Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Party designates ministers responsible for various regions of the country but conveniently denies it when that minister is a failure. A case in point is the finance minister masquerading as minister for Saskatchewan. The minister proclaimed Saskatchewan, with an average per capita income $5,000 below the national average, as a have province. Talk about rose coloured glasses. Waiting times for MRIs, let alone surgeries like hip replacement, are the worst in the country. Our unemployment level is low because our young people leave. Our tax burden and NDP voodoo economics scare away outside investors.
What does the outdated and complex Liberal equalization formula do? It targets our non-renewable resource base with double jeopardy. First, the feds and the NDP tax it into submission and then the formula includes penalties against what Saskatchewan should receive as a payment. The result is depressed economic activity.
With this so-called help from this finance minister, Saskatchewan will always be a have not province.