -2.94 | ||||
| Social Credit | Brian Pitcairn | 140 | 0.46 | |||||
| Marxist–Leninist | Tony Seed | 75 | 0.25 | -0.13 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 30,179 | 100.00 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservativehold | Swing | -8.08 | ||||||
Changes for Marxist–Leninist candidate Tony Seed are based on his results in 1972, when he ran unaffiliated.
| 1972 Canadian federal election:Halifax | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Stanfield | 17,966 | 56.04 | -4.29 | ||||
| Liberal | Terry McGrath | 10,039 | 31.31 | -4.31 | ||||
| New Democratic | Marty Dolin | 3,936 | 12.28 | +8.23 | ||||
| Independent | Tony Seed | 121 | 0.38 | |||||
| Total valid votes | 32,062 | 100.00 | ||||||
| Turnout | 74.43 | |||||||
| Eligible voters | 43,078 | |||||||
| Progressive Conservativehold | Swing | +0.01 | ||||||
| 1968 Canadian federal election:Halifax | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Stanfield | 19,569 | 60.33 | +12.91 | ||||
| Liberal | M. Gregory Tompkins | 11,555 | 35.62 | -6.97 | ||||
| New Democratic | Gus Wedderburn | 1,314 | 4.05 | -5.42 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 32,438 | 100.00 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservativenotional hold | Swing | +9.94 | ||||||
^ Change compared to combined party vote totals from 1965
That particular backing [of theWar Measures Act] was Stanfield's only regret in a long political life. He later admitted that he wished he had joined his lone dissenting colleague, David MacDonald, who voted against thePublic Order Temporary Measures Act when it came before the House that November.
| Before Confederation (1848–1867) | |
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| Post-Confederation (1867–present) | |
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