Roy Romanow facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Honourable Roy Romanow PC OC SOM KC
Romanow in 2015, at the University of Ottawa
12th Premier of Saskatchewan
In office November 1, 1991 – February 8, 2001
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Lieutenant Governor	Sylvia FedorukJack WiebeLynda Haverstock
Preceded by	Grant Devine
Succeeded by	Lorne Calvert
Chair of the Royal Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada
In office April 2001 – November 2002
Prime Minister	Jean Chrétien
Saskatchewan Leader of the Opposition
In office November 7, 1987 – November 1, 1991
Preceded by	Allan Blakeney
Succeeded by	Grant Devine
3rd Leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party
In office November 7, 1987 – January 27, 2001
Preceded by	Allan Blakeney
Succeeded by	Lorne Calvert
Deputy Premier of Saskatchewan
In office June 30, 1971 – May 8, 1982
Premier	Allan Blakeney
Succeeded by	Eric Berntson
Saskatchewan Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
In office June 19, 1979 – May 8, 1982
Premier	Allan Blakeney
Preceded by	new office
Succeeded by	John Gary Lane
Attorney General of Saskatchewan
In office June 30, 1971 – May 8, 1982
Premier	Allan Blakeney
Preceded by	Darrel Verner Heald
Succeeded by	John Gary Lane
Provincial Secretary of Saskatchewan
In office June 30, 1971 – May 12, 1972
Premier	Allan Blakeney
Preceded by	Darrel Verner Heald
Succeeded by	Edwin Tchorzewski
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
In office October 11, 1967 – April 26, 1982
Preceded by	New Riding
Succeeded by	Jo-Ann Zazelenchuk
Constituency	Saskatoon Riversdale
In office October 20, 1986 – February 8, 2001
Preceded by	Jo-Ann Zazelenchuk
Succeeded by	Lorne Calvert
Constituency	Saskatoon Riversdale
Personal details
Born	Roy John Romanow (1939-08-12) August 12, 1939 (age 85) Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Political party	New Democratic Party
Alma mater	University of Saskatchewan
Profession	Lawyer

Roy John Romanow (born August 12, 1939) is a Canadian politician. He was the 12th premier of Saskatchewan from 1991 to 2001. He also led the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party from 1987 until 2001. Romanow served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Saskatoon Riversdale. He held this role from 1967 to 1982 and again from 1986 to 2001.

Romanow played a big part in Allan Blakeney's NDP government from 1971 to 1982. He was especially important in talks about bringing the Canadian Constitution home to Canada. He became the Leader of the Opposition in 1987. After that, he led the NDP to win three elections in the 1990s. His time as premier had a mixed impact on Saskatchewan's politics. When Romanow first became premier, Saskatchewan was almost bankrupt. His smart money management helped the province balance its books by the mid-1990s. However, his approach to politics, which involved some spending cuts, made some people in his party unhappy. Also, many felt his cuts affected rural areas more. This made the gap between city and country issues wider in the province.

Early Life and Education

Roy Romanow was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, in 1939. His parents, Tekla and Michael Romanow, were immigrants from Ukraine. Ukrainian was his first language.

He went to the University of Saskatchewan. He earned degrees in Political science in 1960 and Law in 1964. He was very active in student politics and was president of the Students' Representative Council for a year. After university, Romanow became a lawyer. He married Eleanore Boykowich in 1967.

Early Political Career (1967–1982)

Becoming an MLA and Party Leader Bid

Romanow was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan in 1967. He represented the Saskatoon Riversdale area. The election was won by Ross Thatcher's Liberals. In 1970, when Woodrow Lloyd stepped down as party leader, Romanow ran to replace him. He was seen as the most moderate of the four candidates. In the end, it came down to Romanow and Allan Blakeney. Blakeney won the leadership vote.

Working in the Blakeney Government

Romanow was re-elected in 1971. This election led to Allan Blakeney and the NDP forming a majority government. Blakeney immediately gave Romanow important jobs in his government. Romanow served as Attorney General and Deputy Premier for all of Blakeney's time as premier, from 1971 to 1982. This meant Romanow was involved in many big changes. These included the government taking control of the potash industry. He also helped in disagreements with the federal government over resource rights and taxes.

A key moment was during the 1981 talks about bringing the Canadian Constitution home. Romanow, along with federal Minister of Justice Jean Chrétien and others, worked out the final details. This led to the "Kitchen Accord." Romanow strongly believed that the new Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms should not protect private property. His view was accepted, and no such protections were included.

After three wins in a row, Blakeney's NDP lost power in the 1982 election. Grant Devine's Progressive Conservatives won by a surprise. Romanow himself lost his seat in Saskatoon Centre by a very small number of votes.

Later Political Career (1986–2001)

Returning to Politics and Leading the Opposition

Romanow ran again for his old seat in the 1986 election. He won with a large majority. The NDP did well overall in 1986, but Devine's PCs still formed a second majority government. This led Allan Blakeney to resign as party leader. Romanow ran to take his place and became the new NDP leader without anyone else running against him. He became the Leader of the Opposition on November 7, 1987.

During the PCs' second term, it became clear that the province's money situation was very bad. The PCs had spent much more money than they took in, leading to a huge debt. Devine's government tried to sell off many government-owned companies, like PotashCorp. This was something the NDP strongly opposed. In 1989, when the government tried to sell SaskEnergy, Romanow led the Opposition in a walk-out from the Legislature. This stopped government business for 17 days. The government eventually gave in and stopped the sale of SaskEnergy.

When they tried to sell PotashCorp later that year, the PCs used a special rule to stop debate. This meant the law passed without public discussion. The PCs were often criticized for using unfair tactics.

Devine's PCs were not popular, so they waited as long as possible to call the next election. When the election finally happened in 1991, Romanow led the NDP to a big win. They won 55 out of 66 seats, and Romanow became the Premier.

Premier of Saskatchewan (1991–2001)

When Romanow became premier in 1991, the province's money problems were very serious. The provincial debt was nearly $15 billion, and Saskatchewan was close to going bankrupt. Interest payments on the debt alone took up more than 20% of the government's spending. Romanow had promised to fix the province's money issues, and this became his government's main goal.

Economic Policy and Tough Choices

Romanow said he was following the lead of past NDP premiers like Tommy Douglas and Allan Blakeney. They had also managed money carefully and aimed for balanced budgets. However, to fix the crisis, Romanow and his finance minister, Janice MacKinnon, made tough choices. They cut government spending by making the government smaller and reducing services. They said they had to do this because of pressure from lenders and a lack of help from the federal government.

Some of the most debated cuts included changing provincial health care. They replaced over a hundred hospital boards with about thirty health regions. They also stopped acute care in more than fifty rural hospitals. Another cut was ending a program that supported farm incomes. Many felt these cuts hurt rural areas the most. Romanow's government even used some of the same tactics as the PCs to pass these health care changes. These cuts were very unpopular in rural Saskatchewan. However, these actions did lead to a balanced budget by 1995, which was sooner than expected. After 1995, Romanow's government had extra money and reduced the debt.

Re-elections and Stepping Down

Romanow led the NDP to win another majority government in the 1995 election. The PCs lost many seats because of a big expense fraud scandal from their last term. The Liberals became the official Opposition. However, the NDP's strong position and growing unhappiness in rural areas led to a new political party forming. In 1997, some PC and Liberal MLAs from rural areas left their parties. They formed the Saskatchewan Party. This new party immediately became the Opposition. Romanow called them the "Saskatories," saying they were just the old PCs with a new name.

Many expected the NDP to win another majority in the 1999 election. The party did win a third term, but they only won a minority of seats. This meant Romanow had to work with the Liberals to form a coalition government. Three Liberals were given jobs in the Cabinet. This happened because the Saskatchewan Party did very well in rural areas, even winning more total votes than the NDP. The Saskatchewan Party won 25 seats, but none in Regina or Saskatoon. The Saskatchewan Party used the rural unhappiness to their advantage. They said the NDP's spending cuts were "rural revenge." This showed how much the divide between city and country voters had grown.

In 2000, less than a year after the election, Romanow announced he would retire once a new leader was chosen. This led to a leadership race with many candidates. In 2001, Lorne Calvert was chosen as the new leader and became premier. Calvert had promised to focus on the party's traditional values and increase social spending. After Romanow left, Calvert also took over his seat as MLA for Saskatoon Riversdale.

Life After Politics

Working at the Federal Level

The federal Liberal Party asked Romanow to join them, but he said no. He felt it would be wrong to his own party, the NDP. Instead, he asked to lead a Royal commission on the future of health care. Romanow got his wish. In April 2001, he was appointed to lead the Royal Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada.

The "Romanow Report" was released in 2002. It suggested ways to make the health care system better. The report strongly recommended protecting and strengthening Canada's public health care system. It asked for more money from the federal government and a "Health Charter." This charter would outline basic health care rules. The report has continued to be important in health care discussions for many years.

In 2003, Romanow became a member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada. This is a special group of advisors to the Queen (and now King) in Canada.

Academic Roles and Awards

After leaving politics, Romanow became a senior policy fellow at the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Regina. He also worked as a visiting fellow at Queen's University. In 2016, he was named Chancellor of the University of Saskatchewan. He held this role until 2019, and then continued as a policy fellow.

Romanow has received several honors. In 2003, he was given the Saskatchewan Order of Merit. In 2004, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. His official portrait was shown at Saskatchewan's Legislative Assembly in 2005. He also received a special medal for the 100th anniversary of Saskatchewan.

Roy Romanow's Legacy

Romanow's time as premier had a mixed impact. His government took over when the province was in a very bad financial state. Many people credit his actions with getting Saskatchewan's money back in order. However, there is debate about how quickly his government fixed the problem. Also, the spending cuts he made are still discussed.

Some critics from the left wing of the NDP said Romanow moved the party too far to the right. They felt he went against the NDP's traditional values. Others agree that Romanow was more careful with money than a typical NDP leader. But they also say he cared about social needs. One person who worked with him said Romanow had a "conservative approach to politics, tempered by a genuine concern for social needs." Some historians and political experts argue that Romanow had fewer choices because of the global economy at the time. They believe strong actions were needed to deal with the crisis.

Romanow's approach helped make certain economic ideas more common in the province. Even the new Saskatchewan Party found little to criticize about the NDP's economic policy. They focused more on the NDP's "management style." Another lasting impact of Romanow's time was the stronger divide between rural and urban areas in Saskatchewan. This divide had grown under the previous government. Romanow's spending cuts, which seemed to affect rural areas more, made this split even deeper. This made the NDP much less popular in those areas.

Electoral History

Constituency elections

See also

• List of premiers of Saskatchewan