REGINA – As the provincial budget continues to draw closer, opposition New Democrats continued to ramp up their attacks on the Sask Party on the issue of managing the province’s finances.
At a news conference Wednesday at the legislature, the NDP Energy critic Sally Housser repeated claims by the Opposition that the deficit will be over a billion dollars in this spring’s provincial budget, pointing to the government having issued $650 million in special warrants spending earlier in February.
Housser also accused the government of doubling the provincial debt during his time in office, and compared it to the deficits of the Grant Devine era in office.
“Scott Moe has doubled the debt by himself,” said Housser. “Since he has been Premier, the average debt added every year has been over $2 billion. This is not sustainable. Every single Saskatchewan man, woman and child is now on the hook for over $1,000 to cover Moe's debt. That would be this Premier's legacy, worse debt than even Premier (Grant) Devine.”
When asked about Premier Moe’s remarks the previous day in which he said special warrants spending was something every government does, Housser said “that is not a true statement, frankly.”
“Yes, special warrants happen for emergency scenarios. They're usually not for $650 million.”
She said it goes back to the government's “absolute failure to be able to project. And we know budgets change. And we know the price of oil goes up and down.”
“But the absolute fantasy land that this government has been living in in terms of projected revenue, specifically from oil, last year they projected at $71 a barrel.
I think for this year it was projected to be $75 a barrel. And the price of oil goes up and down, we know that. But for every dollar they're off, that's another $18 million hole in the budget.”
Housser also accused the government of “living in a fantasy world” about what their revenue actually is. As for the result of all of the spending, Housser asked “what do we have to show for it in the province?”
“And I think that that's what people are really looking for from this government. You know, what I think people also find frustrating, and I certainly find frustrating, is the Premier and the Finance Minister and this government's total inability to take responsibility for where we are in this fiscal mess right now.”
As for what she expects the numbers to be on Budget Day in. few weeks, Housser said the real issue right now is “that they're hiding the third quarter” numbers.
“It would be nice to see that. We'd be able to talk a little more intelligently about it if we had,” said Housser.
Moe more optimistic, but acknowledges pressures
While the NDP continued to paint a picture of doom with respect to the budget coming down in March, Premier Moe had a somewhat more optimistic view of where the finances stood for the province.
“I would say that our economy from on the revenue line, from a revenue perspective, is as resilient or more resilient than most other provinces,” said Moe at a news conference Tuesday.
Moe also acknowledged “all of the provinces, ourselves included, are experiencing, you know, significant pressures” in the investments they are making in areas such as health care, and in addressing social challenges such as mental health and addiction.
“That takes significant investment, targeted investment. That is, you know, not an exclusive pressure to Saskatchewan, is a pressure on the bottom line of budgets across the nation.”
Moe also said for those looking for comparisons to other provinces on the resiliency of the economy, “I would look at some of the per capita deficits” and the pressures that each of the provinces is going to face, “whether they be on the revenue side or expense side as well.”
