Frank Lindsay Bastedo

Frank Lindsay Bastedo (1886-1973) was Lieutenant-Governor of Saskatchewan. He is notable for being one of the few Canadian vice-regal representatives to refuse to give royal assent to a legislative bill.

Bastedo earned his law degree from the University of Toronto in 1909. He moved to Regina two years later to join a law firm there. He was appointed King's Counsel in 1927.Bastedo, Frank Lindsay, [http://esask.uregina.ca/entry/bastedo_frank_lindsay_1886-1973.html Encyclopedia of Saskatachewan] ]

A Conservative by party, he headed Regina's Conservative Association from 1921 to 1924 but did not seek the party's nomination for elected office.

Bastedo was appointed lieutenant-governor on the advice of Progressive Conservative Prime Minister John Diefenbaker in 1958.

The lieutenant-governor, like the Governor-General of Canada is a largely ceremonial position, however, as the Queen's representative he does have rarely used reserve powers to veto legislation. Bastedo employed the little-used power to reserve a bill (that is, withhold assent and send the bill to the Governor General of Canada who would grant assent only if the federal Cabinet agrees) proposed by Saskatchewan's Co-operative Commonwealth Federation government of Woodrow Lloyd in 1961. [Brian Cole, "Ottawa's viceroy", "Winnipeg Free Press", November 18, 1996] This was the first time a lieutenant-governor had refused royal assent in Canada since 1937 when Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta John C. Bowen reserved three bills proposed by the Social Credit government of William Aberhart as unconstitutional.

The measure in question, Bill 56, was entitled "An Act to Provide for the Alteration of Certain Mineral Contracts". Bastedo issued a statement that "this is a very important bill affecting hundreds of mineral contracts. It raises implications which throw grave doubts of the legislation being in the public interest. There is grave doubts as to its validity."J.R. Mallory, "The Lieutenant-Governor's Discretionary Powers: The Reservation of Bill 56", The Canadian Journal of Economics and Political Science / Revue canadienne d'Economique et de Science politique, Vol. 27, No. 4 (Nov., 1961), pp. 518-522] Bastedo's constitutional advisors, however, did not share his assessment and advised him to grant royal assent.

Bastedo had not consulted with the federal government before taking action. The Diefenbaker government passed an order-in-council approving Bill 56.

The Bastedo incident is the last in Canada where a vice-regal representative refused royal assent.

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