REGINA — Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck is putting some distance between herself and the new federal NDP leader Avi Lewis.
Lewis won a first-ballot victory in the leadership vote announcement in Winnipeg Sunday. But according to a letter released by the Saskatchewan NDP, Beck expressed opposition to Lewis’ views on resources and also turned down his campaign’s invitation for a meeting, unless and until Lewis reversed his positions.
“The positions that you have taken when it comes to natural resource development are ideological and unrealistic. They would hurt Saskatchewan workers, communities and industries,” Beck stated in her letter to Lewis dated March 28.
She pointed to Lewis saying on Nov. 20, 2025, that he was “unequivocally opposed to any new fossil fuel development — including LNG.”
“Your approach has not only taken aim at the resources, but at the people who work in these sectors — and it ignores the realities not only in this province but across the country.”
In her letter, Beck pointed to 40,000 direct and indirect Saskatchewan jobs tied to natural resource development, saying entire communities in Saskatchewan rely on these sectors. She stated the policies and positions Lewis advocated for “put at risk $13.6 billion in economic activity annually in Saskatchewan.”
“The NDP is the party of working people. It’s impossible to support — and respect — working people without respecting the jobs they have, not the ones you think they should have.”
Beck further said that Lewis’ positions are “antithetical to the values of a party built with and for working people. You have repeatedly claimed you’re laser-focused on affordability; however, the policy positions you have taken don’t reflect that.”
“When you publicly reverse your position on these matters and show a willingness to try to understand the realities of our province and the thousands of proud Saskatchewan workers who rely on our industries to feed their families, I will meet with you.”
Beck is not the only provincial NDP leader to express concerns about Lewis’ positions on resources. Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi — who has said he is not a member of the federal NDP — has also distanced himself from the new leader.
In a post on the X platform soon after Lewis was elected leader, Nenshi said that it “is clear that the direction of the federal party under this new leader, someone who openly cheered for the defeat of the Alberta NDP government, is not in the interests of Alberta.”
Nenshi said of his provincial party that they “believe in Alberta and we believe in Canadian energy and the good jobs it creates. We believe in more pipelines and in reducing emissions … Albertans deserve federal leaders who understand the importance of Alberta and our essential role in the federation.”
Premier Moe unimpressed
In a post on social media, Premier Scott Moe made clear he was not impressed with the Saskatchewan NDP’s moves to put distance between themselves and the federal party’s policies.
“I see the SK NDP is already desperately trying to distance themselves from their new federal leader and his radical policies to shut down our oil industry, nationalize just about everything, and destroy our economy,” posted Moe.
“The problem is – that’s like a McDonald’s franchise saying they don’t want to sell hamburgers – the SK NDP is part of the federal NDP. It says so right in their constitution. So Avi Lewis’ destructive policies are now the SK NDP’s destructive policies.”
