The year of 2010 had many trials for the Government of Saskatchewan, from natural disasters to large scale takeover attempts for major businesses. Yorkton MLA Greg Ottenbreit recently sat down with The News Review to discuss the year that was.
The beginning of the year, and the provincial budget, were affected by the budget shortfalls of 2009, and forced a different approach to this fiscal year, Ottenbreit observes.
"We came through a real trying year, the year previous with the state of the potash industry and prices, so it put some real strain financially on the government and the province. But, overall, the economy did really well, business did very well, and we were a bit more conservative with the budget process which served us well," Ottenbreit says.
In contrast with 2009, the income of the province was higher than anticipated, and Ottenbreit says that instead of drawing from the Growth and Financial Security Fund as expected, the province will be increasing the amount of money in the fund. Ottenbreit credits confidence in the province to improving the financial situation, as well as better than expected resource revenue.
As the Saskatchewan Party government enters the final year of its first term, Ottenbreit says that the government has been doing what it said it would, and that the promises have been either kept or are under way. He notes that the long promised one per cent of the PST to municipalities and the education tax reforms are under way.
One area which Ottenbreit would like to clear up is the government handling of the crown corporations. While he says that there has been some talk from opposition parties about privatizing them, he says that is not the case, and while streamlining is taking place it is for the purpose of keeping them strong.
"We're focusing on keeping the core of the crowns very strong, so they are long term sustainable and they keep delivering those services not only to the people of the province, but the corporations that are coming here," Ottenbreit says.
He notes that the crowns have seen a large amount of investment intended to improve service, especially in rural areas. This is key, Ottenbreit says, because the province's economy is primarily rural.
One thing which the summer of 2010 will be remembered for in Saskatchewan was the large number of natural disasters.
The flooding throughout the province, including Yorkton, proved to be a test of the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program. Ottenbreit admits that the program has gaps, with people still living at SIGN after six months, but he says it is better than what it was before, with faster payouts and more money available to homeowners, landlords and businesses. He also says work on the program is still ongoing, and meetings continue to take place to look at where the gaps are and how they can be filled.
In the area of health care, Ottenbreit admits the province is not perfect. He notes that there was a recent Angus Reed poll which reported that the province had the highest satisfaction rate in the country, at 50 per cent.
"Not that 50 per cent is a passing grade, but it is positive to see that the province has gone from second last to one of the top in satisfaction in the country."
Still, admitting that the health care in the province is not perfect is the only way to improve it. The local MLA says physician recruitment and retention is still an issue that needs to be resolved, but that the recruitment and retention of nurses has been a bright spot provincially. Ottenbreit says the recruitment goals for nurses has been surpassed, and the increases in training for nurses from 100 seats to 300 will see the province's nursing continue to be strong. He also says initiatives to reduce wait times are starting to bear fruit, though the province still has a long way to go.
Also in the realm of healthcare, Ottenbreit notes that the clinical trials for MS "liberation treatment" are going ahead as planned, with final proposals being selected before it begins in April. One initiative which he is proud of is the Children's Hospital being built in Saskatoon. He notes that the hospital is something the province needed in order to ensure the health of children, but he takes issue with the way the opposition NDP implied that the hospital's future was in doubt.
"The concerning thing for me is that it actually put in jeopardy the fund raising activities for the facility in Saskatoon. People were hearing this nonsense, and they got a little bit afraid to donate to this project."
One big issue the government is in the middle of finding ways to deal with is the situation with the child welfare system in the province. Ottenbreit notes that there was a recent auditor's report which showed the system to have major deficiencies in the tracking of children and overcrowding in foster homes. He says that while the report was negative, and overcrowding remains an issue, the government has been working towards fixing the system since before the report came out. He notes that a more modern computer system to better track where children are, and that they are working towards reducing overcrowding in homes.
The province goes into the next year leading in economic growth and with more increases in population, Ottenbreit observes. That population comes from people moving in or moving back, and also a record number of babies being born in the province. He says that keeping the province strong is important in order to keep those children in the province as they grow up.
"Those kids that grow up here, as long as there are opportunities and we can keep supplying opportunities, they are more bound to stay here and keep up with that positive growth."
The growth experienced is something which Ottenbreit does not see slowing down, as the resources of the province will drive growth in the coming years. He says the province's profile has been raised further for unexpected reasons, as the attempt by BHP Billiton to take over PotashCorp has seen the province's resources highlighted.
"With the BHP Billiton takeover bid, and that hitting the world business news, it really brought a lot of attention to Saskatchewan. People are realizing we're not just potash, but we're gold, uranium, diamonds, oil, gas, you name it. We have all of the resources the world needs."
While the improved economy is a good thing, Ottenbreit notes that simply having an economy isn't enough, the need is to grow responsibly, and to use that economy to bring improvements to the province's quality of life.
With the election coming in the next year the MLA believes that the province can stand on the record from this term.
"We're by no means a perfect government, but we have a record that we will proudly be able to run on and a leader we are going to proudly be able to stand behind and support," he concludes.
