For many candidates, saying nothing is the safest strategy

Say nothing. Do nothing. Change nothing.

The consensus formula for success in both the Saskatchewan Party and NDP leadership races has been commit to nothing — or at least, commit to nothing except that which won’t upset respective party voters and perhaps the province as a whole.

Far and away, the most proactive policy pronouncements have come from the NDP’s Ryan Meili, who unveiled last week his extensive Vision for Saskatchewan that calls for:

Leveraging SaskTel and SaskPower to “make Saskatchewan the home of cloud storage (in) supporting a burgeoning tech industry”; pay equity legislation to address the gender wage gap; increasing the minimum wage to $15 within two years; decreasing poverty by five per cent within five years; establishing a Ministry of Children and building “the best childcare and early education system in the country”; implementing a nutritious lunch program in Saskatchewan schools; restoring funding in all levels of education; ensuring “culturally appropriate education and employment training (is) available in Indigenous communities”; delivering an annual Closing the Gap address in the Legislative Assembly that focuses on the gap in health, education and economic outcomes between Indigenous and nonIndigenous people; introducing pharmacare to provide “universal coverage for a formulary of essential medications”; expanding access to emergency mental health care and psychological counselling services, and “dental, hearing and vision screening services for every Saskatchewan child”; increasing rural communities’ influence on local delivery of health care and education; repealing Bill 63 that dispensed with autonomous local school boards; designing a provincial transportation system “that meets the needs of today’s travellers, restores efficient freight service and uses SaskTel to deliver high-speed internet and quality cellular service across the province”; establishing an “energy efficiency body” distinct from SaskPower, focused on cutting energy needs and ending corporate and union donations to political parties.

The immediate criticism of Meili’s extensive list is its cost.

To this, Meili’s only answer is to “save money in health care by using the Choosing Wisely Canada approach to evidencebased practice.” That would not be enough to offset massive expenditures like pharmacare, restoration of education funding and a new, intricate public transportation system.

Already, Meili is taking a beating for having policies — which is likely why the other leadership hopefuls are opting to say nothing instead.

There have been no policy pronouncements on Trent Wotherspoon’s trent4leader.ca webpage, although he supports Meili’s $15 minimum wage. Wotherspoon did unveil Tuesday an intriguing universal childcare plan that would cost parents just $15 a day. (No costing was included.)

Ken Cheveldayoff has been the most active Sask. Party candidate followed by Gord Wyant and Tina Beaudry-Mellor (the former social services minister has made it known she adamantly opposes Meili’s $15 minimum wage).

Beyond denouncing federal taxation policies, Scott Moe — the candidate with the most caucus support — has offered few policies of his own other than calling for a separate provincial trade ministry. Alanna Koch’s alannaforleader.ca page now outlines her policy, but it’s all platitudes without specifics that turn into a recitation of her commitment to past Brad Wall government policies, her strong, free-market philosophy and her credentials as deputy agriculture minister and agriculture group lobbyist.

Really, it’s a subtle admission that she’s identified a path to victory that’s all about who you know rather than what you will do.

Running to lead a government now plagued by the Global Transportation Hub and Regina bypass will make selling new Sask. Party memberships — especially in the cities — difficult. So Sask. Party leadership hopefuls like Koch are hitting the highway and heading to rural Saskatchewan.

For Koch, it’s a simply a matter of cross-referencing her old Western Canadian Wheat Grower/ agricultural groups lists with the existing Sask. Party membership. As for policy pronouncements? Well, actually saying something or proposing real change just gets in the way.