Budget on the brains of lawmakers as legislature’s spring session gets underway

When asked about the spring session ahead of time, the first and only thing Premier Scott Moe wanted to talk about was the upcoming budget.

It’s the final legislative session and final budget before the scheduled fall election, so it’s likely to be heavy on good news for voters.

“It will most certainly be the highlight of the session,” said Moe.

He said the budget will grow on the strengths of Saskatchewan and have investments in things like schools, hospitals and highways.

“You are going to see one of the largest investments in, not only infrastructure in this province, one of the largest investments in the history of the province, but you are going to see further initiatives to encourage that pipeline infrastructure come into this province,” explained Moe.

He said the budget will also feature partnerships with municipal governments, investments in things families expect and will strengthen partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs). In December, CBOs went to the legislature to ask the government to give them more stability and commit to multi-year funding partnerships.

Moe said he’s looking forward to the budget, and that it will display Saskatchewan’s strength.

“It is going to be a strong budget, it’s going to be a budget that the people of this province, I feel, will be very proud of.”

NDP ready to go

The NDP team is ready to debate a number of issues it believes voters are concerned about.

“We’re hearing so many people concerned about what’s happening in healthcare, not enough spaces for people, you’ve got emergency wait times extending all the time. People getting their care in hallways instead of in patient rooms where they should be. We’ve got a crisis in our classrooms. The teachers are now voting to potentially go on strike because our classrooms are too crowded and too complex. We need to push on those issues,” NDP leader Ryan Meili told reporters Friday.

“You are also going to see us concentrating on what’s happening with the economy. It’s just becoming clearer and clearer every day just how much of a slowdown we are in Saskatchewan and just how little responsibility the Sask. Party is willing to take for that.”

Meili also believes that there is beginning to be a trust factor with the government after 13 years in power. He pointed to the auditor’s report on the Brandt project in Wascana Park in Regina, saying the Sask. Party only cares about “donors and friends and not what the people want or what’s best for the province.”

The budget will also be a key day for the NDP as it looks to counter what is expected to be a return to balance after a number of austerity measures were taken by the government over the last few years, including an increase and expansion to the PST.

“The fact is this budget doesn’t mean a whole lot because this is the last budget before an election. We are going to see the Sask. Party play nice. The budget that really matters is the 2021 budget, and if this government is elected again, we need to look at what’s happening in Alberta, what’s happening in Ontario, because that’s exactly what’s going to happen here. We will see deep cuts in health and education, a government that continues to go to war with working people and that’s why they can’t be given the chance to bring another budget forward in 2012,” he said.

As this will be the last time in the session for the NDP to make its pitch to voters, Meili said to expect to hear some new ideas.

“We released our plans to build a new parkade for the hospital in Regina for safety issues, we are going to be addressing the parking issues in Saskatoon. You are going to be seeing us talk about our investments in education and our plans to end hallway medicine and to revive the Saskatchewan economy.”

The NDP has only half the candidates nominated as the Sask Party. does, but Meili maintained his team would be ready with a full slate of 61 nominated people if a snap election were to happen.

The legislative session will run until the middle of May.

— With files from 980 CJME’s Lisa Schick and Sarah Mills