33 Facts About Grant Devine

Donald Grant Devine was born on July 5,1944 and is a Canadian politician who served as the 11th premier of Saskatchewan from 1982 to 1991.

Grant Devine led the Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan from 1979 to 1992 and is one of only two leaders of that party to serve as premier, following James Anderson.

Grant Devine's tenure was marked by tax reductions, privatization of state-owned companies, increased financial support for farmers, and the quadrupling of the provincial debt.

Grant Devine's PCs were re-elected in 1986 but lost power in the 1991 election.

Grant Devine later sought a federal nomination with the Conservative Party, but his candidacy was declined by the party; he subsequently ran unsuccessfully as an Independent in the 2004 federal election.

When Grant Devine lost office in 1991, he was the fourth-longest serving premier in Saskatchewan history.

Grant Devine is noted for implementing neoliberal economic policy in Saskatchewan, shifting the province towards a market-based economic outlook and away from the economic planning that marked decades of Co-operative Commonwealth and New Democratic Party governance.

Grant Devine received a bachelor's degree in Agriculture from the University of Saskatchewan in 1967, a master's degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Alberta in 1970, and a PhD in Agricultural Economics from Ohio State University in 1976.

Grant Devine taught agricultural marketing and consumer economics at the University of Saskatchewan from 1976 to 1979.

In November 1979, Grant Devine was chosen as the new PC leader.

Grant Devine led the Progressive Conservatives in the 1982 election against the governing New Democratic Party, led by Premier Allan Blakeney, who had been in office since 1971.

Grant Devine's campaign was considered populist, and he worked to project what has been described as a "folksy, down-home image".

Grant Devine won the Estevan seat and became the second Progressive Conservative premier in Saskatchewan history, with the party forming government for the first time since James Anderson was premier from 1929 to 1934, and for the first time ever as a majority.

Grant Devine took office after more than a decade of NDP government marked by state-led economic development, particularly in the realm of natural resources, and an expansion of public services and healthcare.

Grant Devine's campaign made clear that his government would favour private over state-led investment.

Grant Devine's government honoured its pledge to eliminate the 20 percent gasoline tax and lowered interest rates.

Grant Devine opposed government ownership of land, and in 1982 his government abolished the Land Bank, which had been established by the NDP in 1974 and sought to aid the intergenerational transfer of farmland.

The Grant Devine government offered a universal, low-interest loan program to farmers that cost the province $1 billion.

In 1989, Grant Devine's government began to subsidize crop revenues by introducing the Net Income Stabilization Account and the Gross Revenue Insurance Program; this marked the start of the province directly supporting crop farm incomes.

Grant Devine's government introduced a three-year royalty holiday for new oil wells and cut royalties for existing ones.

In 1986, Grant Devine's government privatized SaskOil by taking the majority of the company public; its name was changed to Wascana Energy Inc and shares were made available on the public market.

Grant Devine's government cut funding for research and development in alternative energy, including closing the provincial Office of Energy Conservation in 1982.

Grant Devine banked significantly on pre-election spending, particularly on rural initiatives and farmers.

Crucially, just before the election, Grant Devine secured a $1 billion farming aid package from Ottawa.

The dire financial situation led Grant Devine to cancel several of its central commitments in 1990, including the home improvement program, its mortgage reduction program, and its gas tax rebate.

Grant Devine's government was criticized late in its second term for undemocratic legislative tactics, including proroguing the Legislature and financing expenditures through the dubious use of special warrants.

The legacy of Grant Devine's government was undoubtedly tarnished by the expense fraud scandal, which has been called "easily the biggest political scandal in Saskatchewan's history," and led to Grant Devine's PCs being labeled "one of the most corrupt governments in Canadian history".

However, the politics of the Grant Devine era have had a defining impact on the province.

In particular, observers have noted that the Grant Devine era marked an entrenchment of neoliberal economic policy in the province and a deepening divide between rural and urban issues and voters.

Grant Devine went on to finish second to Conservative Ed Komarnicki.

In 2009, Grant Devine was appointed to the Saskatchewan Order of Merit, an honour that was first introduced when he was serving as premier in 1985.

In 2017, a dam and reservoir near Alameda, Saskatchewan, originally called the Alameda Dam, was re-named after Grant Devine; Grant Devine had helped to create the project, which was opened in 1994.

In 2017, Grant Devine was appointed by the provincial government to the University of Saskatchewan's board of governors.