Provincial finance minister talks budget with business leaders

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Saskatchewan’s finance minister is defending the government’s approach to dealing with the potential economic fallout of American imposed tariffs, while also highlighting key spending priorities.

Jim Reiter spoke to business leaders Friday in Saskatoon at a local chamber of commerce event. During his opening remarks, he pointed to government initiatives to recruit and retain more health-care workers, along with increased support for mental health and addictions.

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The minister also said tax cuts to help those with lower incomes, along with increased education spending, are important priorities.

“It’s what we heard during the election campaign, what we’ve been hearing since then,” he said.

Reiter said community safety was another major focus, with more funding going to municipalities to help pay for police and RCMP officers.

When it comes to dealing with the potential economic fallout of American tariffs, Saskatchewan is taking a different approach than its neighbours. Both Alberta and Manitoba set aside funding in their most recent budgets to help industries deal with the economic impact of tariffs. The Saskatchewan government did not opt to set any funding aside as part of its budget.

After his opening remarks, Reiter sat for a fireside chat with chamber leadership and was asked about this decision. The finance minister said the option makes sense, given how unpredictable the tariff situation is.

“It makes no sense to me that we would randomly set a number and then go borrow money and start paying interest on it (when) we don’t even know the impact it’s going to have,” he said.

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When it comes to dealing with the negative economic impact of tariffs, Reiter said support for impacted industries would involve steps like the government looking at potential procurement. As an example, the provincial finance minister pointed to the recent purchase of steel by SaskPower from Evraz in Regina.

“We would look at those kinds of things,” said Reiter.

Reiter also touched on the impact Chinese tariffs could have on the province’s canola industry. Talking to media after the event, Reiter was not able to put a specific price tag on what the economic impact could be, but said it would be significant.

“It’s going to be huge,” he said.

The minister did not talk about potential financial support for the canola industry, and he stressed that the government’s focus is on pushing their federal counterparts to engage with China to get the tariffs lifted.

Saskatchewan is breaking from its neighbours in another major way. While both Manitoba and Alberta are projecting deficits, Saskatchewan’s budget projects a $12 million surplus. The finance minister attributed this to strong sales and corporate income tax revenue, along with royalties from uranium.

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“We recognize that revenues are going to be up,” he said.

Reiter said if tariffs are in place for an extended period, the province could be pushed into a deficit. He added that Saskatchewan is in a good fiscal position in terms of credit rating and GDP-to-debt ratio should that happen.

“We’re coming from a position of strength,” he said.

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