A mantra of the Sask Party government has been that we need to tell the story of the province, and Premier Brad Wall was in Yorkton to do just that recently at the Premier's Dinner.
The overall message of the speech was that the province is currently in good shape, with a growing economy and progress in areas such as infrastructure and health care. Wall says that the goal now is to keep things going well, and ensure that the province isn't resting on its current success.
"Part of our message needs to be that the province should never be complacent about the economy. It is good right now, and there are things we all can do to make this sustainable. There are going to be ups and downs, we still have a lot of natural resources that underpin the economy, but increasingly we are getting diversified," Wall says.
He notes that the province is becoming less reliant on the resource sector, as that part of the economy saw job numbers decrease as the overall job numbers increased.
"We're not a one trick pony, but I hope we're not complacent about the economy, because it does pay for everything else.
"It gives us the tax base to be able to support all of the infrastructure and services that people deserve."
Part of the reason that the province cannot be complacent is a deficit in certain areas. Wall notes that, for example, while there are 300 more doctors in the province and it is a more attractive place to set up a practice, there is still a shortage, so this is one area where the province needs to keep working, as well as an area that needs the economy to keep strong in order to pay for initiatives to recruit doctors.
The Parkland College's Trades and Technology Centre is a project which Wall believes will be important in the continued growth for the economy, especially as there is currently a labor shortage in the province. He credits the region for coming up with the case for the project, including MLA Greg Ottenbreit, city council, the Chamber of Commerce and the college itself for making the case and bringing together the private sector support to put it together.
"It's turned into a fantastic project we're glad to be a part of."
For Yorkton itself, Wall says that the city is in a good place, especially for the retail sector, as PST increases in Manitoba make a city near the eastern border an attractive shopping proposition.
"On the west side of the province, we understood the pressure when our governments were increasing PST and people would just go to Medicine Hat and shop. So there's just a bit of an advantage there I think for people on the east side in the retail business."
However, Wall says that retail is far from the only strong sector in the region, with agriculture, energy, manufacturing and other industries in the region means Yorkton is going to be an economic bright spot in the province into the future.
