Report from the Legislature – May 31, 2018

The spring sitting of the legislature focused on the priorities of Saskatchewan people as we face important issues.

The fight against the federal carbon tax continues with the Government of Saskatchewan launching a constitutional reference case in the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal challenging the Government of Canada’s ability to impose a carbon tax on the province.

The Government of Saskatchewan also continued to advocate for the construction of the federally-approved Trans Mountain pipeline.

During this session, we also introduced and passed a budget that keeps our government on track to a return to balance next year, while still investing in the priorities of the people of Saskatchewan.

The government passed 60 pieces of legislation during the spring sitting, including:

• Protecting the right to school choice by invoking the notwithstanding clause of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and legislation to provide certainty to parents and students that government can continue funding students who attend Catholic separate schools regardless of their religious affiliation;
• The framework to allow the federal government’s legalization of cannabis;
• Amendments to The Privacy Act for greater protection against the unauthorized electronic distribution of intimate images;
• Legislation to make consequences more severe for drivers who are impaired and who transport children;
• Legislation to allow the establishment of ride sharing services in Saskatchewan communities;
• Creation of an interpersonal violence leave of 10 unpaid days;
• Creation of a new provincial park in the Porcupine Hills area;
• Value-added agriculture incentives to improve investment attraction; and
• Updating animal protection enforcement.

The spring session was Premier Scott Moe’s first as Saskatchewan’s new Premier. This was also the first session for the new Leader of the Opposition.

The spring sitting was a time for renewal.

On that very first day, the new NDP Leader stood in his place and stated that he wanted to “do politics differently”. However, after 42 sitting days, it is clear that “doing politics differently” looks a lot like the same old NDP.

The Opposition failed to tell Saskatchewan people how they would create jobs and grow our economy. In fact, the only plan put forward was the Leader’s platform which proposes $2.5 billion a year in new spending with absolutely no plan to pay for it.

Through the spring sitting, the Opposition continued to support the Justin Trudeau carbon tax being imposed on families and businesses in our province, and their leader even called our fight against the carbon tax “a pointless crusade”.

The spring sitting was a good session for our government and the people of Saskatchewan. We now turn our full attention back to our constituencies to continue listening and standing up for the people we represent.