A financial history of Manitoba from 1950-1965

Abstract

The financial history of Manitoba from 1950 to 1965 is a study of two almost diametrically opposed approaches to the role and responsibility of government in society, and to the procedures and policies in government finance which each approach implies and necessitates. The historical background to this study traces the terms and conditions of the British North America Act under which the fledgling province of Manitoba entered Confederation in 1870. In following the financial history of the province to 1950, emphasis is placed on the fiscal arrangements between the federal government and the province, and the changing pattern of governmental responsibilities which emerged during these years of economic growth. In particular, the significance of the great depression of the 1930s, and its impact on the economy of Manitoba, is stressed, for it is this single historical event perhaps more than anything else that shaped the course of public finance in Manitoba after 1950. No attempt is made in this study to assess the pros and cons of the federal system per se in Canada. This is accepted as a political and economic reality in the Canadian scene...