James Elliott Coyne, OM (July 17, 1910 – October 12, 2012) was the second Governor of the Bank of Canada, from 1955 to 1961, succeeding Graham Towers. During his time in office, he had a much-publicized debate with Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, a debate often referred to as the "Coyne Affair" (or sometimes the "Coyne Crisis"), which led to his resignation and, eventually, to greater central-bank independence in Canada.
From 1944 to 1949, Coyne was executive assistant to Graham Towers at the Bank of Canada and from 1950 until 1954 was Deputy Governor. He was appointed Governor in 1955,[4] resigned in 1961,[5] and was succeeded by Louis Rasminsky.
He was the father of journalist Andrew Coyne and actress and playwright Susan Coyne, and stepfather of Sanford Riley, Patrick Riley and Nancy Riley.[6] He was also an uncle of constitutional lawyer Deborah Coyne.
As Governor, Coyne heavily criticized the government's fiscal policies, which saw the Diefenbaker government spend and borrow heavily in an effort to stimulate growth amid a flagging economy. Government officials urged Coyne to lower interest rates and create economic activity. Coyne disagreed, arguing that loose money policies were creating a debt crisis and that Canada was relying too much on capital exports and loans from the United States, and thus a tightening was needed instead. In speeches and brochures, he criticized the government's expansionary policies. The government took the position that an elected government, especially one elected with a large mandate, should direct monetary policy.[7]
Matters came to a head when Coyne raised his own pension to $25,000, which Diefenbaker deemed excessive when he himself had no entitlement to one. The PC majority in the House of Commons passed a bill declaring his position vacant, but the Liberal-controlled Senate rejected it. Nevertheless, Coyne resigned the next day.[8] For his role in this controversy, the Canadian Press named him Canadian Newsmaker of the Year in 1961.