YORKTON - Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe was in the Yorkton area last week to announce that the province will fund 50 per cent of upgrades to Grain Millers Drive.
That’s certainly good news for Yorkton and area as the road is a major connector serving the two canola crush plants and the big oat processor along its seven kilometres, and it is of course good news for farmers delivering to those facilities.
However, few details came with Wednesday’s announcement including no actual dollar amount tied to the province’s 50 per cent, how the partnering municipalities – the City of Yorkton and RM of Orkney – would share their 50 per cent of costs, or when the project might actually get under way.
So we can mark the announcement as a prelude to something positive some day.
Moe also veered off the actual road project and talked about a provincial plan to send a delegation to China to try and facilitate an easing of Chinese tariffs on Canadian goods, including canola and pork.
That plan is of greater immediate interest.
While Moe did point out the United States remains the major market for Saskatchewan the likelihood of them, or anyone else coming up with a long term deal as long as Donald Trump is president is remote.
There is little to suggest Trump wants a deal, and every concession made by others are likely to simply be met by more exorbitant demands.
The trust factor when Trump makes a deal is negligible at best, so we are far better off shoring up trade with other countries.
So sending a delegation to China is a good idea – if nothing else it builds relationships and keeps the lines of communication open.
Better news from Moe was that he will be inviting Prime Minister Mark Carney to accompany the Saskatchewan delegation, along with other federal officials.
Given the upheavals in trade created primarily by Trump it is time the province put aside the constant finger-pointing at Ottawa it has undertaken in recent years, and worked more cooperatively on things – in this case facilitating trade.
Certainly it is the same government in Ottawa as the one Moe has blamed for most everything in recent years, but Carney is new, and the times have changed.
To get deals done – minus Trump of course – it will take federal government involvement.
So kudos to Moe for the invite.
Of course now it is imperative that Carney take an equally conciliatory step and say yes to sending federal reps on the trip.
Getting a deal done that kicks open the door on trade with China would be good for Saskatchewan and for Canada at a time we need trade options more than ever since our traditional greatest ally seems to be receding ever farther from that role.
