2022 in review: Premier Scott Moe weighs in on a challenging year in Saskatchewan

Premier Scott Moe sat down for a year-end interview with CBC provincial affairs reporter Adam Hunter for a year-end interview.

Moe discussed the province's improving financial situation, and the government's plans to address health-care issues including dealing with addictions.

Moe also addressed the controversial invitation of Colin Thatcher to the throne speech and some legislation introduced by the government this fall.

This interview was conducted on Dec. 13 and has been edited for length and clarity. 

Q: When you think back on 2022, what will stand out to you about the work your government has done?

A: We came in into some very choppy waters like other provinces and other regions around the world. We were still in the midst of a global pandemic as we entered 2022. As we find our way through the year Saskatchewan is in a much stronger position when you look at the investments that have landed in Saskatchewan and the financial situation of the province. We were able to start to pay down some of that pandemic debt that we had acquired over the last couple of years.

The government was a small part of this, but Saskatchewan's people, the generosity that they have shown in, you know, receiving, hosting, volunteering and supporting folks from all over the world but in particular those folks from the war-torn area of Ukraine due to the Russian invasion that occurred there.

We've been a part of arranging for some flights with an international charity but it most certainly is people that have literally opened their own homes to support people — and we have a very strong Ukrainian heritage in this province. I think what I would be most proud of this past year is what Saskatchewan people have done in supporting our friends and family from another country in a time of distress.

Q: What went into the decision to give out $500 cheques and the timing of that, and what more could be on the way because there are issues with affordability?

A: There were priorities in the discussion as we found our way through what was going to turn from a deficit to ultimately a surplus. And so, first, we wanted to achieve zero. So the first $460 million went into balancing the budget and debt repayment was a priority, and that will benefit in years to come [saving] $50 to $70 million in interest costs.

The first billion dollars was earmarked to repay some pandemic debt that we had acquired. We increased our education investment, and this fall we increased investments that we have in our urban centres with homelessness. We also wanted to help families across the province address affordability and we wanted to do so quickly and in as simple a fashion as we possibly can.

It couldn't have been done as quickly and touched as many families across the province under any other mechanism.

Q: There are a lot of asks from the health-care system. There are problems finding family doctors, and service disruptions in hospitals and health centres. Can any of that money be used (for health care)?

A: Some of those dollars are being used as we have our health human resource action plan in play. Our health minister just recently was in the Philippines. We put $60 million to bring more people into our facilities.

But there's more to do and that's very evident, and it's not just exclusively an issue in Saskatchewan.

That's why the premiers have asked the prime minister and the federal government to become a full funding partner of the Canada Health Transfer. The provinces are already making those necessary investments in our health-care systems.

Q: Do you think there should be strings attached to that money?

A: I think we align on the priorities. We want to see more surgeries performed so that there's a shorter surgical wait time list. We want to see additional investment in mental health and, all too often, subsequent addictions so that families have access to a bed for their loved one, whether it be detox, whether it be rehabilitation. We want to see the proper support for our frontline health-care workers and that's going to take more people working in those facilities. I think as far as the priorities go, we align very well with the federal government.

Where the challenge in having strings attached is there are some regional differences in what the needs are. You're going to see differences in a country as vast and broad as Canada. It will be problematic and ultimately may make it more unworkable in the long term.

Q: What did you learn from the fallout of the invitation of Colin Thatcher to the Legislature?

A: I learned it was a mistake made by a government member. If there's anything that I should have done differently, I most certainly should have been out sooner on behalf of the government to say that this is wrong and it shouldn't have occurred.

It's unfortunate, I think. In this province this is an area — where it comes to interpersonal violence and domestic abuse — we have some work to do and the statistics aren't great. And, ultimately, behind each and every one of those statistics is somebody that lives in your community, a family member or a friend.

We have some work to do as individuals. We have some work to do as different levels of government approach and address and start to drive those statistics down.

Q: When it comes to James Smith Cree Nation you talked about Indigenous police forces and you just talked about high rates of domestic violence in the province. What's the government doing in response to that specific incident, if anything?

A: I think we probably have to look at expanding policing. We talked about expanding the opportunities for community-based policing in Indigenous communities, expanding the support that our municipal RCMP officers are getting through the Saskatchewan Marshal Service, and the challenge we have in drug-fueled property crime.

It is a challenge — not just in Indigenous communities, not just in rural communities — it's a challenge across our province and, in many cases, across our nation.

The second challenge is we need to provide support for people that when they make a choice — they may have entered a lifestyle of drug addiction — and when they make a choice they want to take a path to a better life, we need to have the services available for them. We need to have an open detoxification bed. We need to have an open intensive rehabilitation bed that is going to help them through a much more serious addiction than maybe a 28-day alcohol rehabilitation program.

We have made the commitment to work with our community-based organizations across the province to open up 150 intensive rehabilitation beds. That likely isn't going to be enough moving forward. I'm quite certain it won't.

We also need better intake. When people make that decision, they need to know they are going to find a medical health professional and that's part of our urgent care centres. Part of the service they offer will be about alleviating some pressures in our emergency rooms.

If you go in there, we want to be able to take you by the hand and ensure that you get in front of the correct medical health professional. We have those services to offer and so we need better intake.

Q: Why was it important to bring in the Saskatchewan First Act? 

A: [The federal government] has this sword of environmental policy that they're waving around, and the Saskatchewan First Act is a shield, really, defending the Canadian Constitution and the provincial jurisdiction and our ability to develop our natural resources, which ultimately are the source of our wealth across Saskatchewan.

We're very proud of not only what we produce in Saskatchewan as people that live here, but we're very proud of how we produce it and we would invite other Canadians to be equally proud.

What the Saskatchewan First Act is, is really ensuring us the ability to be successfu: as successful as we've been the last decade or two for the next number of decades for that next generation to have the opportunities that we currently have.

Q: Do you feel like there needs to be a conversation or more discussion with the FSIN or First Nations leaders who have come out in opposition to the Saskatchewan First Act?

A: Certainly, and I've talked with a number of various leaders within the Indigenous community, including the FSIN, about the Saskatchewan First Act and the fact that it doesn't embark on any new territory. [It] confirms and reasserts what we have, as all provincial residents, to develop the resources that we have, and those resources are developed for everyone's benefit.

We have a strong track record when it comes to economic reconciliation and including all people, including Indigenous folks in our economy. Now, there's more work to do on this, but we also need to identify what we have accomplished.

There are more discussions that will come not only with the FSIN but with other Indigenous leaders — [and] I would say with other leaders across the province — on the Saskatchewan First Act, and how our goal, ultimately, is to grow a larger pie for all Saskatchewan residents.

Q: You introduced the Marshals Service. Why is that needed?

A: Yes, it is needed and yes, we should give more money to the RCMP and to municipal forces so that we can make safer communities in this province.

As we move forward with new forces, one being the Indigenous police forces for communities that are requesting. And we have signed a memorandum of understanding to move into this space.

The Marshal Service will be a specialized service. It will be there to be very reactive to the provincial needs, but also to be there to support our RCMP and our municipal police services across the province.

It's a step into provincial policing. It is not there in any way to replace our RCMP or municipal police forces, quite the contrary. We need to continue to invest in both of those organizations and the people offering the services to provide safer communities.

LISTEN | A look back on Sask. politics in 2022 with the Morning Edition's political panel: