The Saskatchewan NDP unveiled what their Hire Saskatchewan Plan is Monday, as the countdown to the next provincial election begins.
NDP leader Carla Beck spoke with Discover Weyburn about the plan, which she said would prioritize Saskatchewan businesses, workers and projects when it comes to government contracts and infrastructure projects.
“This is something that I think people expect when they see government using their tax dollars – that they want maximum value, maximum benefit for people in this province, and that’s a priority for us,” Beck explained.
The plan comes as the provincial government has been drawing criticism for out-of-province contracts in recent weeks. Some of those include a contract with a Newport Beach, California company for tire recycling in southern Saskatchewan, the hiring of a French company for the construction of the Regina bypass, and the use of out-of-province travel nurses.
“This is really about making sure that when we are spending precious Saskatchewan tax dollars, as people work hard for their money here, that we are getting maximum value for those dollars, and that our communities, our workers, our businesses are benefitting the most as possible as opposed to insiders and donors out of province,” Beck added.
While the writ itself hasn’t officially dropped, campaigning is unofficially underway, with the vote to be held before October 28th, in six months.