Below you'll find MLA Tim McLeod's Report from the Legislature for March 14, 2024.
The views expressed below are solely the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official stance of Golden West.
On March 20, Finance Minister Donna Harpauer will present the 2024-25 Provincial Budget, outlining the strategic investments we are making to continue to drive Saskatchewan’s growth. Investments in priority areas like health care, education and communities are only possible due to the strength and growth of our provincial economy.
Our government recently released a new investment attraction strategy, the province’s roadmap to increasing investment and further advancing Saskatchewan’s Growth Plan goal of $16 billion in private capital investment annually. Private capital investment in Saskatchewan increased by nearly 25 per cent in 2023 and is expected to lead the nation in 2024.
This plan builds on the significant investment made in our province over the last number of years and introduces new, expanded and improved incentives for industries looking to make Saskatchewan their home. To learn more about the new strategy, visit the new InvestSK website at www.investSK.ca.
The third annual Indigenous Business Gathering at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon was a huge success and builds on our government’s commitment to growing, strengthening and diversifying our provincial economy. This year’s gathering featured over 85 trade show booths and more than 700 visitors. Our government is committed to economic reconciliation and recognizes that Indigenous businesses play a vital role in Saskatchewan by building inclusion among communities, providing jobs and growth, and helping enrich our quality of life.
Economic growth creates jobs and opportunities here at home, and Saskatchewan recently received some incredible numbers demonstrating this growth. The province added 18,700 new full-time jobs, which is an increase of 15,200 jobs last month when compared to February 2023, raising Saskatchewan's employment growth rate to 2.6 per cent.
Saskatchewan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate also remains well below the national average, sitting at 5.0 per cent compared to the national average of 5.8 per cent, the third-lowest amongst the provinces.
Strengthening our economy means investing in the growth of our key industries, like agriculture. Our government will invest $15 million over five years into the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan. Funding will support work at the GIFS, which helps keep Saskatchewan producers competitive and helps them remain among the most productive, innovative and sustainable in the world.
The strength and growth across our provincial economy allows our government to continue to invest in priority areas like health care. Our province’s ambitious Health Human Resources Action Plan continues to make significant progress in recruiting, training, incentivizing and retaining health care workers.
To date, nearly 300 hard-to-recruit positions have been filled through the Rural and Remote Recruitment Incentive, and more than 1,000 Saskatchewan and out-of-province nursing grads have been hired since 2022. We will continue to make significant investments to build a stronger, more resilient health care system for the people of Saskatchewan.
As our government continues work to increase health human resources, we are exploring ways to expand the use of Nurse Practitioners across the health care system. The Ministry of Health is working to pilot a new model for independently-operated, publicly-funded Nurse Practitioner clinics. These new clinics will help to improve access to health care services for Saskatchewan patients and their families.
Fourteen new doctors are now practicing in rural Saskatchewan after completing the Saskatchewan International Physician Practice Assessment (SIPPA) program in December. The number of SIPPA training seats was recently expanded from 36 to 45 per year, and plans are underway to add more seats to the program. SIPPA plays an important role in our province’s ongoing recruitment efforts and we welcome the latest group of graduates and their families to communities throughout the province.
Education is a huge priority for our government as well. A new agreement with the Saskatchewan School Boards Association ensures a minimum of $356.6 million per year for four years for classroom supports. Now that our government has made this commitment in writing, it is time for the Saskatchewan Teachers Federation to end their job action and return to the bargaining table so that students and teachers can return to the classroom.
Our government continues to invest in new programs that create solutions to challenges in the classroom. Fifteen new teacher-led projects have received funding through the Teacher Innovation and Support Fund. This brings the total allocated in this fund to over $800,000 in two months and reinforces our government’s commitment to providing additional classroom supports to our students and teachers.
As our government continues to move forward on these plans for Saskatchewan’s growth, we look forward to hearing from you. You can reach out to my constituency office at 306-692-8884 or mjnorthmla@sasktel.net.