The theme of this year's Throne Speech was "Keeping Saskatchewan Strong," which gives an indication of what people can expect from the government in the upcoming year. The Saskatchewan Party government is not making any dramatic changes in direction, but continuing to focus on the priorities they believe can improve the province.
"I think a lot of initiatives in there have a direct impact in Yorkton and the surrounding area. Trying to keep life fairly affordable and having supports in place for those that need help is something that affects all areas," says Yorkton MLA Greg Ottenbreit.
One thing that will have a major impact in the region is a planned growth tax incentive for companies that create jobs, Ottenbreit says. Yorkton businesses in the manufacturing sector are poised to take advantage of this planned incentive, and Ottenbreit says it will help them grow and take advantage of new markets.
Training seats have been a priority since the government has taken office, something Ottenbreit says is starting to pay dividends as those people who took advantage of incentives are graduating. That focus continues with more Adult Basic Education training seats being announced, with 775 new seats getting rid of the current wait list. There will also be an increased number of apprenticeship spots. Ottenbreit says that the Parkland College will be one of the facilities that will be training these students.
"Training our local people who are more used to living in rural Saskatchewan, they're more likely to end up working there and building their families there, and I believe will reduce that recruitment and retention problem we have seen in the past."
The colleges will also be getting some technical improvements, with a push to upgrade internet capacity for the provinces educational institutions. This is a response to how education is handled now, says Ottenbreit.
"They're starting to use a lot of online training, and they're telling us they need more of that access to continue training people for our economy, for our jobs and for our quality of life."
The government will also reintroduce and expand older program, the Saskatchewan Infrastructure Growth Initiative, an incentive which provides interest rate subsidies for up to five years on municipal borrowing for infrastructure development. Ottenbreit says that since a lot of the infrastructure was built in the post-war period, most cities are in the same boat when it comes to replacing infrastructure, but the costs are much higher and the codes more strict. Ottenbreit says this is also why the province is pushing heavily towards a public-private partnership, or P3, model to improve the province's infrastructure.
"These projects can't be built in the traditional way, that's why provincial and even federally we're engaging in more innovative solutions to addressing infrastructure."
A program piloted in Yorkton will see a much wider roll out. The HUB model will be expanded to Meadow Lake and Melfort, meaning it will now be in 13 communities. The program is about connecting different support agencies, to discover potential problems and react early to prevent issues. Ottenbreit says it has been making a difference here, so it's being moved into new communities. He says they adapt it to each community, and it means that people can get effective service early on.
"Yorkton was the second one in the province. Admittedly, it went through a few challenges, but it is working very well now under the leadership of the RCMP and other community organizations."
Reducing medical wait times has been a project of the government for some time, and that will be reflected in increasing the number of tasks that can be accomplished by pharmacists. Now pharmacists will be able to do immunizations and order and use lab tests, which Ottenbreit says will take people out of the healthcare system for small issues, with the goal of using the system in the most effective manner possible. There will also be extensive changes to the organ tissue donation regulations in order to reduce surgical wait times, especially for people who need cornea transplants.
The government's goal is to encourage economic growth for the benefit of the people, says Ottenbreit, and he believes the government's direction reflects this priority.
