SaskTel not for sale: Wall

REGINA — Premier Brad Wall is hanging up talk of a potential sale for Saskatchewan’s provincially owned telecommunications company.

Wall says selling SaskTel is off the table and there won’t be a referendum on the idea either.

“I just have the clearest sense from voters, similar to in the middle of election campaigns in the past, that they’re not interested,” Wall said as the legislature returned for the spring sitting Monday.

“They’re not interested in a referendum. They’re not interested in the potential sale of SaskTel.”

Wall mused last year about selling SaskTel, but said it wouldn’t happen without holding a referendum on any offer.

Some critics have said the government was looking at a potential sale because it’s cash-strapped and needs to cover a $1.2 billion deficit.

The takeover of Manitoba Telecom Services by Bell Media also leaves SaskTel as the last regional carrier in Western Canada and makes it vulnerable.

An assessment released last June said the MTS takeover poses serious regulatory, competitive and financial risks for SaskTel. For one, establishing Winnipeg as a western headquarters for Bell could erode SaskTel’s share of the Saskatchewan business market.

Wall says taking a sale off the table doesn’t rule out selling shares in the Crown corporation to a potential partner.