Members of the business community in the Battlefords heard it straight from the provincial finance minister's mouth April 4.
Deputy Premier Ken Krawetz was in North Battleford at the Co-op cafeteria to deliver his annual post-budget message to the Battlefords Chamber of Commerce.
Not much new ground was covered, as the details of Krawetz's March 21 budget were by now well known among audience members.
But the breakfast meeting did allow the finance minister a chance to explain the rationale behind the decisions made in the budget and answer questions directly from local officials and Chamber members.
Krawetz explained the province wanted to move forward but also "act very vigilant." He pointed to volatile economic conditions around the world, including Greece, Italy and elsewhere.
He also spoke of the uncertainty surrounding Iran.
"If there was some altercation happening tonight, we'd see $150 oil tomorrow," he said.
Krawetz made the point in his presentation that the government was keeping its election commitments. While the opposition had proposed more spending, Krawetz said his government wanted to "make sure we have a sustainable plan in this province."
He spoke with pride about bringing down a balanced budget, the only one in Canada. In Ontario, they face a $15 billion deficit, he said.
"It's going to be a long time before they balance their budget," said Krawetz, who said Saskatchewan would "live within our means."
Not only was the budget balanced, but Krawetz pointed to a surplus, with $11.3 billion in revenue and $11.2 billion in expenditure projected.
The finance minister also spoke of a major topic of interest to those in the room: infrastructure spending. A substantial $788 of their $11.2 million expenditure was infrastructure spending, Krawetz said, with the operating budget representing just 3.9 per cent.
That allowed the government to be able to address its priorities, said Krawetz, including health care, such as the surgical initiative and cancer screenings.
Krawetz also spoke in glowing terms of the strength of the economy. He noted it grew by 3.6 percent last year, the second-highest in the nation, despite the flooding and other problems that went on.
Krawetz also addressed a number of topics in his address, including first-time housing, the active families benefit, addressing disabilities, in education funding and other items from the budget.
He also spoke of the growing economy and growing population. Krawetz noted forecasters were predicting Saskatchewan is going to lead the nation at 3.1 per cent growth this year and 3.3 per cent next year.
"When is the last time that you heard Saskatchewan was going to lead the nation in two successive years of economic development?" asked Krawetz. "Never."
The breakfast event was well attended by Chamber of Commerce members, local civic officials including Mayor Ian Hamilton of North Battleford and Mayor Chris Odishaw of Battleford, as well as MLAs Herb Cox of the Battlefords and Larry Doke of Cut Knife-Turtleford.
During the question and answer session, Krawetz fielded questions on a number of topics. One question concerned how the province was bracing for the potential costs associated with the federal government's omnibus crime legislation.
"There are quite a few ramifications of Bill C-10. We know that," Krawetz responded. He said the province added $9.6 million to the expansion of the women's facility in Prince Albert to meet the challenges, and also talked of the impact of the 120 additional police officers added across the province. He says many communities are reporting crime is ,a which he says has reduced crime in many communities. He also said the province was moving forward with $3 million towards a men's facility in Prince Albert which is estimated to cost a total of $24 million, and was prepared to work with the federal government on the impact of Bill C-10.
"We're never going to be sure what the pressures are going to be of Bill C-10," said Krawetz, who added "we know we have to move forward on what we currently have, which, unfortunately, is overcrowding."
Another question was posed by Rena Weikle of the Western Development Museum board about the province's $4 million and no increase funding for the museums, which has forced them to scale back. Weikle wanted to know if additional dollars could be made available in the future, but Krawetz responded the budget was "pretty firm" and won't be changed, though he did leave the door open to exploring possible partnerships.
Krawetz also spoke about the government's commitment towards a new Saskatchewan Hospital and the $5 million line item in the budget towards detailed planning. He was asked by reporters about that $5 million figure, as compared to the $8 million figure announced last August when Premier Brad Wall announced the government the government announced it was moving ahead with detailed planning for the new hospital.
Krawetz responded it was $5 million that was ultimately requested by the health ministry to move forward with the design phase.
"The minister of health made a proposal to us that did not include $8 million dollars. The minister of health said the need is $5 million right now to move ahead with the design phase," said Krawetz.
He went on to explain the $8 million figure from last year was an initial estimate.
"The best available projections are that we need $5 million," said Krawetz. "So we're moving forward."
