75-Minute Debate (23 April 2026)

From Hansard (23 April 2026)

To view this section on video, click here and start play at 11:45:30 AM.

Actions to Provide Cost-of-Living Relief

The Assembly was debating the following motion moved by Darcy Warrington (NDP - Saskatoon Stonebridge):

That the Assembly calls upon the government to take immediate action to provide cost-of-living relief to lower food costs for Saskatchewan people by temporarily cutting the fuel tax on gasoline and diesel, by banning unfair AI pricing by retailers, by removing barriers that restrict competition between grocery store operators, and taking the PST off of food.

Blaine McLeod: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It really is a privilege to stand and speak in the House. And I wish I had more time because there’s not going to be enough time to speak to every point that I want to focus on on what I see is the difference between our approach to affordability and members opposite.

What comes to mind in terms of what I saw in the motion is the overuse of the word “immediate” or “immediately.” It may be the most overused word in this legislature. When I think of immediately, decisions that need to be made immediately, I think of getting out of the danger zone of a cow that’s just had her calf. You’ve got to be careful on that one and an immediate decision is required. Using the word “immediate” in terms of developing policy implies that by just simply snapping our fingers, we can change the long-term outlook.

The 2024 general election was largely focused on the issue of affordability, and rightly so. Times are tough. That’s acknowledged. But the people of Saskatchewan said, we like your approach. And they also asked us to do better, and we have responded with permanent, well-thought-out initiatives, not immediate temporary relief that doesn’t last.

Policies that foster economic growth while maintaining strong financial management so we have the ability to continue to protect our citizens from the uncertainty that exists today, that’s what we’re focused on: uncertainty that changes ever so rapidly. And, Mr. Speaker, our economic policies are working. While the rest of Canada is trying to maintain and save what they have, we are showing great growth and expansion.

Now continuing on the topic of affordability, we’ve done taxation changes in our budget which provide more than 200 million in savings this year. We have among the lowest provincial income taxes in the country. As was already said, a family of four pays $4,500 less in personal income tax than under the members opposite when they were in power.

That family of four pays no provincial income tax on their first 65,000 of combined income. That is the highest tax-free threshold in Canada, something that we need to be proud of. And what was the tax-free threshold under members opposite? 26,150. Now that’s, Mr. Speaker, a permanent measure of affordability, not temporary and not an immediate initiative. It’s well planned and permanently in place and indexed to inflation.

Indexation needs to be unwrapped just a little bit. While NDP governments in BC [British Columbia] and Manitoba have quietly cancelled indexation, let’s talk about the impact indexation has in our province. This year alone, for 2026 taxes, indexation will save taxpayers $42 million. The combined effect of indexation from 2007 through 2026 is a savings of a total of almost $500 million — 489 million in 2026.

On top of that, the personal, spousal, equivalent-to-spouse, and child tax exemptions, as well as seniors’ supplement, will increase by $500 each again this year. And the Saskatchewan low-income tax credit will be increased by another 5 per cent over and above annual indexation. That’s important, Mr. Speaker. That’s affordability relief for everyone in Saskatchewan.

Now, Mr. Speaker, the very best answer to affordability is a good full-time job. It is a fact that Saskatchewan has the strongest rate of full-time job growth along with the lowest unemployment rate in Canada. It appears to me and to those that watch and report on these things — i.e. the bond rating facilities — that Saskatchewan is headed in the right direction regarding our gross domestic product. Sixty-two billion in investments this year means that many more good-paying jobs will continue to come.

So another aspect of the motion set before us today is talking about taking the PST off food. And I really focus on that word “food.” It’s a very curious change in language. It used to be “take the PST off all groceries” coming from the other side. Maybe our repetition of saying there is no PST on groceries, that is finally making headway on the other side. Mr. Speaker, groceries are what you turn into food. There is no PST on groceries. You change the words, Mr. Speaker, and you get the same result. There is no PST on groceries.

Let’s talk about taking the fuel tax off on gasoline and diesel again immediately. And the word “temporary,” interesting to say the least. Daily we have visitors in the House who watch and form their own opinions, which sometimes they do share with us. Yesterday the question came to me, do they — meaning members opposite — do they not know that if we don’t pay our taxes, then our debt will only grow? Apparently not. Because they, in their last election campaign, had $3 billion in unaccounted-for campaign promises. No way to pay for them.

Let’s examine our highway budget: $764 million. That’s 850 kilometres of provincial highways that are scheduled for renewal this year. Our 10-year plan is to do 10 000 kilometres of highways. We are in year seven and have improved 7900 kilometres.

Now just a one-month temporary removal of the gas tax would amount to approximately $40 million. So the question must be asked: what roads would you not fund for renewal or for rebuilding? What safety improvements would you not do? A one-time guest in the House gets it: money doesn’t grow on trees.

Members opposite criticize for debt that we have and call for 3 billion in unfunded spending in their recent election campaign. That is very bad economics, Mr. Speaker. The people of Saskatchewan are not fooled.

Now, Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about the story of a new Saskatchewan resident, a new resident that came to Saskatchewan because it was an affordable place to live — the story of Daina, recently . . . a job in the Moose Jaw care home that my aunt and uncle live in. In BC she was working two jobs as a nurse just to get by. Working in emergency department in two BC hospitals, barely able to keep up with the travel involved. Was trying to build a home base but finding that reality slipping by.

So she started an approach of researching what it would look like to live and work in Saskatchewan, and after a scouting trip based on online reviews led to the city of Moose Jaw, where she found friendly people, cab drivers that remembered her name, work only footsteps away, easy transition for car registration and affordable insurance, new driver’s licence in less than a couple of days, health insurance and getting a Sask nursing licence in two days.

Warmly welcomed by the people of Moose Jaw, working only one job now that allows her to have the free time to actually have a life, an affordable lifestyle that allows her to live out her dreams — dreams for home ownership, family through fostering, involvement in community-based organization, and more. It was a move driven by a desire to find a more affordable, peaceful, and relaxed place to live.

Thank you for doing your exploratory research, Daina, and welcome to Saskatchewan. I trust that your story will encourage more people to follow your lead and find an affordable life in Saskatchewan.

What a difference from 20 years ago, when the only option to get ahead in life was to leave the province. We lost a generation in that process. The out-migration of talent was shocking. Thankfully we are now in a place where people can live out their dreams, find meaningful employment, and spread their wings as entrepreneurs, and know there is a government that will support them every step of the way.

May God bless Saskatchewan, the only home I have ever known and the place where I welcome anyone who wants to get a life.

Mr. Speaker, I will not be supporting the motion put forward by the opposite side.

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After 65 minutes of debate, there is a 10-minute question and answer period. The following section begins at 12:16:40 PM in the video.

Erika Ritchie: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Does the member for Lumsden-Morse think it’s acceptable that, at a time of skyrocketing food bank usage and child hunger, that funding for food banks was cut from the provincial budget?

Blaine McLeod: — Thank you for the question, and I appreciate being on my feet to answer it. Just first of all, we just need to correct. It wasn’t a cut to funding. It was a two-year program that ran its course during a time of outrageous inflationary increases that were over 6 per cent.

What we’ve done for affordability in the province is provide long-term predictable tax breaks for families. And a family of four has the lowest cost of living anywhere in Canada. We will be there for all of the people of Saskatchewan, and we’ll continue with predictable tax breaks that they can count on year over year.