SASKATOON — Carla Beck kicked off the Saskatchewan NDP's election campaign by promising not to raise taxes and suspending the provincial gas tax if voters give her a chance to form a government.
Beck hopes to replace Premier Scott Moe if the local NDP gains enough seats to propel her to the province's top post. An NDP victory would be historic, as Beck, the Regina Lakeview MLA, would become the province's first female premier.
Moe's Sask Party holds an overwhelming majority in the Legislative Assembly, with 42 of the 61 seats, compared to the provincial NDP's 14. Four independents are present members, while the Saskatchewan United Party has Nadine Wilson and one vacant seat.
Beck and the Sask-NDP are also looking to capitalize on the decision of 14 Sask Party MLAs not to seek their respective positions in the general elections, which will be held on or before Oct. 28, 2024. Thirty-one seats are needed to earn a majority.
Beck said struggling daily to make ends meet is the common sentiment of the people she talks to whenever she goes around the province, a feeling that everyone is falling behind and the cost of living is getting more expensive.
"There's no doubt Scott Moe and the Sask Party have done nothing to lower costs for Saskatchewan people and Saskatchewan businesses. Nothing to make it easier to get ahead," said Beck during a press event on Thursday, Aug. 29, inside a family-owned shop in the city.
"We've seen from this government to make life more expensive. This government hiked provincial sales tax from per cent to six per cent and then expanded it to things like groceries, children's clothes, and so on."
That's why, if the voters give the NDP the majority to form a government, she and her team will ensure that taxes are not raised in her first term and that the fuel tax is suspended for six months, a move that will give Saskatchewan families an average of about $350 in savings.
"I guarantee that we will not increase provincial income taxes, small business taxes, provincial sales tax or corporate tax. No tax hikes, period. A Saskatchewan NDP government will suspend Moe's 15 cents a litre gas tax for six months, [like] in Alberta and Manitoba," said Beck.
"We will also freeze the small business tax that Scott Moe plans to double next July, and we will pay for this spending by all of these commitments by growing the Saskatchewan economy, leaning into that opportunity that we see right across this province."
She said they plan to form a government that is efficient in spending while ending Moe's wasteful and mismanaged spending, such as the premier's "multi-million-dollar trip to Dubai" and his high-priced consultants.
"While Moe has been blowing the budget, families across Saskatchewan have been falling further behind. A Saskatchewan NDP will make life more affordable and guarantee the stability and certainty that families, job creators, and investors in this province need," said Beck.
"[We] will keep costs down and make sure that Saskatchewan becomes a place where you can get ahead and your kids can have opportunities right here at home. That's my guarantee. There's a long list where we see this government wasting money."
She added that the current provincial government also does not know how to prioritize programs, whether in education or health care, inefficiencies currently undertaken by the Sask Party-led majority.
"[A] mismanaged project [we have] seen is the software technology in healthcare ballooning from $80 million to $300M. [Health care] is one of the first places that we will redirect those funds. This is about priorities," said Beck.
"The number one thing that we hear from people, from a team that's knocking on thousands of doors every week, is 'I need a break. I'm falling further behind.' Government should respond to the needs of the people they hope to serve."
Beck said the issue is all about priorities in spending and practical measures, which Alberta and Manitoba addressed. The provincial government could have done this in the last two years but chose not to.
"Something that our neighbours to the East and the West have done and still managed to make the investments in health care and education. In the case of Manitoba, this is about priorities. Our priorities should match those of the people of this province," said Beck.
