Onésime Gagnon (1888-1961) is a Canadian politician. Former lieutenant-governor of the province of Quebec, he was minister in the cabinet of Maurice Duplessis.

Origins

Born with Saint-Leon-with-Standon the October 23rd 1888, he is the son of the merchant Onésime Gagnon and Julie Morin. He initially studies with the Collège Holy-Anne-of it Pocatière then made his right to the Université Laval where he meets Maurice Duplessis with which he develops a friendship which will last all its life.

Admitted with the Bar of Quebec the July 8th 1912 (he had before studied two years at the university of Oxford in England), he works initially with the law firm Fitzpatrick, Dupre and Parent . Later, it is associated with Edgar Champoux, André Gagnon and Claude Gagnon, and practical with Quebec. Created council in law of the king the November 26th 1924, he becomes barristers president of the Barreau of Quebec starting from 1937.

Beginnings in policy

Onésime Gagnon is initially attracted by the federal policy. He is conservative candidate in the county of and gains the victory at the time of the general election of 1930. In 1933, Camillien Houde, which has just resigned as chief of the Conservative party of Quebec, requires of him to be presented to succeed and make thus obstacle with Maurice Duplessis to him, whom he shows to have intrigued against him like to have évincé it. After having obtained the downstream of Richard Bennett, Canadian the Prime Minister, it accepts.

Vis-a-vis the nationalist position of Duplessis, Gagnon presents a position which agrees more with that of the federal Conservative party. In October, it is beaten all the same at the time of the congress to the nomination, held with Sherbrooke. It obtained 214 votes against 331 for Duplessis.

Gagnon, which did not give up its county of Dorchester, continuous to sit at Ottawa. In August 1935, Richard Bennett names it Minister without portfolio but for little time because it is beaten at the time of the federal election of the September 14th according to. He then prefers to return to Quebec where, reconciled with Duplessis, he decides to try his chance with the provincial one.

Provincial policy

With the autumn 1935, Duplessis trusts sufficiently Onésime Gagnon to name it at the committee charged to negotiate the union between the Conservative party and the national liberal Action of Paul Gouin. The fusion of the two parties, succeeded, takes the name of National union.

To the general election of August 17th, 1936, it is presented in the county of Matane where it is easily elected. Become Prime Minister, Duplessis names it with the head of the ministry for the Mines, of Hunting and the Fisheries, one of most important of the time. Consequently, Gagnon is of a fidelity without fault with its chief and acts like a brilliance second. In 1939, the National union loses the capacity, but Gagnon manages to keep its district. During the years when one is in the opposition, Gagnon is one of the unionistic deputies most influential In 1941, Duplessis falls ill and it is him which acts a little chief of the opposition and chief by interim.

This fidelity finishes by him being paying. In 1944, when the National union returns to the capacity, Duplessis names it at the post of provincial treasurer (Minister for Finance).

Minister for Finance

Before 1944, the provincial treasury (which will become the ministry for Finances in 1951) was usually given to an english-speaking. Very few French-speaking people had held the station and, when they obtained it, it was for little time. There had been François Langelier in 1879 and Auguste Tessier in 1906. Of 1897 with 1900, Felix-Gabriel Marchand had cumulated the station with that of Prime Minister. The French-speaking person who had held it longest had been Jacob Nicol in the government of Louis-Alexandre Taschereau but its Protestant religion and its English accent left perplexed certain Inhabitants of Quebec of the time. For them, Onésime Gagnon is the first true provincial treasurer of French-speaking origin and, consequently, the practice to allot this ministry to an english-speaking became obsolete.

The mandate of Gagnon to the ministry for Finances (1944 - 1958) corresponds at the time of the great fights of the provinces with the federal one to obtain better tax agreements. During the war, Ottawa had obtained provinces the capacity of direct taxation that the Act of North America had allotted to them. After 1945, the federal government refuses to restore it to them and prefers to negotiate with them tax agreements granting certain subsidies to them.

The government Duplessis tries to repatriate the rights of taxation lost by requiring federal respect of the provincial Autonomie and Constitution of 1867. At the end of the Years 1940, Onésime Gagnon is in the middle of the federal-provincial negotiations on the granting of federal subsidies. The January 14th 1954, it deposits with the legislative Assemblée the most important bill of its mandate, creating the provincial tax. The law is retroactive at January 1st. She is voted in spite of the liberal opposition which decided to vote against but which will end later up joining there.

The budget policy, it, remains preserving and has, like main objective, tax balance between the expenditure and the incomes. The expenditure gouverementales must be visible , such constructions of hospital, roads, schools, bridges, etc the taxes and the wages must remain low, no great public economic program being considered. Only those financed by the private one, the mining developments on the Coast-North by the Iron Ore , are regarded as drinkable.

The budget of the government increases appreciably during the mandate of Onésime Gagnon. It passes from $107,571,000 in 1945 to $434,287,000 in 1956.

Parallel to its political career, Gagnon launches out in the university education. Of 1942 with 1944, he had been professor in right to the Université Laval. Of 1944 with 1958, he is full professor in right like part-time lecturer in social sciences to the same university. Of 1951 with 1961, he is also member of the board of directors of the Laval university.

End of a career

Onésime Gagnon resigns as minister and deputy of Matane the January 24th 1958. At the request of Duplessis, Canadian the Prime Minister Diefenbaker, names it at the post of lieutenant-governor of the province the February 14th of the same year.

A few months later, its career is tarnished by the Scandale of the natural gas in which it is implied. The Duplessis government had decided privatiser the Corporation of natural gas of Quebec and certain ministers, whose Gagnon, bought actions before the operation is not made public.

Although its reputation was sullied, it keeps its post of lieutenant-governor all the same and attends the beginnings of the Quiet revolution. He dies in function with Quebec the September 30th 1961. The town of Gagnon is named in its honor.

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