National Post (National Edition)
BRAD WALL AND THE PRAIRIE DIVIDE
SASKATCHEWAN’S PREMIER HAS MADE ALBERTA’S NEW DEMOCRATS LOOK WEAK
WALL HAS WEDDED HIMSELF TO AUSTERITY.
On the first page of Canada’s dictionary of political clichés, right after the claim that politicians need generous pay and benefits “to attract the best and brightest,” is the part where they also maintain it’s their job to make “tough decisions.”
For the most part they adhere firmly to the first assertion and do their best to ignore the second. A “tough decision” for most politicians means choosing who to blame for their failures: Ottawa, one of the premiers, opposition parties, a previous administration, global uncertainty, foreseeable changes they didn’t foresee, or even the Almighty (in those governments still willing to acknowledge spiritual proclivities).
It takes a brave leader to actually make tough decisions, which renders Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall either remarkably brave, or astonishingly foolhardy, in the wake of the searing budget introduced by his finance minister, Kevin Doherty, on Wednesday. While Doherty’s federal counterpart Bill Morneau was displaying his firm grasp of financial bafflegab in his annual federal accounting — “whole-of-government, value chain, smart cities,” — Doherty was choking up, on air, when asked about the fact people would lose their jobs as a result of his cost-cutting measures.
Quizzed at a post-budget press conference, it took Doherty several seconds to compose himself before croaking that, yes, taking away someone’s livelihood was a “tough decision.” In his case, you were inclined to actually believe the man.
If anyone doubted that Saskatchewan and neighbouring Alberta have become two different countries, Wednesday should put an end to it. While Alberta’s New Democratic Party has firmly committed itself to heavy borrowing and a ballooning debt, Wall and Doherty have wedded themselves just as firmly to austerity. Alberta Premier Rachel Notley thinks you can spend your way out of debt; Saskatchewan begs to differ, and predicts a return to surplus by 2019 via a painful program of spending cuts and tax hikes.
The provincial sales tax will increase one point to six per cent. Many exemptions will be eliminated, including on restaurant meals and children’s clothing. All the usual sin taxes — on alcohol and cigarettes — will be hiked. The provincial bus company will be shut down, axing 224 jobs. Universities will get less money — University of Saskatchewan president Peter Stoicheff said the five-percent reduction “is probably the largest single budget cut we’ve ever had in our history.” Scholarship money will be reduced, grants suspended and personal income tax credits for education and tuition expenses eliminated.
Many residents in long-termcare facilities will pay higher fees. A government hearing aid plan will be dropped, as will some other health services. Money for libraries will be cut, and builders will face taxes on new home construction and renovations. Wages for 40,000 public employees will be cut 3.5 per cent. Even the dead will suffer: the government hopes to save $1 million by limiting eligibility for subsidized funeral services. Among the few bright spots are promised cuts of 0.5-per-cent in corporate and personal income tax rates in 2017 and 2019.
Across the border in Alberta, Notley couldn’t resist the temptation to gloat. “What we’ve seen in Saskatchewan is what it looks like when the rubber hits the road,” she said. It’s a curious choice of phraseology, as rubber hitting the road usually refers to the moment when the talk ends and actions gets serious. In Alberta, of course, Notley’s government is doing all it can to avoid any rubber ever landing on provincial roads, by persistently putting off until tomorrow any conceivable action that might reflect the tough times the province faces. Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci’s recent budget dealt with collapsed revenues by hitting up lenders for an extra $10 billion, pushing the debt to $71 billion in a province that used to be debt free. Albertans will soon be paying $2.3 billion a year to service the NDP spending binge.
The odd thing is that both premiers claim to be in pursuit of the same goal: a reduction in their province’s dependence on energy revenues. On that front, at least, Wall wins the prize for credibility, as Ceci’s budget is predicated on hopes and prayers that the flood of royalties will soon return to government coffers — before Albertans rise in anger against a government that seems intent to live on as many credit cards as it is allowed to max out.
One other Canadian premier has attempted to deal with hard times via austerity, Newfoundland’s Dwight Ball, a Liberal of all things. Ball’s popularity went straight down the tube as a result. Wall has long topped the list of most popular provincial leaders, a position he is now risking. The easy alternative would have been to borrow, like Alberta, and let a future generation pay the bill. But he made the tough decision.