Role of the Family

The party advocates:
– comprehensive and balanced counselling and education regarding gender dysphoria, while protecting parental rights to educate their children on matters of sexuality, including requiring the Department of Education and school personnel to inform parents of any counselling involving gender dysphoria
– affirmation of the primary decision-making authority of parents regarding their children’s education.  Parents shall have the right to opt out of any curriculum that they find counter to their values. Schools shall be obligated to operate in an open and transparent manner, keeping parents informed of all aspects of their children’s education
– legislating a parental right of involvement in medical decisions, including all medical decisions for their minor children. The “mature minor doctrine” shall only be applied in situations with a court order or clear necessity
– exploring reforms to strengthen the Home Care program, including housekeeping services and respite care

Health Care

The party advocates:
– exploring the use of personal healthcare concierges to enhance patient care and support within the provincial healthcare system.
– legislating a parental right of involvement in medical decisions, including all medical decisions for their minor children. The “mature minor doctrine” shall only be applied in situations with a court order or clear necessity.
– exploring reforms to strengthen the Home Care program, including housekeeping services and respite care.
– ending allocation of public funds for elective abortions unless the physical life of the mother is at risk.
– pursuing policies to minimize the abortion rate, indicating that pregnant women are being supported during difficult circumstances.
– providing enhanced support to pregnant women to safely continue their pregnancies if they so wish.
– supporting a larger role for the private sector in healthcare, ensuring greater access to healthcare for all Saskatchewan residents, shorter wait times, more healthcare professionals, improved services and health outcomes, and more medical equipment such as MRIs.
– expanded health care options for First Nations and Métis peoples, to include traditional foods, medicine, and healing practices.
– legislating guaranteed availability of healthcare in rural areas, including increased numbers of doctors, nurses, beds, and emergency responders
– expanding the number of private and public MRI and CT scan clinics, with a focus on rural areas
– renaming the Saskatchewan Health Authority to the Saskatchewan Health Services

Elder Care 

The party advocates:
– to ensure that seniors have access to necessary healthcare services, establishing a voucher system to facilitate travel for seniors from rural areas to urban centers for medical testing.
– exploration and implementation of measures to provide safe and affordable transportation options for seniors throughout the province.
– legislation to ensure that assisted living facilities for seniors are used solely for their intended purpose, providing adequate safeguards and oversight.
– establishment of an oversight committee to ensure that all commitments related to senior care are met, providing transparency and accountability service provision.

Education & Young Workers
The party advocates:
– establishment of Private Education Savings Accounts, and allocating K-12 education funding directly to parents on a per-student basis through these accounts. This initiative aims to increase competition among private and public schools, thereby enhancing educational outcomes for children
– affirmation of the primary decision-making authority of parents regarding their children’s education.  Parents shall have the right to opt out of any curriculum that they find counter to their values. Schools shall be obligated to operate in an open and transparent manner, keeping parents informed of all aspects of their children’s education
– supporting students who wish to challenge Grade 12 provincial exams without completing the required in-class portion, ensuring their grades are recorded in government records
– supporting students at any institution of higher learning who wish to opt out of paying student fees that contradict their sincerely held beliefs or do not benefit them
– restricting teachers to teaching only the curriculum approved by the local school board, subject to a parent’s right to opt out of any curriculum they find offensive or unproductive
– designating school principals as ‘out of scope’ employees for legal purposes
– requiring schools to offer courses on entrepreneurship, investment/money management, and marketing, to prepare students for the future. Funding for home economics and industrial arts programs shall be reintroduced.
– to achieve quality education within the province, promoting and supporting school boards that are autonomous, representative, transparent, and effective

Culture, Arts & Tourism
The party states that:
– as a matter of principle under its constitution, it is rooted in, and all of its activities shall be guided by and conform with the rich, diverse, and distinct cultural heritage of Saskatchewan, which must be recognized as the province adapts to the present and plans for the future

The party advocates:
– recognition of English as the official language of Saskatchewan (Note: English and French would still be the official languages of Canada as per the Official Languages Act, but this policy would specifically apply to provincial matters in Saskatchewan.)

Role of the Family 

The party has published no current statement concerning its policies relating to:
– the role of the family in society.
 

Health Care & Elder Care

The party states that:
– the province is justly proud of its healthcare system. Compared to the for-profit, private insurer system south of the border, we have far better health outcomes at far less cost.
– but work remains to be done.  Truly universal health care doesn’t simply start and end in a hospital or clinic. It attends to physical, mental and social well-being.
– the opioid epidemic, technology-based models of care, and the widening service gap in mental health are all signs that we have allowed the steady degradation of single-payer universal health care. The slashing of hospital beds in the early 1990s and the creeping presence of two-tier health care must be pushed back.
– the province needs to expand public services. Canada is the only industrialized nation with universal health care that doesn’t have publicly funded prescription drug coverage, also known as Pharmacare. Canadians pay the second-highest rate among developed countries for pharmaceuticals.
– Saskatchewan can lead the way toward universal Pharmacare as it did for Medicare over 50 years ago.
– privatized prescription drug coverage, dental benefits, and addiction prevention and rehabilitation programs have created a two-tier health system where wealth opens the door to a full range of care.

The party advocates:
– expanding public health care to include Pharmacare, establishing a Crown corporation to bulk purchase and dispense prescription drugs and providing much-needed coverage.
– including basic dental care in our coverage.
– extending dental care to low-income children.
– funding non-institutionalized, community-based support for substance abuse prevention and rehabilitation programs.
– creating a drug reduction strategy and developing more safe injection sites.
– regulating the distribution of pharmaceuticals prescribed by doctors to track and prevent dangerous levels of over-medication and prevent opioid addiction.
– developing healthcare guidelines that incentivize active lifestyles as well as healthy diets and choices.- treating drug addiction as a public health issue, not a felony.

Culture, Arts & Tourism

Culture of Cooperation and Mutual Aid
The party states that:
– it believes in the concept of a cooperative rather than competitive human society.
– while both of these elements exist in Nature (including human nature), our industrial society has placed far too much emphasis on competition.
– a change in outlook away from competition and towards cooperation and mutual aid must take place both at the personal, social and global levels.

Role of the Family 

Child Care
The party advocates:
– bringing in affordable and accessible $25/day childcare, to fix the childcare subsidy and create 2,200 new spaces each year to help struggling families.

The party states that:
– people in Saskatchewan believe that everyone, no matter where they are from or what they look like, deserves the same chance at success.
– but too many politicians are telling us to mistrust one another. They are pitting us against each other, leading us to fight among ourselves while they cut and privatize, serving their friends and donors at the expense of our peace and wellbeing.
– we all do better when we remember that we are all in this together.
– it’s time to come together again, to make Saskatchewan work for everyone, regardless of race, gender, sexuality or background.
– reforming the child welfare system, working with the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations and First Nations to increase control and autonomy over child intervention on reserve.
– working with the federal government to restore the family class of the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program, allowing newcomer families to put down roots and succeed in Saskatchewan.
 

Health Care & Elder Care

The party states that:
– over the years, the current government has been determined to undermine the public healthcare system. Their reckless attempts to privatize and defund it piece by piece put everyone at risk.  Among other things, it has underserved seniors.
– the lack of a plan on mental health and addictions has endangered entire communities.
– it is proud of the provincial public healthcare system. It is a bedrock of the success of the province, and a shining example of the province led the way in Canada by valuing the public good over private profit.
– healthcare is a commitment we make to each other, to ensure all people have the support and care they need, when they need it.
– its top priorities in healthcare are to shorten wait times and end short staffing in primary care, long-term care and hospitals.

To that end, the party advocates:
– ending short staffing in primary care, long-term care and acute care by hiring 100 doctors, 150 registered nurses, 300 licensed practical nurses and 500 continuing care assistants.
– making it easier for seniors to stay in their homes longer by building the best home care in Canada.
– legislating minimum care standards in long-term care.
– opening badly needed dedicated Mental Health Emergency Rooms in Saskatoon, Regina, Prince Albert and Moose Jaw.
– funding an opioid and crystal meth strategy, starting with a $2 million investment.
– investing $5 million in a suicide prevention strategy.
– increasing addiction treatment support by $10 million to enable Saskatchewan Health Authority and community-based organizations to hire more staff.
– investing $1.5 million in public health to help ensure we’re better prepared for future outbreaks.
– establishing a fully independent Seniors’ Advocate.
– providing coverage for insulin pumps for everyone with Type 1 diabetes and covering the cost of continuous glucose monitoring for minors who require that care.

Education & Young Workers

The party states that:
– the current government has squeezed the province’s schools, undermining the future by trying to balance the budget on the backs of children.
– in the midst of the COVID pandemic, the current government made it clear that they had no real plan for returning children to school safely.
– it has worked with parents, educators and public health experts to come up with a plan to put children first.
– it will act quickly to invest the money needed to keep kids safe, and to make sure the education system is ready for challenges ahead.
– it will also invest in childcare and early learning systems to ensure families are able to afford high-quality care when they start a family.

To get additional resources into classrooms immediately in order to provide safer schools and smaller classes, the party advocates:
– reversing recent cuts and ensuring that funding for education increases with enrolment, starting with an additional $150 million for schools.
– helping school divisions reduce class size, address classroom complexity and keep our schools safe with funding for 1,000 more teachers, 700 educational assistants and 400 caretakers.
– providing funding for school divisions to hire 50 school-based Mental Health and Addiction Nurses and other mental health supports.- investing $3 million into a rural education strategy to ensure we meet the unique needs of small-town schools.
– bringing in affordable and accessible $25/day childcare, to fix the childcare subsidy and create 2,200 new spaces each year to help struggling families.
– eliminating interest from student loans, saving students and their families $4.8 million.
– providing free tuition for kids leaving foster care.
– restoring funding to the Northern Teacher Education Program.
– working with First Nations in Saskatchewan to ensure First Nation schools receive equal funding.
– creating a new internship program to help young people get their first good job working for the provincial government and with our Crowns.

The party has published no current statement concerning its policies relating to:
• Culture, arts, and tourism

Role of and Support for the Family

To support families and communities, the party advocates:
– increasing the Saskatchewan Basic Personal Amount an individual can earn before starting to pay income from $16,065 to a number commensurate with a current full time minimum wage position in the province;
– increasing the Saskatchewan Low-Income Tax Credit (SLITC) to double its current amount;
– eliminating the Education portion of property tax;
– implementing PST exemptions for all basic/essential goods;
– allowing for input tax credits for businesses which will ensure it is applied only when a final product or service is provided to the consumer;
– eliminating PST from all insurance products sold in Saskatchewan; and
– implementing a 100% increase in the value of all container deposits.

To promote gender equality, the party further advocates:
– improving the province’s childcare system to align with the OECD’s benchmarks on childcare.
 

Health Care

The party advocates:
– exploring major incentives to recruit and retain medical personnel which will include training, retention, placement, and education benefits;
– partnering with federal government to further funding initiatives;
– creating a Health and Social Policy Council to advise cabinet on effective policy solutions; and
– a formal inquiry into government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mental Health & Addictions

The party advocates:
– opening Mental Health Emergency Rooms in Saskatoon, Regina, Prince Albert and Moose Jaw;
– funding an opioid and crystal meth strategy;
– investing in a suicide prevention strategy; and
– increasing addiction treatment support to enable Saskatchewan Health Authority and community-based organizations to hire more staff.

Elder Care

To support families and communities by taking care of seniors, the party advocates:
– investing substantially in homecare infrastructure;
– creating minimum care standards for seniors in long term care; and
– appointing a Seniors Advisor for the Province to represent and advocate for Seniors at the governmental level.

Education & Young Workers 

Primary & Secondary Education

The party advocates:
– returning lost public funding;
– funding for creation of a universal Pre-K program;
– creation of permanent online options; and
– forging Indigenous partnerships to work towards agreements to ensure equal funding for quality education of all Indigenous communities.

Post-Secondary Education

The party advocates:
– expanding permanent online options;
– re-evaluating the need for the influx of administrative staff and other overhead expansion and establish budgetary overhead/academics ratios to create a balance of expenditures;
– updating and modernizing the student loans regime, the goal should be graduation and not profit;
– stabilizing tuition increases by legislating the increases cannot exceed yearly inflation;
– introducing a Student Housing Tax Credit to help them cope with rising housing costs, in addition to the education property tax renter’s rebate;
– increased funding for provincial Northern communities understanding that location should not be a detriment to quality education at the post-secondary level.

Culture, Arts & Tourism

The party advocates:
– bringing back the Film Tax Credit with the offering of a hybrid model of both transferable and partially refundable credits available;
– working with businesses and those in the industry, committing to major investments in such things as studios and permanent sound stages and other big-ticket items, allowing the province to become a central location for future TV and film opportunities that would go well beyond anything else in most of Canada;
– creating an interactive digital multimedia tax credit policy that is competitive with the global market as part of a plan to diversify the Saskatchewan economy to its full potential;
– attracting companies and educators to come to Saskatchewan in the interactive digital multimedia field;
– offering, for a period of four years, a direct tax rebate of 100% per year per person for all artists and the traveling support staff they employ (drivers, setup crew, etc.) for income earned at three performances per year;
– the rebate cap would apply to an additional three performances per year for artists’ income if the performance(s) are recorded and released as an audio “Live Album” within one year of the performance(s) with the venue or festival name included; and
– the rebate cap for artists who reside in Saskatchewan would be 20 performances per year.

Family, Community, and the Common Good

Support for Families

Prior to its current term in office, the party stated that its plan to make life more affordable would:
– add 750 licensed home based childcare spaces.
– expand individualized funding for autism services to children under 12.
– restart the Active Families Benefit to make children’s sports and cultural activities more affordable.

The party states that:
– affordability for Saskatchewan families remains a top priority in the 2024-25 Provincial Budget. It continues to introduce and enhance programs to make life more affordable for residents of the province.
– the province has among the lowest personal taxes in the country. Since 2007, Personal Income Tax (PIT) exemptions have removed more than 112,000 residents from the income tax roll. In total, PIT reductions during that time are providing over $830 million in annual income tax savings to Saskatchewan people.  Annual indexation of the PIT brackets helps ensure that tax savings are not reduced by inflation.
– a Saskatchewan family of four with $100,000 in total income pays $2,627 less in combined provincial income and sales tax in 2024, compared to 2007. A family of four pays no Provincial Income Tax on their first $59,475 of combined income. This is the highest tax-free threshold in Canada – and more than twice as much as in 2007.
– a family with two adults, two dependent children, owning their own home with annual family income of $75,000, $100,000 and $125,000 have the lowest totals paid for taxes, utilities and housing in Canada.

Child Care

The party’s 2024-25 Provincial Budget provides $408.7 million for early learning and child care to support young families, including an increase of $21.1 million, or 5.9 per cent, to increase the number of regulated child care spaces available to families at $10 per day.

Health Care

Among its Guiding Principles the party lists:
– Steady, gradual reduction in government spending and taxation while maintaining a firm commitment to balanced budgets;
– A high-quality health care system for all Saskatchewan people, regardless of where they live within the province;
– A strong social safety net which protects those who truly need support while encouraging individuals to become self sufficient;

Prior to its current term in office, the party stated that its plan to make life more affordable would:
– cover the cost of insulin pumps for everyone living with diabetes and the cost of Continuous Glucose Monitoring systems for children under 18.
– reduce surgical wait times to a three-month target.

In its 2024-2025 Budget, the party states that:
– health care remains a top priority, with a record investment of $7.6 billion. This is an increase of $583.5 million, or 8.3 per cent, from the previous year to help improve access to programs and services, invest in health care professionals and fund important capital projects as the province grows rapidly.  Expenses related to health care primarily include the Ministry of Health, Saskatchewan Health Authority, eHealth, Saskatchewan Cancer Agency and 3sHealth.

Acute Care

The party states that:
– of the funding allocated to health care, $71.4 million focuses on increasing the capacity of the acute care system. This includes $30 million for the Saskatoon and Regina Capacity Pressures Action Plans, as well as nearly $10 million for the Regina Urgent Care Centre. Funding is also being directed to continuing to reduce the surgical waitlist, working to achieve a three-month wait time target years ahead of schedule.
– the budget invests in enhancing the capacity of emergency medical services (EMS) by supporting EMS and community paramedicine positions in various locations, including rural and northern communities. The 911 system will be modernized to accept texts, videos and photos.
– Medical imaging capacity also increases as a result of $5.1 million in operating funding. By increasing capacity, the waitlist for MRI and CT scans will decrease.
– to support timely and exceptional care for Saskatchewan women, the budget provides $3.5-million increase for breast cancer care and screening initiatives includes technology enhancements and new diagnostic imaging equipment, as well as the development of a Breast Health Centre of Excellence in Regina.
– cancer care being a budget priority also, the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency (SCA) is allocated an increase of $26.1 million, or 11.7 percent, for a record budget of nearly $248.9 million. This will allow the SCA to increase volumes and allow patients to access the most effective and leading-edge oncology drugs, therapies and treatment options.
– additional funding for acute care system capacity is directed towards intensive care units, cardio and neurosciences, kidney and organ donation, children’s care (including neonatal intensive care unit and pediatric units at Prince Albert’s Victoria Hospital, as well as pediatric gastroenterology in Saskatoon) and rural and remote emergency room stabilization.

Primary & Community Care

The party states that:
– the current budget includes a $59.4-million increase for targeted initiatives to expand access to primary, community and seniors’ care across the province.
– to promote better health outcomes, a $16-million increase is allocated for primary and community care programs. These programs include extending a primary care pilot in Swift Current; further integrating nurse practitioners in support of physician clinics; enhancing HealthLine’s 811 services; increasing access to chronic pain clinics in Regina and Saskatoon; and
improving testing capacity and expanding access to testing for sexually transmitted and blood borne infections.
– $43.4 is allocated to million to stabilize services and programming for seniors, to help them live safely and comfortably in their communities.  This includes a new funding model for third-party, long-term care facilities and alternate level of care beds that allow for care in settings other than hospitals.

Mental Health & Addictions

The party states that:
– its current budget allocates $574 million for mental health, including an increase of $34 million for targeted mental health and addictions initiatives, which include plans to achieve 500 new addictions spaces, wraparound supports for homelessness and 30 new complex needs emergency shelter spaces. Investments are focused on children and youth, addictions, vulnerable populations and other mental health initiatives.

Health Human Resources

The party states that to build upon the Health Human Resources Action Plan, its 2024-2025 budget allocates investments in recruiting, training and retaining health professionals throughout the province.  To that end an agreement was reached with Saskatchewan physicians that supports efforts to recruit, train and retain physicians in the province while remaining competitive as one of the best places for physicians to live and work.  In addition, the allocations include:
– an $11.6-million increase (total annual funding of $33.8 million) to stabilize rural and remote staffing, which supports 250 new and enhanced full-time permanent positions in nine high-priority classifications added in 54 rural and remote locations.
– $6.7-million increase (total annual funding of $8.7 million) for the Saskatchewan Rural and Remote Recruitment Incentive, to fund existing program recipients completing their first and second-year service agreements and extend the intake for this program.
– $1.5-million new investment for students enrolled in health care training programs located in other provinces where Saskatchewan has invested in specific training seats.
– $1.1-million increase (total annual funding of $1.5 million) to enhance clinical placement capacity within the SHA to support expansion of training seats.
– $1-million increase to the Rural Physician Incentive Program to support rural family physician recruitment and retention.
– $1 million in new funding to enhance resources for clinical leadership and support to nurses working in rural and northern locations.

Health Facilities

The party states that:
– to the availability of appropriate facilities to provide care to the people of Saskatchewan, its 2024-2025 budget allocates a record $516.8 million in health infrastructure such as new hospitals and health care centres.  This is an increase of $179.3 million from the previous year and includes:
– $180 million for the Prince Albert Victoria Hospital redevelopment project;
– $55 million for the Weyburn General Hospital replacement project;
– $27 million for construction of the La Ronge long-term care project;
– $22 million to complete construction on the Regina General Hospital parkade; and
– $20 million for Regina’s long-term care specialized beds project.

Seniors & Elder Care

Prior to its current term in office, the party stated that its plan to make life more affordable would:
– add 750 licensed home based childcare spaces.
– increase the Seniors Income Plan benefit for low income seniors from $270 to $360 per month.
– reduce seniors’ ambulance charges by 50% and eliminate charges for seniors for transfers between hospitals.
– hire 300 more continuing care aides to work in long-term care facilities and home care.

The party further states that:
– through its 2024-2025 budget, the Seniors Income Plan offers eligible seniors up to $360 per month, while the monthly income threshold for the Personal Care Home Benefit will increase by $100 to $2,500 to help make the cost of living in a licensed personal care home more affordable for seniors.
– other health care benefits for seniors in the 2024-25 Budget include funding for the Senior Citizens Ambulance Assistance Program, Seniors’ Drug Plan and Home Care services.

Education & Young Workers

Pre-K – 12 Education

The party states that:
– classroom funding is a priority, with record investments in the 2024-25 Provincial Budget. The Ministry of Education receives $3.3 billion in funding – an increase of $247.8 million over the previous year – to support Prekindergarten to Grade 12 schools, early learning, child care and libraries.
– its current budget specifically provides $356.6 million in supports directly for classrooms, including funding to address classroom size and complexity.  This includes $4.9 million for the Teacher Innovation and Support Fund Pilot and Specialized Support Classrooms Pilot. These projects focus on developing initiatives that provide better student and teacher experiences, and helping staff manage and de-escalate behavioural incidents.
– the province’s 27 school divisions receive a record $2.2 billion in school operating funding for the 2024-25 school year, an increase of $180 million, or 8.8 per cent, compared to the previous year. This includes nearly $30 million to fund operational pressures, such as salaries for non-teaching positions, bus drivers and educational assistants.
– new schools and classrooms are also a priority in view of growth, with $216 million for Prekindergarten to Grade 12 education capital, an increase of 41.8 per cent over the previous year.
– the budget includes $408.7 million for early learning and child care to support young families, including an increase of $21.1 million, or 5.9 per cent, to increase the number of regulated child care spaces available to families at $10 per day.
– community-based organizations, libraries and other education sector groups that provide early years outreach, life skills development and literacy programming will receive an increase of $1.3 million.
– beyond Prekindergarten to Grade 12, the 2024-25 Budget provides more than $4.4 billion for overall education in the province. This is an increase of $378.8 million, or 9.4 per cent, from the previous year.

Post-Secondary Education

Prior to its current term in office, the party stated that its plan to make life more affordable would increase the Saskatchewan Advantage Scholarship to $750 per year to make post-secondary education more affordable.

The party states that:
– investing is also a priority at the post-secondary level. The 2024-25 Budget provides $793.0 million for the Ministry of Advanced Education – an increase of $28.2 million, or 3.7 per cent, from 2023-24 – to enhance funding, expand health training programs and focus on key infrastructure projects. This includes a one-time, $12.0-million top-up to the province’s current multi-year funding agreement with post-secondary institutions, an increase of 2.2 per cent. The increased funding will allow the institutions to remain responsive to the needs of students and the labour market.
– an additional $15 million in new funding is provided to train additional health care workers through the Health Human Resources Action Plan.  This includes an $11.4-million operating increase for the following training seats at full implementation:

• Health Human Resources Action Plan: more than 610 new seats in various professions, with a focus on training for high demand and hard-to-recruit professions, such as registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses, licensed practical nurses, primary care paramedics and continuing care assistants;
• Nursing Seat Expansion: 600 new seats in nursing professions, including registered nursing, nurse practitioner and registered psychiatric nursing; and
• Undergraduate medical education: 32 new undergraduate medical education seats.

– in addition to existing disciplines, $3.6 million is provided this year for new opportunities for students to train in health sciences programs, including:

• Physician Assistant: a new two-year master’s program at the University of Saskatchewan will accept 20 students annually, beginning in fall 2025;
• Speech Language Pathology: a new two-year master’s program at the University of Saskatchewan will accept 40 students annually, beginning in 2026-27;
• Occupational Therapy: a new two-year master’s program at the University of Saskatchewan will accept 40 students annually, beginning in 2026-27; and
• Respiratory Therapy: a three-year diploma program at Saskatchewan Polytechnic will accept 20 students annually, beginning in fall 2026.

– Saskatchewan post-secondary institutions receive nearly $725 million in operating and capital grants. This includes funding to help the Western College of Veterinary Medicine explore infrastructure expansion.
– Indigenous Teacher Education programs will continue to receive funding, supporting the preservation and revitalization of Indigenous languages in the province.
– to assist students pursuing post-secondary education, the budget includes $4.2 million in new funding to create a new provincial grant for low-income students with dependents under 12, or over 12 with a permanent disability. This new grant is part of $46.5 million for overall student supports in the 2024-25 Provincial Budget, which includes $34.4 million for the Student Aid Fund (repayable and non-repayable financial assistance to more than 22,000 students each year) and $12.2 million for scholarships and bursaries.
– to help post-secondary students remain in Saskatchewan while transitioning to their careers, the 2024-25 Budget continues to fund the Graduate Retention Program – the most generous support program of its kind in Canada. The program provides up to $20,000 in tax credits to post-secondary graduates who remain in the province to work. More than 81,600 students have benefited from the program, which provides approximately $65 million in support annually.

Support for Students

The party states that:
– Saskatchewan students will benefit directly from $46.5 million in financial supports, including a new grant for low-income students with dependents under age 12 (or over 12 with a permanent disability). This will help reduce financial barriers to completing their post-secondary education.
– its 2024 budget allocates $34.4 million for the Student Aid Fund, which provides repayable and non-repayable financial assistance to more than 22,000 students every year, and $12.2 million in scholarships and bursaries.
– its Graduate Retention Program provides up to $20,000 in tax credits to post-secondary graduates who live and work in Saskatchewan. More than 81,600 graduates have benefited from this program.

Culture, Arts & Tourism
Prior to its current term in office, the party stated that its plan to make life more affordable would:
– restart the Community Rink Affordability Grant, helping communities keep ice rink activities affordable in over 600 rinks across Saskatchewan.
– increase financial support for veterans service clubs like the Royal Canadian Legion.

The party further states that:
– people travel to Saskatchewan from around the world to enjoy its natural beauty and experience world-class hunting and fishing.
– its 2024-25 Budget provides $15 million for capital and infrastructure improvements at provincial parks, in order to support the tourism industry by ensuring that visitors have a great experience.  This includes a new service centre at Nut Point Campground in Lac La Ronge Provincial Park, bike trail development and multi-use trail improvements at Buffalo Pound Provincial Park, major road improvements and resurfacing at Pike Lake Provincial Park and water system upgrades at Narrow Hills Provincial Park and Moose Mountain Provincial Park.
– to ensure that people can easily travel to the province from international destinations, the budget also provides minimum revenue guarantees to support international flights between Saskatchewan and the United States. This year Regina announces a new direct flight to Minneapolis, backed by an annual minimum revenue guarantee of up to $500,000

Role of the Family 

Among its constitutional founding principles, the party states that:
– it recognizes that the family unit is the bedrock of society and that government must primarily account for the restoration, benefit and protection of the family unit to support its ability to thrive and prosper, while maximizing its right to self-determination in choosing the values preferred by each family unit to raise and teach its children.

Health Care & Elder Care

Among its constitutional founding principles, the party states that:
– it is committed to an effective health care system, which should include an emphasis on preventative care while maintaining robust treatment. We believe in a small and efficient health bureaucracy, a provincially sovereign system, privacy of health information, restoring the autonomy of the patient-doctor relationship and increasing health care providers to improve the administration of health, while proactively improving the wellbeing of residents to gradually reduce reliance on health care over time.
– it values the province’s youth and senior citizens by ensuring ethical education for children, while caring for senior citizens with support to the full extent possible.

The party further states that:
– Saskatchewan’s healthcare system is in a state of crisis. The wait times are out of control, emergency rooms are shutting down, and ambulances are unable to respond to emergencies in a timely manner. The people of Saskatchewan deserve better. They deserve a healthcare system that is efficient, effective, and accessible to all.
– it believes in the power of innovation, accountability, and individual choice. It is time for a bold and transformative approach to revamp our healthcare system.
– its vision for healthcare in Saskatchewan is rooted in these principles.  It is committed to building a system that works for everyone.

To that end, the party advocates:
– recruitment and retention of healthcare professionals, including use of a targeted recruitment strategy that focuses on attracting nurses and doctors from other parts of Canada through the use of:
* education incentives, similar to the Royal Military College (RMC) Officer Program, where new nurses and doctors can have their education paid for in exchange for a commitment to serve in Saskatchewan for a specified period.
* competitive retention bonuses for healthcare professionals who choose to stay and work in Saskatchewan, ensuring that the province not only attracts but also retains top talent.

– streamlining administration and reducing wasteful spending.  A significant portion of the provincial healthcare budget is consumed by administrative costs and wasteful spending. These resources should be redirected to frontline care through:
* administrative efficiency, including conducting a thorough audit of the healthcare system to identify and eliminate redundant administrative processes and positions.
* reallocation of resources, including reallocation of funds from administrative overhead to direct patient care, ensuring that healthcare dollars are spent where they are needed most.

– investment in technology and innovation, including:
* expanded telehealth services for providing remote consultations, reducing the strain on emergency rooms and clinics.
* use of a comprehensive electronic health records system to improve coordination of care and reduce duplication of tests and procedures.

Culture, Arts & Tourism

Among its constitutional founding principles, the party states that:
– it values and recognizes the unique heritage of Saskatchewan and its traditions, including those of Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
– it trusts the residents of Saskatchewan to live their lives in accordance with the richness of their traditions, cultures and belief systems, and set out to reduce the role and size of government in the everyday life of residents while recognizing that government should exist to maximize quality of life as a servant and not master of residents.