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Ten ridings to watch: Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar

Election 2011: rabble.ca has chosen 10 key ridings across Canada for progressives to watch in the run-up to the May 2 vote, and asked local writers to assess them. The profiles highlight why the riding profiled is important and issues local campaigns are focused upon.
Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar is the riding to watch on May 2nd. It's a two-party race, Conservatives vs. NDP, and every political pundit in the country is saying it's "too close to call."

Kelly Block was relatively unknown when she ran and won for the Conservatives in 2008, having previously served as mayor of the town of Waldheim, outside of the riding. Like many of the Cons candidates in 2008, she kept a low profile and stayed out of the community debates.

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Conservatives NDP federal election saskatchewan Saskatchewan Politics saskatoon Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar
in her own words

Keepers of the Water: A wake-up call from the North

Wollaston Lake open-pit uranium mines, Saskatchewan. Photo:Google Earth

I was very fortunate to participate in the Keepers of the Water conference in Wollaston Lake, northern Saskatchewan, in mid-August. It was my first time to this remote community, which can only be reached by barge/boat or airplane as there are no roads that go directly there. People say the water there is clean enough to drink right out of the lake, which I saw someone doing. The lake, one of Saskatchewan's largest, certainly looked beautiful, though I hesitated to drink from it like the locals.

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Tar Sands saskatchewan water Indigenous Sovereignty uranium Indigenous water supply water quality the north
in his own words

Privatizing potash was a costly mistake

The greatest tragedy in BHP Billiton's $38.6-billion (U.S.) bid for the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (PCS) is that the Government of Saskatchewan previously sold PCS for just $630 million. This privatization was the worst fiscal decision in the province's history and has been aggravated by subsequent royalty giveaways to private potash companies.

PCS was created in 1975 as a provincial Crown corporation. The Saskatchewan government privatized it in 1989, selling all of its shares by 1994.

Presumably, the proceeds were deducted from the provincial deficit. Borrowing $630 million at 10 per cent interest, compounded over two decades, would have added $4.2-billion of provincial debt by now.

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privatization saskatchewan Potash Corporation

On the abuse of language: Saskatchewan's Bill 85 and 'modernizing' labour relations

By
Simon Enoch
| May 14, 2013

The government of Saskatchewan is currently undertaking a controversial overhaul of the province's labour legislation into the mammoth omnibus Bill 85. But those that might be concerned about the rather rash decision to overturn 107 years of labour legislation in the period of a few months need not worry, because what the Saskatchewan government is actually doing is modernizing our labour laws. That's a relief, "modernizing" has such a new shiny ring to it! Who could be against "modernizing" anything? This legislation must really be cutting-edge stuff, thinking outside the box, labour legislation 2.0 and all that!

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Redeye
Redeye

Saskatchewan Employment Act a fundamental attack on worker rights

April 27, 2013
| Bill 85 is an omnibus bill that aims to rewrite labour law in the province. Larry Hubich says the new law opens the door to making compulsory union membership illegal.
Length: 13:06 minutes (12 MB)
politics

Saskatchewan's Bill 85 will be bad for workers' health

Is the proposed new Saskatchewan Employment Act an example of false economy or an attack on the health of non-union workers across the province? Probably both.

If health outcomes are the way we measure the likely impact of work time and scheduling changes then Bill 85 will be an abject failure since it will compromise many people's health.

If employers think they will save money from the "flexibility" Bill 85 imposes on non-union workers most will learn that the resulting ill health will cost them far more.

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rabble news

Saskatchewan prepares to gut labour laws with Bill 85

The SEIU's campaign material against Bill 85.

Saskatchewan is about to dramatically overhaul its labour legislation, transforming it from one of the most progressive jurisdictions in Canada in terms of worker protection to one of the most regressive. You wouldn't know it, though, from reading mainstream news coverage. 

The national media's near-total silence on the soon-to-be adopted Saskatchewan Employment Act, now being sped through the legislature as Bill 85 by the ruling Saskatchewan Party, is a bit puzzling given the unprecedented nature of many of the bill's reforms. 

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labour saskatchewan Saskatchewan Politics labour law politics in Canada
politics

After close leadership race, the real challenge begins for the Saskatchewan NDP

Photo: globalsaskatoon.com

On March 9, Cam Broten narrowly defeated Ryan Meili, winning the leadership of the Saskatchewan NDP. This is the second of two opinion pieces on this result and what direction the party should take with their new leader. Yesterday we featued an article by Don Kossick. 

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NDP saskatchewan Saskatchewan Politics Saskatchewan NDP Cam Broten
Opinion

After close leadership race, which way forward for the Saskatchewan NDP?

Cam Broten narrowly beat Ryan Meili. Which way now for the Saskatchewan NDP?

On March 9, Cam Broten narrowly defeated Ryan Meili, winning the leadership of the Saskatchewan NDP. This is the first of two opinion pieces on this result and what direction the party should take with their new leader. Tomorrow we'll feature an article by Saskatchewan NDP member Jaime Garcia. 

The snow has still to settle after Ryan Meili's 44 vote loss for the leadership of the Saskatchewan NDP on the weekend. 

The win of Cam Broten indicates that NDP in Saskatchewan will take a middle of the road course in Saskatchewan, vying for the votes of the centre to somehow achieve power -- a sort of liberal NDP approach. 

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NDP saskatchewan Saskatchewan Politics skpoli Cam Broten
briefly

Cam Broten narrowly wins Saskatchewan NDP leadership

Cam Broten narrowly won the leadership of the Saskatchewan NDP on Saturday, edging out Ryan Meili on the second ballot by only 44 votes. Broten received 4,164 out of 8,284 ballots cast. Meili, an author and physician, had been leading by several hundred votes after the first ballot. 

The leadership convention came nearly a year and a half after Dwain Lingenfelter resigned as provincial NDP leader after the November 2011 election in which the Saskatchewan Party won a decisive majority. John Nilson, an MLA for Regina, served as interim leader. 

Broten, 34, is the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Saskatoon Massey Place, having won elections in 2007 and 2011. His grandfather was an MLA in the Saskatchewan NDP government of Tommy Douglas. 

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NDP saskatchewan Saskatchewan Politics Saskatchewan NDP skpoli Cam Broten
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