Moe makes pitch to voters at Prince Albert campaign office

Saskatchewan Party leader Scott Moe speaks to supporters at the party’s Prince Albert campaign office on Wednesday, Oct. 23. -- Jason Kerr/Daily Herald

Saskatchewan Party leader Scott Moe said his party will continue to grow the economy and build a strong future, if re-elected, during a speech at the Saskatchewan Party’s Prince Albert campaign office on Wednesday. 

Flanked by local Saskatchewan Party candidates and surrounded by campaign volunteers and supporters, Moe made another pitch to Prince Albert voters by emphasizing his party’s plan to reduce taxes and make life more affordable. He also took aim at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Carbon Tax, criticized the NDP’s spending promises, and argued residents still remember the last NDP government and have no desire for another.

“There is a big, big difference between the two parties that will form government in this election,” Moe said. “Almost three-quarters of our commitments in the Saskatchewan Party have been tax reductions or tax credits for you and your family, which means you are going to have more of your own money in your very pocket. The NDP’s multi-billion dollar promises are all about increasing government spending. We’ve seen that in the past. They want to take more of your money because they think they know how to spend your money better than you.”

The NDP has rolled out a series of investment plans, the largest being a $1.1 billion investment in healthcare funding, and a four-year, $2 billion plan increase to education funding. On Wednesday, Moe said the NDPs multi-billion dollar promises are all about increasing government spending. He argued the NDP wants to take more taxpayers money so they can spend it, while the Sask. Party wants to grow the economy.

Moe said residents have a choice on Oct. 28 between a Saskatchewan Party that “has stood against the Trudeau Carbon Tax since day one” while the NDP supports it. He also told supporters the Saskatchewan Party is determined to hire more police officers to keep communities safe across this promise while the NDP would reduce the number of police officers and fund doorbell cameras instead of officers,

During a question-and-answer session hosted by the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce in September, Beck said the NDP was against the Carbon Tax, and would not raise any other taxes. The NDP has also campaigned on a promise to scrap the Marshal’s Service, which has an estimated operational cost of around $20 million per year, and instead put the money towards hiring 100 more RCMP officers. The NDP has pledged to hire 100 more municipal police officers as well.

Moe also reiterated comments he made on Tuesday touting the Saskatchewan Party’s infrastructure record, particularly the building of the new acute care tower at Victoria Hospital and plans for a new Francophone school.

“This is a choice between a Saskatchewan Party that will keep our economy so very strong and our future so very bright, and the NDP who are simply going to take us back to the time of decline and loss,” Moe said.

Moe spoke to and mingled with campaign supporters following the speech. He declined requests for an interview.

Wednesday’s speech was Moe’s third campaign appearance in Prince Albert since Saturday, Oct. 19.

In response, NDP leader Carla Beck argued that healthcare workers and teachers have been sounding the alarm for years about staffing shortages without help.

In a speech at the annual Saskatchewan Federation of Labour Convention, Beck accused the Saskatchewan Party of ignoring both groups, and said the NDP would “get right to work” on both issues, if elected.

“It won’t be easy, and I don’t have a magic wand, but I know where to start,” Beck said in her speech. “We’ll start by respecting and keeping the valuable healthcare workers we already have. Too many people are burning out and leaving the field early or after only a few short years.”

The NDP has promised to hire 800 new frontline workers if re-elected.

In September, Saskatchewan Party Health Minister Everett Hindley said the province has spent more than $300 million to recruit, train, and retain healthcare workers. He said that funding led to 87 family doctors and 131 specialists being recruited. He added that the province had also recruited 400 nurses from the Philippines, and hired more than 1,400 recent Canadian nursing graduates.

During her speech, Beck also emphasized the NDP’s promise to reduce the cost of living by suspending the Gas Tax, and cutting PST on groceries and children’s cloths, as well as a Saskatchewan first hiring policy.

“Putting Saskatchewan workers first is one of our major concerns,” Beck said “We will bring in a Hire Saskatchewan policy. No more Alberta plates flooding the job site, or major contracts being handed over to out of country companies without fair treatment for Saskatchewan workers and companies.”

Election Day is on Oct.28.

-Advertisement-