39 Facts About Allan Blakeney

Originally from Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, Blakeney moved to Regina, Saskatchewan, and worked in the province's civil service before running for office with the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation under Tommy Douglas.

Allan Blakeney became leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party in 1970.

Allan Blakeney's NDP reformed labour legislation and introduced the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission.

Allan Blakeney was a key figure in the negotiations surrounding Patriation of the Canadian Constitution in the early 1980s, and in the development of the Constitution's Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Allan Blakeney was born in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia on September 7,1925.

Allan Blakeney attended Dalhousie University in Halifax and earned a degree in history and political science, followed by a law degree from Dalhousie Law School, winning a gold medal.

Allan Blakeney was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and attended Queen's College, Oxford, where he played for the Oxford University Ice Hockey Club, making an appearance at the 1948 Spengler Cup tournament.

Allan Blakeney was attracted to the province due to the innovation of Tommy Douglas' CCF administration, which in 1944 had become the first social democratic government elected in North America.

Allan Blakeney later stated that he initially intended to stay in Saskatchewan for only a couple of years, explaining that "Saskatchewan was the end of the Earth to me in 1950".

Allan Blakeney married his second wife, Anne, in 1959, and the couple would raise four children altogether.

Allan Blakeney first ran as a CCF candidate in the 1960 election at a time when electoral districts elected multiple members for the Legislative Assembly.

In 1969, Allan Blakeney was elected national president of the federal NDP, succeeding James Renwick.

Allan Blakeney held the position until 1971, when he was succeeded by Donald MacDonald.

Allan Blakeney decided to run in the 1970 leadership election to succeed Lloyd.

Allan Blakeney was joined in the race by young lawyer Roy Romanow, who had joined the caucus in 1967; Waffle candidate Don Mitchell; and labour candidate George Taylor.

Allan Blakeney's motivation was principally to continue the legacy of the CCF in building and maintaining the welfare state.

However, once he became leader, a priority for Allan Blakeney was uniting the party and he would prove open to some of the movement's proposals.

Allan Blakeney believed in evidence-based policy and relied heavily on the professional civil service and delegation to cabinet ministers.

Allan Blakeney introduced programs to stabilize crop prices, retain transportation links, and modernize rural life.

Allan Blakeney's government was resource nationalist, and he saw mineral resource development as a key to achieving the government's goals.

The advent of the Energy Crisis in the 1970s, which resulted in a rapid rise in energy commodity prices, made resource development a priority, and Allan Blakeney relied on a state-led model of development.

Above all, Allan Blakeney believed that the primary beneficiaries of resource development in the province needed to be its citizens rather than the corporate sector.

However, the Allan Blakeney government created a Department of the Environment, introduced environmental assessment standards, and held a number of public inquiries into resource projects.

One priority was ensuring the recognition of provincial rights over natural resources in the Constitution; to this end, Allan Blakeney worked closely with Alberta premier Peter Lougheed to negotiate those rights, which were ultimately enshrined in Section 92A of the Constitution.

Allan Blakeney was instrumental in the development of Section 33 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which enshrined the notwithstanding clause and thus preserved a preeminent role in legislation for elected governments over appointed courts.

Allan Blakeney sought a fourth consecutive term in the 1982 provincial election.

Allan Blakeney led the party into the 1986 provincial election, and particularly after a string of deficit budgets from the PCs, reversing the 1982 result appeared possible.

Allan Blakeney then accepted the inaugural Law Foundation Chair at the University of Saskatchewan School of Law in Saskatoon, and remained a visiting scholar there.

Allan Blakeney served as a consultant to the Romanow government in the 1990s, and served on a number of boards, including the board of Cameco, a uranium company formed by the merger of the former Saskatchewan Mining Development Corporation and the former federal Eldorado crown corporation.

Allan Blakeney was a past president of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.

The project mainly entailed discussions ahead of the 1994 national elections, and Allan Blakeney helped to advise on the nuances of federal political systems.

Allan Blakeney co-authored Political Management in Canada with Sandford Borins, with whom he worked at Osgoode Hall.

Allan Blakeney died on April 16,2011, at his home in Saskatoon of complications from cancer.

Allan Blakeney received honorary degrees from the University of Saskatchewan, the University of Regina, York University, Mount Allison University, and Western University.

Allan Blakeney was closely involved in Saskatchewan government and politics from the 1950s into the 1990s, actually sitting in government for nearly the entirety of the 1960s through the 1980s.

Beyond Saskatchewan, Allan Blakeney's legacy has been widely acknowledged, especially in health care and constitutional matters.

Allan Blakeney was critical in negotiations leading to Patriation of the Canadian Constitution in 1982.

Allan Blakeney's legacy is noted especially in Sections 35 and 92a, as well as Section 33 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

In essence, Allan Blakeney asserted that certain rights should not be given precedence over others because they were included in the Charter.