Budget Debate (12 April 2021)

From Hansard (12 April 2021)

Budget Debate

Mr. McLeod: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s always an honour to have the opportunity to rise in this House and address the Assembly, even the member from Rosemont. It’s my privilege to do so today on behalf of all the constituents of Moose Jaw North, and as I do so I acknowledge that we are gathered on Treaty 4 territory in the traditional homeland of the Métis. We are all treaty people.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciated the comments of the member from Indian Head-Milestone a few days ago when he pointed out that this is a deficit budget, and that fact should always give us pause for concern. Perhaps it’s because he and I are cut from the same tartan, or perhaps it’s simply how I was raised, but the idea of spending more than I have causes me discomfort.

I believe only exceptional circumstances justify doing so: circumstances like protecting the people of our province from further harmful effects of COVID-19, circumstances like building and investing in our economy and infrastructure as we recover from a global shock unlike anything this country has seen since the Second World War, and circumstances that will ensure our province continues to grow and our communities remain strong and life in those communities remains affordable for our families. Yes, Mr. Speaker, this is a deficit budget, but it is a budget that will help protect, build, and grow this province into the future, and I support that.

Before I move into more specific comments about the budget, I would first like to take a moment to express my gratitude to a number of people. Like so many of my colleagues have already done, I want to recognize and thank all of the health care workers and the first responders who have endured a front-row seat for some of the worst scenes this pandemic has to offer.

I also want to thank our teachers, Mr. Speaker. I know as school resumes today in many communities across the province, there is some trepidation about the return of our children into classrooms. My own children are among them. But I would say for the record that I have heard an even mix of comments from my constituents, some of whom are in favour of returning to in-school learning and some who are opposed. And I want to thank the school board trustees and administration of the school divisions who I am certain are hearing the same things.

Mr. Speaker, I was one of those trustees not too long ago and when I sat in that seat, my colleagues and I fought hard to ensure that the decisions respecting our schools were made at the local level. In my view, the locally elected trustees are well positioned to respond to the needs of the schools and families in the communities they represent. So I want to thank our Premier and the Minister of Education for continuing to allow those locally elected representatives to decide what level of response is most appropriate in their own schools, doing so in consultation with their local public health officers and with the guidance of Dr. Shahab.

Mr. Speaker, I have been extremely impressed with the protocols put in place in our schools and with the various adaptations our teachers and students have made to their daily routines. Those adjustments have kept our children safe from this virus while still receiving some of the best education in the world. Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation goes out to all of those individuals, the teachers especially, because the value of the work they do cannot be overstated.

On a personal note, I want to thank my constituency assistant, Jacqui, who has grown into her new role as I’ve been growing into mine. Even as we speak now, Jacqui is the first point of contact for the phone calls and emails coming in while I am unavailable, and I cannot think of a better person to bear that responsibility on my behalf. So I sincerely thank her for that.

Mr. Speaker, I want to also quickly thank my wife, Tenielle, and my three children. When the legislature is in session, we MLAs normally spend our days here in Regina and our families are asked to navigate life without us until we return home, either in the evenings or on the weekends. But of course with the current restrictions keeping us all here for the duration of session, the ask of our families has been increased exponentially.

Mr. Speaker, I am blessed to have such a strong and capable partner in Tenielle. On any given day, her workload outweighs mine by a substantial margin already, but for the past week and the weeks ahead, she is willingly carrying 100 per cent of the load. In fact she’s been doing it with such ease I’m starting to become concerned that she may find it necessary to rebalance our respective duties when I finally return. And I know, Mr. Speaker, all three of our children have stepped up in staying on top of their chores and helping out a little extra in my absence as well. So to Tenielle, Presley, Kingston, and Lauchlan, I express my sincere thanks for your love, your support, and for your additional efforts while I am away.

And finally, Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the people of Saskatchewan. This past year has been filled with challenges for everyone, yet the people of this great province have demonstrated once again that there is nothing, not even a global pandemic, that can get the better of them.

Last week, in his annual address on the state of the University of Saskatchewan, president Dr. Peter Stoicheff commented, “No other year in our university’s history has asked so much of us individually and collectively.” Mr. Speaker, what an eloquent and concise statement to summarize the challenges COVID-19 has presented. And I think that same statement applies to the province as a whole. President Stoicheff also noted, “Optimism is building that the world is emerging from this pandemic.” And he went on to say, “It is our collective responsibility to build and shape the community and world we want every day.” Let me read that again: “It is our collective responsibility to build and shape the community and the world we want every day.” What a powerful statement. I wish I could get him to write my speeches.

But, Mr. Speaker, that’s why the people of Saskatchewan cannot be kept down and we will not be defeated, not even by a novel virus that is shaking the world to its core, because we understand our collective responsibility and we have the strength of spirit and character that allows us to find optimism in even the most challenging times.

Mr. Speaker, I think that optimism is precisely what we need to focus on right now. Not negativity, not fear. What we focus on will shape our reality. Now I know we are all experiencing a degree of COVID fatigue, some of us more than others, which is why now more than ever, we need to maintain an optimistic focus. Now is the time to remain positive and to support one another. Mr. Speaker, now is the time we need to protect each other from further harm. We need to build up each other as we lean on one another for strength. And now is the time to grow as we collectively emerge from the dark cloud of COVID that has hung over us all for this past year.

Mr. Speaker, I support this motion and the budget presented by the Minister of Finance because I see so many positive pieces within it. I see investment in health care and public safety that will protect the people of Saskatchewan. I see capital investments that will continue to build upon our infrastructure and create jobs across this province. I see reductions to small-business tax rates and a home renovation tax credit that will help Saskatchewan families grow as we recover from the pandemic. These investments protect and build and grow this province.

Some other examples that hit a little closer to home for me, Mr. Speaker, include the $1.4 million investment that will add a new STARS helicopter to deliver emergency care and ensure our communities remain protected. Now I know people often think STARS only serves rural and remote sites, but I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, that a personal friend of mine from Moose Jaw would not be alive today had a STARS helicopter not been there to transport him during a medical emergency. His heart stopped twice, and the doctors told him if it were not for the STARS helicopter getting him on an operating table as quickly as it did, he would not be with us today. So I recognize that this investment protects us all, no matter what part of the province we’re from.

This budget also builds upon the educational infrastructure in this province, providing $65.4 million to complete the design phase and begin construction on 13 school projects, including the new joint-use school in my home community of Moose Jaw. I’m especially excited about this project, Mr. Speaker. Please allow me to share why.

On January 8th, 2018, the boards of education for Prairie South schools and Holy Trinity Catholic School Division held a joint meeting of the trustees, at which time their respective board Chairs signed a document that reads as follows:

In order to enhance the quality of education for all children and families, the boards of education of Prairie South schools 210 and Holy Trinity Catholic School Division are committed to working collaboratively to achieve a new joint-use facility on South Hill in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan by 2021.

Mr. Speaker, I was fortunate to have been the board Chair that signed that document on behalf of Prairie South, together with my friend, Joann Blazieko, on behalf of Holy Trinity. Now here we are three years later in 2021, and this government is working together with those two school divisions to design and build that joint-use school, which will see the consolidation of four aging elementary schools into one brand new facility for roughly 1,000 Moose Jaw students. Mr. Speaker, I can hardly wait for the day to see the ribbon cut and the doors opened on that much-needed new facility. And the funding commitment from this budget ensures that it will be built.

Yet another example that’s close to home for me, Mr. Speaker, is the $937 million investment in improvements to our province’s electrical system, which includes the construction of a new 350-megawatt electrical plant in Moose Jaw. These projects will support growth of our province as it meets the ever-increasing power needs of our communities. And this project in particular will provide employment and economic growth to my home community.

These are just some of the positives I see when I look at this budget, Mr. Speaker. And as I mentioned, what we focus on will shape our reality. This government is focusing on protecting, building, and growing our province.

The Government of Saskatchewan sees the strength and resilience of the people of this great province. We don’t see our communities as weak and incapable. Our government has faith in the people of Saskatchewan, and we know that with these investments we are making through this budget, our communities will recover from the pandemic faster than anywhere else. And we will be stronger than ever before.

Again, Mr. Speaker, there are just so many positive aspects to this budget. We’ve heard many of them discussed by my colleagues. I don’t intend to repeat many more. But I do want to be clear. Although I see countless positives in this budget, I’m not suggesting it’s perfect. In fact I don’t think there’s such a thing as a perfect budget. To be honest, I was looking forward to hearing some well-reasoned criticisms from the opposition because, Mr. Speaker, I enjoy a good debate.

As I mentioned in my first address to this Assembly last fall, one of my favourite things to do is have my views challenged respectfully by someone who may not share them. So when my perception of this budget and the current state of our province started to be challenged by the opposition, albeit less than respectful at times, I was intrigued. Perhaps there would be an opportunity for a debate. Sadly however, my intrigue turned to disappointment because you cannot argue with someone who won’t articulate what they are arguing for. Listening to the members of the opposition over the past week, it has become apparent that they don’t support the budget, but they can’t seem to figure out why.

You see, we’ve heard the opposition argue that this budget spends too much, while at the exact same time arguing that it doesn’t spend enough. We’ve heard them complain about job losses in one breath and then quite literally insult our province’s loyal public servants in the next. I was shocked to hear one of the opposition members claim that they support our oil and gas workers while his party continues to applaud federal policies that kill jobs in that very same industry. With respect, Mr. Speaker, they cannot have it both ways. Or as the minister of trade, export and development has put it, they need to pick a lane.

I realize I’m still fairly new here. But my understanding of the role of the official opposition is that they are required to more than blindly reject and throw insults at everything the government proposes. As the member from Melfort pointed out and the member from Cumberland House respectfully agreed, which I sincerely thank him for, we are all here to serve the people of this province, Mr. Speaker. We are expected to work together for the common good. So if the opposition sees how something might be done better, it is their responsibility to raise it, and in turn it is the government’s responsibility to consider the point.

But that is not possible if the opposition doesn’t offer any constructive criticism and only advances their complaints about the way things are. They don’t like it, but they don’t say why. They’re not offering any realistic suggestions on how it could be done better. Instead this opposition seems to ignore all the positive aspects contained in the budget, many of which I have already cited. Their flip-flopping on where they actually stand makes it impossible for the government to consider their position. For example, they say they want more people working while at the exact same time they demand the government shut down the economy and lock people in their homes.

This opposition criticizes the government for its support of pipelines and the energy sector while simultaneously claiming we haven’t done enough to protect workers in that industry. And then they advance resolutions at their national convention to “oppose all carbon-intensive energy projects,” which would only further hurt the workers they seem to agree need protecting. Mr. Speaker, on that issue it’s almost as if they chose a lane but they’re driving in the wrong direction, impeding the progress of others.

And again, this opposition demands more spending while at the same time arguing that the government is spending too much. I’ve argued issues many times in my career, Mr. Speaker, but you cannot argue with someone who refuses to pick a side. I’ve listened intently to the opposition over the past week and I can find no constructive criticism to work with, only repeated complaints and fearmongering about how awful they think it is here and how nothing is going right. I suppose their focus has shaped their reality. Negativity and doom and gloom — that’s all they choose to see, which is truly unfortunate, Mr. Speaker, because there is so much good stuff here.

And you don’t have to look far to find the good stuff, like the fact that as of March 31st of this year, Saskatchewan had the second-highest credit rating in Canada. Or how about the fact that we’re projected to maintain one of the lowest net debt-to-GDP [gross domestic product] ratios in the nation, which by the way, Mr. Speaker, is widely accepted as the standard by which to measure the fiscal health of a province. And we are among the best.

The sky is not falling, Mr. Speaker. We are not the province in shambles the NDP keep trying to depict. To the contrary, there are so many good things happening here, frankly I’m excited. And I struggle to understand how the members of the opposition can’t be even just a little excited too.

You know, Mr. Speaker, that got me thinking. I asked myself, why would the opposition members stand before this Assembly and the people of this province making contradictory assertions, flip-flopping back and forth about where they stand on various issues? And how is the opposition helping the people of this province by desperately trying to convince them that they live in the worst place imaginable? How does that help?

These questions honestly bothered me, Mr. Speaker. I actually spent a lot of time thinking about them until I was reminded of a scene from one of my favourite movies. Please allow me to explain. The movie is Good Will Hunting, starring Robin Williams as Dr. Sean Maguire, and Matt Damon who portrays a young man named Will Hunting.

In the scene I’m referring to, Sean is explaining an epiphany he had about a troubling comment Will made to him a few days earlier. Sean says to Will:

I thought about what you said to me the other day, about my painting. I stayed up half the night thinking about it. Then something occurred to me and I fell into a deep peaceful sleep. I haven’t thought about you since. You know what occurred to me? You don’t have the faintest idea what you’re talking about.

Sean goes on to explain:

If I asked you about art you’d probably give me the skinny on every art book ever written. Michelangelo, you know a lot about him. But I’ll bet you can’t tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. And if I asked you about war, you’d probably throw Shakespeare at me, right? “Once more unto the breach, dear friends.” But you’ve never been near one. I’d ask you about love, you’d probably quote me a sonnet.

Sean then summarizes his monologue by telling Will he is failing to see all the good stuff. And until he’s prepared to examine who he is and what he stands for, he has no business tearing apart other people who are actually doing what they stand for.

Mr. Speaker, it was the underlying message from this scene that gave me peace, knowing that I need not be bothered by the confused rhetoric and alarmist hyperbole coming from the NDP members opposite. I genuinely wanted to hear something from them that was a reasonable and fair criticism, something we could actually consider maybe even debate. But I still haven’t heard that. I will keep listening for it.

However until the opposition decide where they stand on issues and actually articulate a rational position instead of just impeding the progress of those of us who have picked a lane, I won’t lose any sleep or be bothered by their negativity. Because the only thing that will be clear to me about what they’re saying is that they don’t have the faintest idea what they’re talking about.

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to speak in favour of this motion put forward by the Minister of Finance and seconded by the member from The Battlefords. And I will not support the amendment. Thank you.

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