MOOSE JAW — Opposition NDP leader Carla Beck wants to help grow Moose Jaw’s economy and believes that can be achieved through the building of more pipelines, rail lines and power lines.
Beck and 15 of her 27-member cabinet were in Canada’s Most Notorious City on July 3, where they spent the morning discussing strategic matters and then met with community leaders and residents during Sidewalk Days.
The NDP also held a news conference at the former Canadian Pacific Railway station to discuss matters affecting the economies of Saskatchewan and Moose Jaw.
Beck said she and her team have spent time in Moose Jaw during the past few months, listening to residents, business leaders, health-care workers and others about how to improve the economy and ensure the community has good-paying jobs.
“What we see in Moose Jaw is a city that’s well-situated to be able to take advantage of the incredible opportunity that we see on the horizon,” she said.
Beck highlighted several locations, including 15 Wing Airbase and its “iconic” Snowbirds, the Temple Gardens Hotel and Spa, the Tunnels and the Temple Gardens Centre. She also commended the community’s “world-class” volunteers, while she pointed out that Moose Jaw is a hub for pulse crops, grain and canola.
Moreover, there are the nearby potash mines and the Gibson Energy refinery, all of which provide good-paying jobs, she stated. She also thought that Moose Jaw required more infrastructure money to enhance its future and create more jobs.
However, there have been challenges this year that affect that positive outlook, from China’s tariffs on Canadian agricultural products to the United States’ tariffs on almost everything it imports from Canada, Beck said.
The NDP leader noted that China’s tariffs are harmful to Moose Jaw since the community is an area agribusiness hub. Moreover, she said she wrote a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney urging him to have China lift its tariffs immediately, including by removing Canada’s tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles.
“These are serious threats, and the threats themselves come with real consequences,” Beck said. “This is the kind of threat that requires serious leadership from a government that is focused on the future.”
Continuing, Beck accused Premier Scott has failed to show leadership with tariffs, pointing to Moe “quietly” removing the tax countermeasures on the U.S. The American tariffs, meanwhile, have “hammered” Saskatchewan’s $400-million steel industry and “will continue to have consequences.”
The Sask. Party’s decision to eliminate tariffs on U.S. goods will cause job losses and will continue to send tax dollars south, said Beck. Strong political leadership is required, but the Sask. Party and the premier have been “slow to act, time and time again.”
Beck also accused Moe of “pandering” to the separatist movement in Saskatchewan, which wants the province to become the 51st state. She noted that that “is not on for” the NDP, which has no interest in breaking up “this beautiful country” since separation would kill jobs and drive away investments.
“This is not a time to be focused on tearing down; it’s a time to be building up,” she continued, noting that means constructing more power lines, pipelines and rail lines, including supporting short-line railways since they transport ag products to market.
The NDP also wants to see interprovincial trade barriers removed, the promotion of “a Saskatchewan-first approach” with government contracts and major projects, and a reduction in tax hikes that have “been hammering” Saskatchewan people for years, Beck said.
Beck added that the NDP would continue to propose ideas that created good-paying jobs for residents in Moose Jaw and Saskatchewan, along with proposals to reduce the province’s reliance on the United States.
