Saskatchewan Party candidates barely mention GTH scandal
In this weekly series, Leader-Post reporter D.C. Fraser and StarPhoenix reporter Alex MacPherson round up everything happening on the campaign trail as candidates compete to be the next leader of the Saskatchewan Party and the Saskatchewan NDP.
The Saskatchewan Party and its members appear to have little interest in forcing the candidates aiming to take over from Premier Brad Wall to address what might be the biggest boondoggle in his government’s history.
Questions about the Global Transportation Hub were conspicuously absent from the party’s second leadership debate held in Melfort on Thursday night.
The five candidates mostly stuck to party talking points on a broad range of questions about everything from domestic violence to drainage at the Quill Lakes. But the debate unfolded without a single mention of the scandal, which a pair of Regina businessmen who have donated to the party appear to have profited from.
This, perhaps, should not come as a surprise.
The questions were submitted by party members and read by the party’s president. One candidate, Gordon Wyant, has called for a public inquiry and the remaining four have answered reporters’ questions on the subject, but it’s hard to understand why the scandal isn’t being debated, seeing as questions about it show little sign of going away.
The party’s next debate is scheduled for Saturday in Saskatoon.
Alanna Koch’s campaign this week released what it describes as “the first detailed poll” of party members. But Koch’s camp made the curious decision to put out a news release claiming the former deputy minister is leading the Sask. Party race while refusing to release the full results.
Koch’s camp said the poll surveyed a random sampling of 500 party members, and that it concluded that she was “the best candidate to defeat the NDP in the next general election” and “positioned in a three-way cluster at the top with Ken Cheveldayoff and Scott Moe within the (4.38 per cent) statistical margin of error” — statements that don’t appear to mean the same thing.
The most significant policy announcement this week came from Tina Beaudry-Mellor, who released a six-point plan to build what she calls the province’s “NextGen” economy.
The plan concentrates on pushing Saskatchewan residents to be more entrepreneurial, and brings together everything from education to tax cuts for potential “angel” investors.
Cheveldayoff, meanwhile, said he supports a “northern greenhouse model” that allows communities with limited access to larger centres grow their own fresh produce at an affordable price.
The NDP held its first leadership debate this weekend. Hosted by comedian Steve Patterson, the hourlong showdown between Ryan Meili and Trent Wotherspoon managed to combine a broad range of issues and a few jokes. There was not a clear winner, however, and both candidates spent a lot of time agreeing with each other.
What remains unclear is whether either candidate has an effective plan for winning votes in rural Saskatchewan — the Sask. Party’s traditional stomping ground and a necessity for any party hoping to form a government.
The NDP also released its first campaign financial reports this week. It shows Meili pulling out a sizable fundraising lead over Wotherspoon. The new Saskatoon Meewasin MLA had, as of Sept. 30, accumulated donations totalling $41,009 — including $5,000 from author Yann Martel — while the Regina Rosemont politician had collected just $20,315.