Ensuring the health and well-being of the population is widely considered a fundamental responsibility of government, acting as a cornerstone for sustainable economic growth and social stability. Citizens view it as an essential human right that they are allowed to reach their full potential, with the assurance of government working for the common good and the shared, ever-increasing national and provincial prosperity. 

Good health is necessary for economic growth, with health inequalities often hindering development, particularly in rural or marginalized communities.

Here in Saskatchewan, we have a government that seems to have lost sight of the fact that healthcare is one of two areas (education being the other) that are very much a provincial responsibility politically. The SaskParty, who claim to care so deeply about the economic health of our province, has turned a blind eye to the economic hardships caused to our citizens by a healthcare system in shambles.

As we stand on the cusp of a new year, I find such hope in the strong, forward-looking policies that we Saskatchewan Green Party members have created together over the years. When I speak to elementary and high school-age children, they instinctively feel aligned with our core values and messages. Youth see the value in looking after both the environment and those who are in unfortunate circumstances. Not only must we keep articulating these important policies so that youth have a fulfilling future, but we also look to the youth as the next wave of voices for the fulfillment of these policies and the best Saskatchewan possible.

Healthcare shouldn’t be a political issue. Caring for the health of the people of our province benefits all of us and our economy. When a citizen's minor complaints aren’t addressed, they worsen until surgery and other high-cost care are needed. Of course, we also lose work hours, and this hurts the local economy; our loved ones lose work hours and productivity while visiting and caring for us.

A province that doesn’t come up with a practical plan to ensure that everyone has a family doctor has failed in one of the two main areas –  Health and Education – that are totally under provincial control. Saskatchewan, embarrassingly, shows recent estimates indicating that about one in six, or 16% to 17%, of Saskatchewan residents do not have a family physician. This number is based on data from Statistics Canada and the Canadian Institute for Health Information. The national average for Canadians lacking a regular healthcare provider is 14.5%.

A big highlight of this year’s Speech from the Throne was the proposal of involuntary treatment for those suffering from addictions. 

This is a bold statement at a time when people actively seeking help for addiction and mental health treatment face long waiting lists, hospitals are underfunded and understaffed, towns and cities are struggling to provide warming centers for the unhoused, and demand is overshadowing support for food banks.

Just a reminder, we already know what real, long-lasting solutions look like. When we fund drug treatment programs, healthcare, mental health services, social workers, affordable housing, education, job placement, and the decriminalization & regulation of sex work and drugs, then we actually have the public infrastructure for success.

As we start to feel the weather turning toward winter, and nights get colder, for those living unhoused in the province of Saskatchewan, weather can mean life or death. The lack of adequate action at the provincial level for righting the homelessness issue shows a complete lack of humanity, especially when this government is willing to spend $5 billion of taxpayer dollars on each of four proposed Small Modular Nuclear Reactors. This government has never shown more clearly that their priority is funnelling money into the hands of big business, and that they couldn't care less about those living in desperate need.

The federal government provides significant funding for homelessness initiatives in Saskatchewan through the National Housing Strategy and with specific programs like Reaching Home. In January 2025, Saskatchewan's cities of Saskatoon and Regina received a combined $8 million from a larger $91 million package to fund encampment response plans, supporting new shelters and transitional housing. The federal government also contributes through the Canada-Saskatchewan Bilateral Agreement, investing in affordable housing projects that serve individuals at risk of or experiencing homelessness. The Saskatchewan provincial government shows a glaring lack of contribution. 

Greens are a party for Labour. Deeply embedded in our Core Green Values are the right for people to have safe workplaces, to be treated with dignity and to earn fair wages that keep up with the cost of living. Greens stand behind the same issues that unions stand behind, fighting to support workers’ rights for all. 

Right now, in Saskatchewan, we are entering a true affordability crisis. In particular, the cost of groceries is so high that ensuring that people can afford to feed themselves at minimum nutritional standards is top priority.  This Labour Day, we must ensure that families can afford to feed their children – and that kids aren’t going to school hungry.

This summer, as Saskatchewan experiences its worst wildfire season yet, citizens are appalled by the government’s inadequate response. 

Equally shocking for environmentalists is listening to update after update by Scott Moe, never once mentioning the connection between climate change and these fires. He appears, beyond belief, to be acting like these super fires are just a normal cycle for our province, while Denare Beach residents and others lost everything and watched their homes burn to the ground, due to the inaction of Scott Moe and the provincial response.

If our SaskParty government really wanted affordable, reliable electricity for people living in this province, then we would see them invest seriously in geothermal, wind and solar – instead of wasting our hard-earned tax dollars on extending the life of our dirty, outdated coal plants. At a time when we are at a tipping point for holding on to life as we know it, and when leaving a liveable world for the next generations rests on ending our carbon addiction, Scott Moe seems to be saying “Burn baby, burn”. He’s keeping Saskatchewan stuck as the last province still relying primarily on coal, with his only alternative plan a decades-away fairytale of never-before-built, extremely expensive  ($5 billion for just one!) Small Modular Nuclear Reactors. 

Literally the Rest of the World is busy kicking its coal addiction, but Saskatchewan’s government insists on continuing to get power from coal, despite coal’s massive contribution to the carbon pollution that causes so many forest fires in our North and makes a mockery of our plans for ensuring a healthy life for our children and grandchildren.

 I was up at my family’s haskap orchard near Birch Hills, SK this past weekend getting ready for harvest. The air quality issues due to nearby forest fires were causing lung issues for almost everyone I spoke to. At our orchard, even when it’s rained nearby, it hasn’t rained on our land. Since the snow melted, we have had all of a millimetre of rain. The land is parched. We needed to repair a pump before we could irrigate with the water from snowmelt in our dugout. The nearby orchard that we also usually harvest for the owner doesn’t have the water for irrigation. There will likely be no point harvesting there this year if they don’t get rain. This is the reality for farmers.

     Everyone in the province is affected by the ever-worsening forest fire super fires our province is experiencing. So far in SK, over 5,000 people have been displaced. Entire communities have been forced to flee their homes as wildfires continue to sweep across the region.

As we approach voting for the imminent federal election, we are all hearing the cries for “strategic voting”. Voting Green – i.e., sending a strong message that people in this province want real action on climate change, along with the dynamic socioeconomic fairness laid out in our platform – IS the more strategic vote.

(If you haven't read the GREEN PARTY OF CANADA’S PLAN, you will find it here.)

This is especially so in our home province, where for three elections in a row, not a single federal riding was won by Saskatchewan Conservatives by the number of votes that Green candidates achieved in those ridings. That means that Conservatives would still have won if not one Green vote were counted. All those Green votes did nothing to influence the outcome for the Conservatives. Those Green votes did show that there are voters in Saskatchewan who care for environmental protection and socioeconomic justice; A base to build on into the future.

I would also remind those who say “This election is different from the others because of the Poilievre threat”, of how desperate we were to get rid of Harper in 2015. In 2015, Canadians elected a Liberal majority.