John Hart

Diplomacy works better than bluster, as John Hart knew well. Hart, an Irish immigrant with a talent for compromise and a famously winning smile, was at the heart of BC politics for much of the first half of the twentieth century. Drawing on government records, politicians' papers, and newspaper reports, John Hart illuminates his achievements as finance minister and premier. A businessman and Liberal, Hart managed British Columbia's finances during both world wars and the Depression. As premier during much of the Second World War, he led a coalition with the Conservatives that provided businesslike governance and established the persistent BC political theme of free enterprise versus socialism. This lively account helps fill a significant gap in the political and economic history of British Columbia.