Report From The Legislature

10 May 2012

In the Constituency of Moosomin, the college provides education through the Adult Basic Education program and supports the Licensed Practical Nursing and Continuing Care Aide programs. The college also worked together with Tourism Saskatchewan and Cowessess First Nation to offer the Ready to Work program. This program enables young men and women to learn what it takes to work in the hospitality industry. This past year the college stepped up to the plate to offer the English Assisted Learning class, enabling new comers to our province the ability to upgrade their English.

I want to extend my thanks to the college and their staff for every thing they do to assist men and women in achieving their goals of becoming participants in our growing economy.

The good economic news for Saskatchewan just keeps rolling in. A new report from BMO Economics indicates our province’s economy will grow by 2.9 per cent this year, second only to Alberta. The report goes on to state, “Saskatchewan’s economy remains among the top performers in Canada, boosted by a strong resource sector.” Our abundant natural resources – potash, oil, uranium- have played a significant role in our province’s transformation from “have not” to “have” status. That transformation is part of the Saskatchewan Advantage.

Not only is Saskatchewan expected to be one of the growth leaders in Canada this year, with the fastest growing GPD in almost 15 years, a record-high population, record-low unemployment and some of the highest weekly earnings in Canada, we are also unique in that we have the only balanced provincial budget in the country. One of the reasons that the budget is balanced is due to the strength of our resource sector.

In a recent interview, federal NDP leader, Thomas Mulcair suggested a strong natural resource sector was bad for Canada because it threatened manufacturing jobs in Quebec and Ontario. These comments threaten the economic strength of Saskatchewan which in turn threatens the sustainable spending our government has been able to commit to on programs and services important to you and your family; scholarships for high school students, tax breaks for first time homebuyers, lowering surgical wait times, increased access to cancer treatment and more support for seniors and people with disabilities.

We don’t need this type of economic prescription for Saskatchewan and Canada from the federal NDP leader. A strong resource sector is good for the entire country. It’s good for the Saskatchewan Advantage. We will continue to take action to protect the advantages that make our province the best place in Canada to live, work and raise a family.

If you have a question about this Legislative Report or any other matter, just Contact Don.