Wall finds himself on the other side of change debate

Sask. Party hearkens to past to avoid current problems

It’s been almost 10 years since Saskatchewan Party leader Brad Wall stood before elated supporters and promised: “And now for something completely different.”

On Monday afternoon, many Sask. Party MLAs were busily reminding voters of past successes in doing things differently with doorstep-drop leaflets — some of them personally delivered by Sask. Party MLAs and staff.

The Sask. Party pamphlet noted that “since 2007 revenue sharing for Saskatoon has increased by 161 per cent” and that “this year Saskatoon will receive over $46 million in revenue sharing.” Unsurprisingly, there is no mention that Saskatoon council in the 2017-18 budget was handed a $10.6-million hit in the form of an end to the SaskPower grants-in-lieu that the government scooped up to deal with its deficit.

The handout also talked about 114 per cent more funding to Saskatoon schools since 2007, and how an average Saskatoon family of four earning $75,000 pays less than $1,886 in taxes each year.

As partisan and campaign-sounding as the Sask. Party’s yellow and green flyers were, that they were labelled with the budget’s “Meeting the Challenge” slogan means that they still qualified as taxpayer-paid-for caucus communication under our long-standing rules.

The previous NDP government was no better when it came to abusing them ... or at least, ensuring the rules worked in the favour of government MLAs handing out thinly veiled propaganda at taxpayers’ expense.

But even propaganda can be revealing, albeit perhaps not always in the way intended.

What may have been most informative about this Sask. Party caucus circular is how it dwelled in the past — the Saskatchewan past that Wall 10 years ago seemed to so abhor. It’s what governments feel they must do when they find themselves in trouble.

Of course, how much trouble Wall is actually in remains debatable.

A recent Angus Reid Institute poll shows the Sask. Party with 48 per cent of the popular vote compared to 41 per cent for the NDP — a much better showing than the recent Mainstreet poll that showed the Sask. Party nine percentage points behind the NDP. The difference? Well, while Angus Reid also shows the NDP with a 20-percentage-point lead in Regina and an 11-percentage-point lead in Saskatoon, it poses a massive contrast with the Sask. Party 27 percentage points ahead in the “rest of Saskatchewan.” The Mainstreet poll had the NDP and Sask. Party running even at 46 per cent in the rest of the province.

At least in rural Saskatchewan, there isn’t much clamouring for change. But that clearly doesn’t apply to cities, in what the Angus Reid poll, in particular, reveals is a province now pushing for change.

Naturally, the government members are trying to push back by reminding voters of the admitted successes of the past 10 years.

That obviously isn’t an easy sell in the context of the 2017-18 budget with its near billion dollars in tax hikes, service cuts and — perhaps more importantly — the perception that all this pain was unnecessary and is now being doled out unfairly. (After all, there is a specific reason why Saskatoon MLAs felt it necessary to combat that perception Monday).

But the bigger problem is two extraneous factors that are tougher for Wall and his Sask. Party MLAs.

The first is the strong state of the economy 10 years ago, which was so critical to Wall implementing his own changes.

With today’s oil below US$43 a barrel, it’s $13 a barrel below budget forecasts of three months ago. It’s also $100 a barrel below its peak in 2008, when the Sask. Party simply raked in the revenue. It’s hard to change without money.

The second is the change in the wind — from Canadian elections in B.C. to what’s been happening in the U.S., France and Britain, there is a mood for change.

And it will take more than a few door-drop brochures to fight this kind of change.