Saskatchewan Minute: Seeding Delays, Record Surgeries, and STF Rejects Offer

Saskatchewan Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Saskatchewan politics.

This Week In Saskatchewan:

• The Legislature will sit from Monday to Thursday this week. No committees are expected to meet this week.
  
  
• Farmers are off to a slow start in seeding, and it seems likely that they will face further delays and obstacles this summer. The railways are dealing with labour issues, and after a 95% vote in favour of strike action by railway workers, it seems likely that there will be some delays to the transportation of both fertilizer (needed to seed the crops) and the grain that the farmers will produce. Additionally, last week’s heavy rains may have helped revive dry soil in the southern parts of the province, but they also delayed seeding for much of the province. Farmers will be playing catch up now that the weather is better.
  
  
• A pilot program of a drug treatment court is expanding to North Battleford. This expansion will cost $240,000 in the first year, with more to follow. Drug treatment courts are designed to divert those who plead guilty to drug offenses to treatment and access to social services before being sentenced. Until now, this system was only available in Moose Jaw and Regina. The North Battleford court is expected to be operational by this fall.

Last Week In Saskatchewan:

• The results of the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation vote came in, and it was shown that over 90% of STF members that participated voted against the government’s final offer. This offer was much lower than what the STF had asked for, and did not include any binding language on classroom size and complexity. The long-running labour dispute is now expected to see further bargaining and possible job actions. Premier Scott Moe suggested that he may extend the school year to compensate for the lost hours from the strike. The union suggested this was merely a failed tactic to encourage a yes vote on the final offer, but this remains to be seen.
  
  
• Premier Scott Moe said that the likely location of Saskatchewan’s first Small Modular Reactor would be Estevan. This site, and one near Elbow, were the two most discussed. Minister for Crown Investment Corporations Dustin Duncan later walked back this comment, suggesting there is much more work to be done before an announcement can be made. He clarified that both sites remain in consideration, and that, in addition to SaskPower still having to do much remaining due diligence, a very broad consultation with people across the province is needed before a final decision can be announced.
  
  
• A record was set for the most surgeries performed in Saskatchewan in a year, which the government celebrated. Between April 1st, 2023 and March 31st, 2024, more than 95,700 surgeries were performed in Saskatchewan, a full 6,000 higher than the year before. There was a special emphasis on efforts to speed up hip and knee replacements. Now, the surgery waitlist has been reduced by 14%, and wait times of more than 18 months are down 67%. The Province is hoping to hit 100,000 surgeries over the same period in 2024-25.