Budget Debate (23 March 2026)

From Hansard (23 March 2026)

To view this section on video, click here and start play at 3:31:05 PM.

Budget Debate

Blaine McLeod: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It really is a pleasure to be up here for my third time in a response to a budget speech. I enjoy these opportunities a lot, and I look forward each year for the opportunity to write that speech and to put my thoughts on paper.

I want to start, Mr. Speaker, by thanking you for your thoughtful and considered responses in the approach to your role. I appreciate your guidance and continued friendship. And likewise to my colleagues, I want to express appreciation for the family atmosphere we experience. It is really a joy to participate in that.

And to continue with the thank yous, as we so often do, the people of Lumsden-Morse, I thank you for the honour and the joy to represent you. It has been a privilege of a lifetime. I thank my office staff, Mr. Speaker. Kelly and Kathy, you keep me organized and grounded, and that opportunity to bounce things off and have that rapport back and forth is super, super good.

My family, my wife and I’s family — Michael, Mark, and Jessica. Every team in life needs a quarterback. And our oldest son, Michael, is the quarterback for our dairy farm. He sits on the village council at Caronport. He’s married with a wife and three children. Chelsea, his wife, is a local school teacher. And Jordynn, Levi, and Kynleigh, wonderful kids. Jordynn, the oldest, gets her licence in a few short weeks, and she is so excited.

An Hon. Member: — Uh-oh, another farmer.

Blaine McLeod: — And she can get to the farm more often. Exactly, my friend. Yeah, exactly. Our son Mark, helping as he can on the farm and managing a busy household of four boys under the age of 12, all engaged in sports and doing their thing — Elliott, Evander, Owen, and Orson. Mark’s wife, Stephanie, is a teacher and does an amazing job. Two teachers in the family, Chelsea and Stephanie.

I’ve got to tell a quick little story about Elliott, the oldest grandson, and how he made an impact on me, at such a young age, with this little tidbit of wisdom and knowledge that he provided. On his fourth birthday he just was dressed in the most amazing little set of Carhartt coveralls. Came to the farm, so cute. And I said, “Elliott, you’re four. I would really like to be four again. Do you think we could trade? I’ll be four.” I won’t say what my age would have been.

Elliott looked at me and he said, “Papa, you only get four once.” And that has been a driving influence for me as I considered a role in public life. You only get the chance once. One chance around.

Our daughter, Jessica, is a nurse in Saskatoon: Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital, also teaching with a half-time role with Sask Poly, extending her wisdom to the LPNs [licensed practical nurse]. And her husband, Nathan, and Jessica are blessed with three children: Eleanor, Piper, and Ezra.

That rounds out our crew. Ten grandkids that we have the blessing to know that they all reside in Saskatchewan. It’s a two-minute walk to one home. It’s a five-minute drive to another, and a two-and-a-half hour drive to Saskatoon. But we get to hold and touch and be involved with their lives.

And you know, there’s credit to be given there. And I think it’s somewhat appropriate to talk about the graduate retention program right here. All of them, all of them that I mentioned accessed that program, making life more affordable when they needed it most, building their careers and their families. And that has become so, so great for them.

And it’s becoming the norm for people to remain in our thriving province. And it’s a remarkable contrast to several decades ago when our greatest export was our offspring. It’s amazing what a change in attitude and sound government policy decisions can do to drive entrepreneurship and investment opportunities that allow for great jobs without leaving your roots behind.

A couple more thank yous. My extended family, five sisters, one brother — shouldn’t say my extended family; my siblings and the wife and the husbands in that situation — they show love and support to everything that I do. And helpful, helpful criticism, and sometimes, “What are you doing?” And I like that, I appreciate that information that they bring.

And I’d be remiss not to mention my mother-in-law. Putting it on the floor right now, I have the best mother-in-law in the world, absolutely. And I know she’s watching as I speak. So thanks, Peg, love you.

And I left my wife, not last. But I do want to say this to my wife. And I know she would be watching, but she’s on her way to pick up one of our grandsons to go to sports. But a constant support, encouragement, staying by my side, and holding my hand. Just like the picture that sits under our TV. “When you watch this speech, this line: there will always be room for your hand in mine.” Love you, hon. Wouldn’t want to do this without you.

So Protecting Saskatchewan, that’s the theme of our budget. And I’m so very proud of what we have brought forward as a budget for our great province. I was pleased to see the member from Regina Mount Royal talk about the upheaval in the world that exists — as he started his response — upheaval that we can only imagine. The ongoing brutal war in Ukraine, an unimaginable horror that has cost the lives of so many innocent people; tariffs that have been placed on our exports; war in the Middle East that is rapidly expanding — all of this uncertainty has brought significant financial challenges for every government in Canada and indeed the world.

And yet with the backdrop of all this uncertainty, we have delivered on all our campaign promises regarding affordability. An election fought and won on who best to guide the fortunes of our province and deliver affordability.

So as Saskatchewan’s Finance minister, the member from Rosetown-Delisle rose to bring remarks regarding the global economic and geopolitical turmoil and the effect on our provincial finances, he said the following: “. . . we had a choice: raise taxes, cut services, or protect Saskatchewan. We chose to protect Saskatchewan.”

Then came a very lengthy list of how we would protect our people, with the top two concerns being affordability and access to health care. We have kept our promise and have lowered taxes. We are making significant investment in our patient-first health care plan. And the reason we can do that is because we have a strong and growing economy. We have diversified our trade markets by expanding our trade offices, not closing them. I recall that was a campaign promise of the other side.

Mr. Speaker, we currently have 60 large-scale projects in planning or under way in our province worth north of 60 billion. The list of investors is lengthy, and the value added to our economy allows us to fulfill our affordability promises, not to renege on them like we have seen in other NDP-governed provinces recently.

And we have done this and kept our budgetary deficit the lowest per capita amongst all provinces: $646 per capita. It’s a deficit still, but it’s the lowest in Canada.

Mr. Speaker, we don’t need to take my word. Look at the credit rating scores that we have. Best in Canada. And no, we are not happy with the deficit, but we recognize the challenge we are in. And we will work to return to balance in the not-too-distant future, all the while protecting Saskatchewan people.

Now, Mr. Speaker, after hearing all about our plan to continue to deliver the most affordable place to live in Canada and how we will ensure our residents have affordability in their daily lives, the response from the member from Regina Mount Royal was, “. . . this budget does none of that.” None of that. That being bringing affordability to our population.

And the member from Regina South Albert reaffirmed that today as well — this budget does nothing for health care and affordability. Honestly I really couldn’t believe my ears, so I had to go back to Hansard and read it again. Yes, there it was: “. . . this budget does none of that.”

So maybe it wasn’t heard the first time, and I’d like to again put on the record what we have delivered on affordability. We’ll start with provincial income tax and the basic personal exemptions. In 2026 a family of four will pay no provincial income tax on the first $65,000 of income. That’s the highest tax-free threshold in Canada. Now these . . .

[Applause]

Blaine McLeod: — Yeah, absolutely.

Now these are broad-based personal income tax credits increasing this year by the promised $500 over and above indexation. Indexation is a really important word, and we’re going to speak about that a little bit later.

Number two: enhancements to the low-income tax credit, a 5 per cent lift over and above indexation. There it is again. That is quarterly payments to over 300,000 households in Saskatchewan worth nearly $200 million this year. That’s amazing.

Here’s another quick list on affordability initiatives: PST rebate for new home construction, secondary suite incentive, first-time homebuyers tax credit, graduate retention program, fertility treatment tax credit. I’ll give props to the member from Regina South Albert who did say that was a very good move on our part. When things are good, you should acknowledge it.

The autism spectrum disorder individualized funding. Active families benefit, which was doubled in the payment to $300 and doubled the income eligibility. Tax savings, all put together, Mr. Speaker, of over $2.6 billion annually. And my favourite — removal of the insane federal carbon tax from all SaskPower customers’ bills. That’s estimated to save the Saskatchewan taxpayers, in ’26-27, $505 million. Just think what we could have done if we would have got some help from the other side to get rid of that sooner.

Just an example. Prairie South School Division, here’s the impact for them with the loss of that insane tax: close to $400,000 reduction in expenses annually. It’s amazing.

Now indexation, I’ve talked about it before. Simply put, it protects taxpayers from inflationary bracket creep and preserves the real value of the credit. Now both BC and Manitoba, NDP governments, have paused indexing personal income tax brackets and non-refundable tax credits. What does that mean? Well in ’26-27, that’ll cost the taxpayers in BC an additional 60 million, rising to 590 million by ’28-29. And in Manitoba, suspended, and it’s projected to bring in 82 million in the first year on the backs of the taxpayers.

Contrast that to Saskatchewan where indexation for 2026 will save Saskatchewan residents $42 million this year. Nothing for affordability, is what was said on the other side.

So, Mr. Speaker, despite the unserious claim from members opposite that we have done nothing for affordability, I am sure that the residents of Saskatchewan can see through the unserious claims and recognize a responsible approach to governing this province — an approach that values every person in the province and seeks to meet the needs of a growing population.

I want also to talk regarding health care and our patients-first health care plan — right care, right place, right time. There are some wonderful initiatives that have already started and will continue to move forward with enhancements. Things like an enhanced scope of practice that will allow all regulated health professionals to work to their full potential. Nurse practitioners have been given a green light to set up across Saskatchewan. There will be no limit to the number of nurse practitioners that can enter into primary care contracts. That’s amazing.

There’s been great feedback from the increase in providing primary care by nurse practitioners. Take the community of Central Butte, for example. They saw an additional practitioner join their integrated facility in this last year, providing primary care in Central Butte while living and raising a family and contributing to rural farm life. Financial incentive aside, it’s a win-win for everyone.

Also in Central Butte, our personal care home benefit, which covers the gap between a resident’s income and a $35-per-month threshold, that ensures that residents can afford the care in a personal care home. It has allowed the community-owned care home, known as Iver Main, to fully utilize all their space and then, as in the process, to offer more full-time employment in the process.

Mr. Speaker, these are initiatives that have come from outside-of-the-box thinking that Saskatchewan people are so known for. We are a province of resilient entrepreneurs that have built what remains an attractive and affordable place to live.

Now this was brought home to me in an incredible way just recently. Actually just less than a week ago. My sister and brother-in-law and my wife and I are the primary caregivers for my aunt and uncle, who are both in their 90s and reside in a personal care home. Recently there was a new nurse join the staff of their home. As I engaged in discussions around the care for my aunt and uncle, she shared with me her journey to Saskatchewan. I was so impressed, so impressed, that I asked for permission to share her story. And she willingly agreed.

I have to set it up just a little bit before I start the story. Not long ago the city of Moose Jaw developed several promotional videos entitled “Get a Life” — a life that is simpler with more time away because everything you need is only five minutes away. Get a life with a lower cost of living. Get a life where you have space to grow and raise a family. Get a life where you can buy a house for less. Get a life with a community focus. And the list goes on. And on a side note, our own MLA from Moose Jaw Wakamow is featured in those videos.

She did that exact thing — moved to Moose Jaw so that they could get a life. Now here is Daina’s story of how she came to live and work in Saskatchewan. These are her words in its entirety:

My name is Daina Moore and I am sincerely enjoying life in Moose Jaw and always thrilled to share my story with the good local citizens of Moose Jaw. How amazing.

In late 2024 I had two jobs just to get by and was working in the emergency departments both at Nanaimo Hospital and Abbotsford Hospital in BC.

I was trying very hard to make Vancouver Island a home base and a possible retirement reality for myself, but it is very expensive. I then thought about Alberta since many of my friends and colleagues seem to be flocking there. I wanted to avoid high prices and the congested city feel, so I started to research what it might be like to live and work in Saskatchewan. I thought it would be smarter to try the next province over from Alberta.

Hmm. My own comment — good wisdom there.

At the same time, my brother received renoviction notice from the high-rise apartment he was residing in in New Westminster, BC. He had been a tenant for 17 years and was shocked to learn that his rent would now increase from 1,000 a month to almost 2,200 or more for a one-bedroom, one-bath apartment. The thought of home ownership being out of reach despite being skilled professionals was very disheartening.

Family friends from Surrey, BC, moved to Herbert approximately five years ago and have thrived in Saskatchewan, and they even run the MCC Thrift store in Herbert. Every adult member of their small family was able to purchase a home in Herbert and find employment. This was inspiring for us.

My brother and I decided to have coffee together one afternoon in the fall of 2024 in my rental home in BC. While enjoying our coffee in the warm autumn sunshine, we sat in my living room and started to play any YouTube videos we could find made by locals living in Saskatchewan. My brother researched population and crime statistics of each town or city as we came across whatever YouTube videos we could find for each one.

There were some videos posted about Swift Current and Prince Albert. I remember a friend had mentioned mineral pools in Moose Jaw almost 20 years ago. We looked at the map. Moose Jaw is close to Herbert. I said to my brother, let’s search for videos on Moose Jaw.

The first video we came across was a person with a dashcam recording from his vehicle as he drove the streets of Moose Jaw. The video showed him driving downtown with all the brick buildings and murals visible. Then the person drove through the residential areas, including Sunningdale. It looked doable. The city looked like it was easy to navigate, calm, safe, and quiet. We saw all the stores and restaurants we were familiar with from BC. They were also in Moose Jaw.

Then we came across another YouTube video. This one was made by the city of Moose Jaw, called “Get A Life in Moose Jaw.” This video was our game changer. When the mayor and the locals spoke about the quality of life, the affordability, and the friendly community in Moose Jaw, we decided with certainty that we were going to try to make a life in this city. This was going to be the one.

In the days that followed that YouTube research, I started to apply and heard back from potential employers in Moose Jaw, such as the Saskatchewan Health Authority. I booked a flight for us to have a scouting trip of the city. That one-week trip took place at the end of January 2025.

There was a storm that week. We saw first-hand how life did not stop in Moose Jaw despite the storm, and we went to Bobby’s Place and the Deja Vu Cafe often for warm meals after each day of scouting the city as tourists . . .

Good choices, good choices.

. . . tourists that wanted to be future citizens. We loved how the taxi drivers explained how to get around town, how safe Moose Jaw is, and made some recommendations for us. In March of 2025 when I came back to start my new job in Moose Jaw, the same cab drivers remembered me. What a nice feeling.

My brother, who also moved to Moose Jaw at the same time as I, is about to graduate from the health care cook program at Sask Polytech in June this year. He hopes to work at one of the care homes or the hospital as a lead cook for the residents.

I have recently started a very exciting role at West Park Crossing, [which is where our paths crossed] which is only footsteps from my new apartment. I should also mention that Moose Jaw is a pet-friendly city which is important to me.

And it was seamless to have my car pass the provincial inspection through one of the car repair places here. It was easy to convert my driver’s licence and to apply for a medical card. And I was able to get my Saskatchewan nursing licence in two days. All so amazing.

I have also already connected with the ministry of children and families and have been able to start the long process of fostering or child adoption which has been a lifelong dream of mine, as well as being warmly welcomed as the newest member of the Moose Jaw optimist club.

I have more free time now in Moose Jaw to achieve these dreams for all the reasons that were highlighted in this video. I don’t need to get a life now; I have the life.

Now that’s an inspiring story of one person’s journey to our amazing, beautiful province. Daina is where she can thrive and live out her dreams in an affordable fashion. And she has also answered the call to employment in health care. So despite the doom and gloom and “nothing to see here” attitude from members opposite, myself and all of my fellow members are very bullish about our future. Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we will continue to encourage our young people to move into health care roles and we know their future will be bright.

Now, Mr. Speaker, my concluding comments are not directly connected to the budget, but I want to talk about how fortunate we are to live and work in a free and democratic country. We see the evil that exists all across the globe — wars and geopolitical conflicts that are unprecedented in their size and scope, unprecedented since World War II. Mr. Speaker, it is the blood of those who fought for our freedom that allows us to enjoy the democracy under which we were founded and continue to thrive.

Mr. Speaker, it is my contention that that is under attack. I’m talking about an attack on our values, the values that say every member has a voice to be heard in debate and policy decisions. That’s critical to what we do. But an attack that called four members to be named and hated for the purpose of raising money. Members who have served this province faithfully, who have raised and are raising children and grandchildren. And why are they to be hated? The only answer that I can think of is that their political views don’t align with the writer’s own views.

Mr. Speaker, we’re stronger if ideas and values and opinions are debated in this legislature, but hate has no place. Mr. Speaker, the opposition chief of staff and recently appointed campaign chair was the author of that hateful message of hate. Hate for any named individual has no place in public discourse. That type of cancer needs to be rooted out and replaced with common decency.

What we’ve seen so far in response from members opposite is that concern, frustration, and fear from people right now who really are struggling somehow excuses the language of hate. So the conclusion that I’ve come to, from what I’ve heard, is that hate is okay. The silence around not getting rid of that cancer is a deafening approval of the policy of hate. It’s not okay, Mr. Speaker, and I pray that everyone in this House recognize that and decency, respect, and good order returns.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I will be supporting the motion moved by the Minister of Finance and seconded by the member from Carrot River Valley, and I will not be supporting the amendment.

May words that are prayed over us daily right here in this House resonate with us all: “In all our works be done, continued, and ended in thee, may we glorify thy holy name. Amen.” May it be so.