To no one’s surprise, the NDP opposition has blasted the Sask Party government’s 2018 budget for being “more of the same”.
“The same mismanagement of the economy, the same shortsightedness, the same underfunding of education, and the same lack of long term thinking,” said opposition critic Cathy Sproule in an embargoed scrum with media in Regina, prior to Finance Minister Donna Harpauer's budget presentation later in the afternoon.
She pointed to the “lack of proper funding” and “hikes in taxes and fees,” as well as the rise in long-term debt.
“This province is on track to triple its debt since 2008”, said Sproule. “That’s unacceptable.”
She said that in two years families saw a 60 percent increase in the sales tax and a 10 percent increase in their electricity bills.
Sproule also said the Sask Party failed to restore the $54 million cut in education in last year’s budget, despite an increasing number of students and increasing needs of students.
There was also a change to municipal grants in lieu, which meant citizens in local communities would have to pay more, Sproule noted.
“The Sask Party has simply no long term vision for prosperity,” Sproule said.
