Local Health Concerns
Raised
Recently, I had the opportunity to raise
health care related concerns in the Legislature. As details of
our new hospital were released and the specifics of the
government’s planned bed closures in the region became apparent, a
number of constituents raised concerns about future bed capacity
in the region.
There are occasions when our own hospital
makes use of beds in Herbert for recovering patients. With the
government announcement that 7 acute care beds and 15 long term
care beds will be closed in Herbert, I asked the Minister of
Health, Hon. John Nilson, what flexibility was being built into
the new facility to accommodate this fact.
Here is part of the exchange from the
Legislature on June 1st:
Mr. Wall: “…Is the region (Cypress Health
Region) looking at rightsizing the proposal…..maybe revisiting
the number of beds that are approved at the new facility at
Swift Current?”
Hon. Mr. Nilson: “…I think at this stage
they’ve (Cypress Health Region) already thought that they’ve
included that. If there’s some other issue that shows up, I’m
sure that they’ll consider that. But I think it is something
that’s been part of their long-term planning.”
Source: Saskatchewan Hansard (June 1st, 2004)
This issue certainly bears close monitoring.
It would simply be unacceptable to finally achieve a much-needed
new regional hospital that does not offer sufficient capacity.
Property Taxes
On June 10th, representatives from
the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM)
traveled to the Legislature to again ask the Premier if he would
keep the commitment he made during the election and at the 2003
SARM convention to reduce the education portion of property
taxes. Not only did the Premier not even take the opportunity to
address the crowd, but his Intergovernmental Affairs Minister
(Hon. Len Taylor) threatened the crowd to not criticize the
Premier or he wouldn’t meet with them at all (remarks that the
Premier and Minister later had to apologize for). We as the
Official Opposition introduced an emergency motion in the
Legislature that day calling on Premier Calvert to take immediate
action to reduce the education portion of property taxes, however
the NDP used its one-seat majority to defeat this motion. As I
stated in one of my speeches that afternoon, this issue it about
the government’s priorities:
Mr. Wall:
“And we know that in this budget, this government has enough
money, apparently they don’t have enough to keep their promises
on property tax, but they’ve got more than enough to commit $50
million…..They’ve got $50 million to invest in things like
SPUDCO, Mr. Speaker, to invest in things like SPUDCO, but they
don’t have a dime to keep their promises to rural Saskatchewan,
Mr. Speaker.”
Source:
Saskatchewan Hansard (June 10th/2004)
This is an urban and rural issue. The
education portion of our property taxes has increased and the
provincial government over the years has downloaded education
funding onto school boards and ratepayers.
Crystal Meth
A growing concern among parents and youth in
Saskatchewan has been the increased use of crystal meth, a drug
being referred to as the “new form of speed.” Law enforcement
officials say the use of this drug is becoming more prevalent in
Saskatchewan. Schools and parents around the province have been
holding informational meetings regarding crystal meth, and in
fact, the chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations
has told us he believes that crystal meth has the potential to
become an epidemic among young First Nations people. The Official
Opposition Saskatchewan Party has been pressuring the government
to make this issue more of a priority. We have asked the
government to increase public awareness on crystal meth, and as a
starting point to develop updated literature for schools for the
upcoming school year. We have also been pressuring the government
to be as proactive as possible on this issue and to work with
other provinces who have already adopted interdepartmental
strategies on meth.
End of Spring Session
The Spring Session of the Legislature
concluded in Regina this week. As a result of a new legislative
calendar, the Legislature will also reconvene for a short session
this fall. I will be providing more details on the new
legislative calendar and other issues that were raised during the
Spring Session in future “Reports to Constituents” this summer.
My email address is
bradwall@sasktel.net Our
website is
www.bradwall.com
