Under the leadership of Tommy Douglas and Woodrow Lloyd , the party governed for the next twenty years and established Saskatchewan’s reputation for innovation, balancing sound fiscal policy with enlightened social policy. Crown corporations were used to extend basic utilities, including telephone, power and natural gas throughout the province. The educational system was overhauled and the transportation network expanded. Saskatchewan people were encouraged to take greater economic control over their lives through the expansion of Co-operatives and Credit Unions and perhaps most importantly, Canada’s first Medicare system was established.
V.
Liberalism (from the Latin liberalis, "of freedom"[1]) is the belief in the importance of liberty and equality.[2][3] Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but most liberals support such fundamental ideas as constitutions, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights, free trade, secularism, and the market economy. These ideas are often accepted even among political groups that do not openly profess a liberal ideological orientation. Liberalism encompasses several intellectual trends and traditions, but the dominant variants are classical liberalism, which became popular in the 18th century, and social liberalism, which became popular in the 20th century.