Question Period (5 November 2025)

From Hansard (5 November 2025)

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Government Response to Wildfires in the North

Jordan McPhail: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today we are joined in this legislature by an incredible constituent of mine and of the province of Saskatchewan. Harley Vliegenthart and 10 volunteer firefighters from the Denare fire department stayed back to defend Denare Beach as the Wolf fire raced towards the community this summer.

He put himself in harm’s way in a heroic attempt to save his community. In nearby Flin Flon, on the other side of the border in Manitoba, there were hundreds of firefighters. Denare Beach burned and Flin Flon was spared.

To the Premier: why wasn’t more done to protect and to help Harley and his heroic fellow firefighters in Denare Beach?

Hon. Tim McLeod: — Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I’ll once again welcome Harley to his Legislative Assembly. I want to take an opportunity yet again to thank Harley and to thank the hundreds of men and women, the brave men and women who fought forest fires across northern Saskatchewan this summer.

Mr. Speaker, we had forest fire fighters, volunteer forest fire fighters. We had 34 different municipal and volunteer firefighting services attacking the forest fires. We had multiple provinces providing resources and forest fire fighters, Mr. Speaker. We had other countries providing forest fire fighters.

Mr. Speaker, those brave men and women fought an unprecedented fire season, and we owe them a debt of gratitude. And we thank them, Mr. Speaker, for their hard work and their brave service.

 

Jordan McPhail: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. What the minister refuses to face the fact of, is that those folks were not on the front lines helping Harley in Denare Beach when he had to fight those flames in his community the night that his community burned.

The fact is that Harley felt abandoned by the Sask Party government. He has lost faith in the people on that side of the House to do their jobs. He wants answers. Frankly he deserves those answers, as do thousands of other constituents of mine who lost so, so much this summer.

Will the Premier stand and do the right thing and finally call the independent public inquiry that Harley came here to demand?

Speaker Goudy: — Before the minister answers, I’m just going to remind the Chamber that drawing members from the public, though they’re here, into debate is not to be . . . But recognize the Minister of Policing, Corrections and Public Safety.

Hon. Tim McLeod: — Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I will agree with the member opposite on one thing: these individuals do deserve the facts. And they have not been receiving the facts from that member, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is that Denare Beach was defended by far more than what the member opposite is suggesting. On May 19th the Wolf fire was reported 32 kilometres west of Denare Beach. Immediately the SPSA [Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency] within a day responded with two air tankers, helicopters, and ground crews, Mr. Speaker.

That forest fire grew between May 21st and May 23rd, 127 times its original size — extremely aggressive fire behaviour, unprecedented fire behaviour based on the opinion of the forest fire fighters who have been doing this for three decades, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, these extreme fires required an indirect attack, as opposed to a direct attack, to maintain the safety and the well-being of our forest fire fighters. Mr. Speaker, we will not put the lives of the brave men and women who are battling these fires at risk, and we . . .

 

Jordan McPhail: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will not have a minister tell me what I had to drive through in northern Saskatchewan. There is zero — zero — accountability from that member opposite. The people of the North tell me that every single day. After 18 years of this Sask Party government, they’ve lost trust.

Harley told me last night that the public inquiry for him is about three things: (1) restoring confidence, (2) providing closure to those who have lost so much, and (3) to provide reassurance that something like this disaster will never happen again.

Harley said that if the Public Safety minister won’t call an independent public inquiry, then he should lose his job. So will that minister stand up right now and quit? Or better yet, will the Premier stand up and fire him today?

Hon. Tim McLeod: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll tell you what I won’t do, and what I won’t do is exploit tragedy for political gain. I won’t do that, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I will provide the facts to the individuals who suffered incredible loss this summer. Those facts, Mr. Speaker, include that the SPSA has commissioned a report by Meyers Norris Penny to lead an independent review of the 2025 forest fire season. These results will be made public.

This independent review will be led by experts, Mr. Speaker, and it will obtain information from the forest fire fighters who were on the ground, from the communities that were impacted, and from experts in the area to make sure that best practice is followed, and anything that can be done better in future forest fire seasons will be done. And we will adopt those recommendations to make sure that we are ensuring best practice moving forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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