Background
• Diefenbaker – first conservative prime
minister in 22 years in 1957 election
Minority government
• Leading in the polls + Liberals holding leadership
convention therefore..
 Diefenbaker called election in 1958
• Largest majority in Canadian history taking 208/265
seats
Social & Political Policies
• “unhyphenated Canadianism” – new vision of citizenship of
neither English-Canadian nor French-Canadian, simply
Canadian
• March 29, 1958- his first speech as PM to the House of
Commons:
“I am the first prime minister of this country of neither English or French
origin. So I am determined to bring about a Canadian
Citizenship that knew no hyphenated consideration.
I’m very happy to be able to say that in the
House of Commons today in my party we have
members of Italian, Dutch, German,
Scandinavian, Chinese and
Ukrainian origin– and they are all
Canadians.”
Social & Political Policies
• Canadian Bill of Rights (1960)
- Freedom of speech
- Freedom of religion
- The Right to life, liberty & security
- The right to enjoyment of property
- The right to counsel
• Pros: precursor to Canadian Charter of
Freedoms & Rights
• Criticisms: not a constitutional amendment,
govt overstepping boundaries, other federal
statutes
Social & Political Policies
• Gave First Nation’s right to vote in federal
election
• In 1867 Constitution, First Nation’s people
could vote if they gave up their treaty rights
and Native Status
• Hence this policy
meant they could vote
and keep their status
ECONOMIC POLICIES
• Advocated a “Northern dream” to open up
the north to development
• Promoted regional development
 building dams in Saskatchewan
 railroad expansion in the hinterlands
• Attended areas that the Liberals had
ignored or forgotten (notably Quebec)
• He offered voters a “made-in-Canada”
vision of the future which was a distinctive
shift in style from the ad hoc managerial
approach of the Liberals (done when
needed with no planning)
• Greatest achievements: granting the
franchise to the First Nation
ECONOMIC POLICIES..
Cont’d
- Diefenbaker was focus was on Latin
America because of many international
pressures (US and various Latin
American nations)
- Dief. saw this as an opportunity to expand Canadian economic and political
interests in the region
- Natural Resources Policy: “every encouragement must be given to the processing
of domestic raw materials in Canada to a much greater degree than exists today, in
order that our resources may be utilized to the maximum advantage of the
Canadian people.”
- National Energy Board: advise/recommends proposals regarding these resources,
so that they may be safeguarded from prejudicial and ill-timed action for the use of
Canadians in this and future generations.
Primary Document
“This national development policy will create a new sense of national purpose and
national destiny. One Canada. One Canada, wherein Canadians will have
preserved to them the control of their own economic and political destiny. Sir John
A. Macdonald gave his life to this party. He opened the West. He saw Canada from
East to West. I see a new Canada - a Canada of the North. What are these new
principles? What are our objectives? What do we propose? We propose to assist
the provinces, with their co-operation, in the financing and construction of jobcreating projects necessary for the new development, where such projects are
beyond the resources of the provinces. We will assist the provinces with their
cooperation in the conservation of the renewable natural resources. We will aid in
projects which are self-liquidating. We will aid in projects which, while not selfliquidating will lead to the development of the national resources for the opening
of Canada's northland. We will open that northland for development by improving
transportation and communication and by the development of power, by the
building of access roads. We will make an inventory of our hydroelectric potential.”
- "A New Vision" speech by John G. Diefenbaker at the Civic Auditorium, Winnipeg,
12 February 1958
Canada + United Kingdom
Canada + United Kingdom
Diefenbaker
loses credibility
in U.K
Eisenhower
+
Diefenbaker = STRONG
 they shared similar
views
Kennedy +
Diefenbaker = WEAK
• American officials
were unhappy with
Diefenbaker’s initial
election b/c of antiAmericanism talks
UNITED NATIONS – 1945
NATO – 1949
NORAD – 1957

56 missiles deployed in Ontario & Quebec

Found out they had to have nuclear warheads
attached to them  controversial

Missiles = useless
1959 Avro Arrow Project
• Under the Liberals, Canada
promised to create a military
defence jet called the Avro
Arrow
• faster + more advanced
**designed for the purpose of
defeating the threat of Soviet
bombers
•Costs for this project were
tremendous
•1959, Diefenbaker
government cancelled the
development of the Avro
Arrow




Conclusion
Successes
•
•
•
•
•
Cut taxes
Helped farmers
Raised senior pensions
Excellent speaker
Promoted bright futures +
jobs
• Secured rights to all
(Canadian Bill of Rights,
1960)
Failures
• Unemployment
• Poor relations with Britain +
United States
• Devalued dollar
• Cancellation of Avro Arrow
• Minority government
 Although he worked hard to issue better conditions in Canada,
he only failed because his vision was much larger than his ability!
Works Cited
• https://www.historica-dominion.ca/content/heritageminutes/avro-arrow?media_type=41&
• http://www.prime-ministers.ca/diefenbaker/bio_2.php
• http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/joh
n-diefenbaker
• http://www3.sympatico.ca/goweezer/canada/diefenba
ker.htm
• http://faceintheblue.wordpress.com/2010/05/13/diefe
nbaker/
• http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01e.php?id_nbr=7990