Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is receiving criticism locally for his recent comments about employment insurance and the state of the oil industry.
In an interview with Global Calgary last month, Trudeau suggested that people in Edmonton and Saskatchewan who complain of being left out of changes to employment insurance should feel fortunate their areas have not been hit harder by the sliding energy prices.
The federal budget boosted employment insurance benefits in some parts of the country, but excluded some areas of the oilpatch, including southern Saskatchewan.
Jackie Wall, the executive director of the Estevan Chamber of Commerce, predicts that Trudeau would regret the statement.
“I was taken aback, and I think a lot of people were,” she said.
While some might want the Prime Minister to visit the Energy City and get a first-hand look at the state of the oil sector, she believes Trudeau would have needed to be here a few years ago when the economy was thriving.
Even if he were to tour the worker camps that are now closed or aren’t as busy as they were a few years ago, he wouldn’t be able to grasp the full scale of the slowdown.
“You would think he would have a better sense of what’s going on by visiting the oilpatch,” said Wall. “He visited Calgary, but it didn’t really seem to make that big of an impact.”
Wall believes local people want to move forward with their businesses and look ahead to upcoming events like the Crescent Point Energy Western Canada Cup and the Saskatchewan Summer Games.
“We realize that the answers to what is happening right now are long-term,” said Wall. “These short-term programs aren’t going to do a lot to help, really, in an industry that is cyclical and has its ups and downs.”
Wall is originally from southwest Saskatchewan, and she said that part of the country has also been hit hard due to the lower oil prices. When she was in Swift Current, she could notice the difference compared to a couple years ago.
“There is a slowdown, all across the board, from what I’ve heard from chambers across Saskatchewan,” said Wall.
In an effort to boost business during the slowdown, the chamber, the City of Estevan and the Rural Municipality of Estevan have resurrected the local economic development committee. Its most recent meeting happened before Wall became the chamber’s executive director last June.
“There was an economic development plan that was done a couple years ago, and nothing has really been done to see it through,” said Wall.
They will also be working with the South East Cornerstone Public School Division, the Southeast College, the Weyburn Chamber of Commerce, and the White Bear, Pheasant Rump and Ocean Man First Nations to further the Southeast Education and Industry Council (SEIC).
Wall said they want to get the SEIC registered so they can apply for different grants, and work with the school system and industry to get students into programs that will benefit both young people and employers.
