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CTV News
16 hours ago
- Politics
- CTV News
‘I thought we'd have help': Denare Beach resident criticizes provincial wildfire response
Dustin Trumbley's home in Denare Beach was destroyed by the wildfire which devastated his community. He's now speaking out, voicing his disappointment with the province's response to the fires. 'I lost a lot of mementos from my grandfather. It bugs me to this day. I should have got more out, but I thought we'd have help,' Trumbley said at an NDP event Monday. The Opposition event criticized the Sask. Party for hosting an upcoming golf tournament fundraiser at Elk Ridge - not far from active wildfires and areas that are still reeling from their effects. The Sask. Party responded, noting that the NDP have also held fundraisers throughout the summer months. Trumbley shared his experience as an evacuee, noting that he is lucky enough to have family to stay with while he navigates the lengthy process of rebuilding his home, but many others aren't as lucky. 'I don't want to see it happen to you or your family ... We should not be at fault because I was born and raised in the North ... and that's how I feel, like we were forgotten about and abandoned,' Trumbley said. After a summer plagued by wildfires and air quality warnings, Premier Scott Moe and the Minister responsible for the SPSA, Tim McLeod, visited La Loche and Beauval to meet with local leaders and visit SPSA facilities. In a statement provided to CTV News, the province highlighted a task force assembled in June, to assist residents in Trumbley's community. 'The task force includes dedicated representatives from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), Ministry of Government Relations, Social Services, Environment and SGI,' the statement read. 'This joint effort has allowed the task force and communities to accelerate the achievement of multiple milestones, including establishing a Community Resiliency Centre in Denare Beach for individuals and families, clearing debris from properties and removing hundreds of lost vehicles.' But Trumbley expressed that this action comes much later than he would have liked to see, and he will be tentatively waiting to see how the province responds next wildfire season. 'I would really like to know for next time, that I know that the government and their programs will be in place to make sure that there will be help in place, that this will never happen again,' he said. 'That's all I've ever asked.'
CTV News
a day ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Sask. court hears arguments from province, UR Pride in pronoun law appeal
WATCH: Donovan Maess has the details on the first day of proceedings of the pronoun policy appeal launched by the Sask. Gov't. The Saskatchewan Government is in the province's highest court fighting to prevent a Court of King's Bench judge from determining if its Parents' Bill of Rights actually violates the Charter. In August 2023, the government announced a policy requiring students under 16 years of age to have parental permission before they change their pronouns or names in school. LGBTQ2S+ advocates then requested and were granted a court injunction which halted the use of the policy. In response, the Sask Party government enacted the use of the notwithstanding clause into Bill 137, better known as the Parents' Bill of Rights in attempt to stop the court challenge. Download the CTV News app to get breaking news alerts sent to your device In February, Justice Michael Megaw ruled UR Pride should still get the chance to have the court review the law's impacts under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Megaw's decision would allow UR Pride and the government to present all their evidence and arguments in court, although the invocation of Section 33 of the Charter, also known as the notwithstanding clause, means a judge could not strike it down. The government is making the case that its use of Section 33 means that since the court has no power to strike the law down, it should not be allowed to review whether the law violates the Charter. Three Arguments The government's appeal relied on three main arguments: There was an error of law for allowing the challenge to proceed, the issue is moot because of the use of the notwithstanding clause and UR Pride is abusing the judicial process. Government counsel believed Justice Megaw made an error of law in allowing UR Pride to amend its application to include a constitutional challenge. 'Jurisdiction of the court is removed when the notwithstanding clause in invoked,' lawyer Milad Alishahi argued in court Monday. 'The ability of the court completely to deal with the question [whether a law violates a charter provision] doesn't exist.' The province also believes the challenge is moot because of the use of the clause. 'The learning judge made an error of law in failing to find the declaration sought to find Sections 7 and 15 [of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms] raised in the issue,' said government lawyer Bennet Misskey. 'To determine whether a matter is moot, it is necessary to assess what practical remedies are available to both parties.' Court of Appeal Justice Georgina Jackson challenged Misskey's comment. 'Would it have been better for the learn judge not to have passed on the issue of jurisdiction and focused on the issue of mootness?' she asked. 'Certainly,' Misskey replied. 'Had the court found they had jurisdiction to issue some sort of declaration it was incumbent to then address the question of mootness.' 'By deferring the issue, it almost renders the question of mootness itself in a certain way,' he added. Finally, lawyers say UR Pride is abusing the court process in trying to hold the government to account. 'It's such a different case,' Deron Kuski said. 'They are saying they want a decision that will hold the government to account.' Kuski added he believes it is not up to the court to allow the process. 'The court should not concern itself with the issue of accountability,' he said. 'Public accountability comes at the ballot box, not from the judiciary.' UR Pride on defense For over a year, UR Pride and multiple other advocate groups have been on the offensive in trying to halt the pronoun policies included in the Parents' Bill of Rights. But now, they are defending the decision to allow their connotational challenge. 'The issue of this case from day zero has been whether this law is constitutional,' said Adam Goldenberg, co-counsel for UR Pride. 'I have real concerns with the suggestion its abusive and improper for a party challenging the constitutionality of a law to seek the determination whether the law is.' 'The government has taken the position the effect of section 33 is unaffected by the rights of the groups in question,' Chief Justice Robert Leurer said. 'Are being asked to decide an issue on a factual pattern?' 'No one is questioning the legislative policy in this case,' Goldenberg said. 'You can't look at which rights are being overridden and whether it was a wise or unwise legislative choice.' 'As long as the full requirements are met, the law operates,' he added. 'None of that is being disputed in this case.' Goldenberg went on to submit there is a real need to inform the Saskatchewan electorate and elected officials of the provisions which the government has sought to infringe with the use of the notwithstanding clause. 'The purpose of every charter claim is ultimately to educate the legislatures who have the power to change the law of their constitutional obligations,' he said. 'None of that is improper. None of that is abusive.' Setting the precedent The looming appeal decision stands to set the precedent for similar cases across the country. 'The court has an important role when the government chooses to violate the charter rights of young people or any part of the population,' said UR Pride co-counsel and Director of Legal for Egale Canada Bennett Jensen. Both the provinces of New Brunswick and Alberta have enacted similar pronoun policy laws and were granted intervener status in this case. Representatives from both provinces made submissions Monday in support of the Sask Party government's position. Legal battles in each province are also expected in the near future. Sask. Minister of Justice and Attorney General Bronwyn Eyre asserted the government's support for parental rights. 'It is important to include parents in these crucial decisions,' she told reporters at a media conference in Saskatoon Monday. 'We've always been clear we'll use every tool at our disposal to do that.' 'The notwithstanding clause is an integral part of the Charter of Rights [and Freedoms] and was long fought for … as a means for a balance between the legislative and judicial [branches],' Eyre added. Jensen responded by saying it is disappointing to see the Saskatchewan government continue to defend policies he says target the province's most vulnerable. 'When political leaders are telling young people it's not okay to be themselves, that it's not okay to be different at school, that has a devastating effect on young people,' he said. 'The fact the policy has continued to be in effect this whole time continues to cause real harm across the population.' More arguments in support of UR Pride's challenge will continue Tuesday. -With files from Rory MacLean
Winnipeg Free Press
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Enough pancake flipping and magical thinking
Opinion Howdy Manitoba! It's your friendly Saskatchewan neighbour. I'd wave but you can't see me through the thick smoke. Environment Canada assures me it will blow over any day now. And when it does, we can finally enjoy that long overdue summer visit on the deck. We need to log some time together since Saskatchewan and Alberta politicians have philosophically aligned in a Vulcan Mind Meld that rivals the failed bid to merge into one big province called Buffalo in 1905. Alberta and Saskatchewan have eliminated interprovincial trade barriers and we're now brainstorming. We practise Pickle Ball Public Policy. It's a short-court approach with lots of unanticipated injuries. Alberta is leading the charge in protecting our youth from dirty books. What better way to convert them to The Wild Rose Way than public library censorship? No one reads anymore — unless it's a truncated 140 characters on X. 'Literature' is just the long-winded ramblings of the likes of W.O. Mitchell and Margaret Laurence. Kids, if you want to learn about puberty, you'll have to consult OnlyFans for lessons in anatomy. Back in my day, we relied on family bookshelves to slake our curiosity. I learned everything I know about sex in my early teens from sneak-reading my father's copy of The Happy Hooker. On the addictions file, Saskatchewan has introduced mandatory rehab stays for homeless addicts. It's too bad we can't make that policy retrograde and force Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and his wobbly cabinet off the Quonset Moonshine and into a 72-hour remand hold. Which leads to the next challenge: coal-fired electricity generators. Since there are currently 44 active fires in Saskatchewan, the Moe regime's mission is to burn 'legacy' coal until 2050 to stoke the flames. Small modular reactors are for 'have' provinces like Ontario. Class action suits are the 'new black' for beleaguered cottage owners and northern Saskatchewan residents whose cries for outside help turned into a tragic sociology experiment. If your property burns down, does anybody in Moe's cynical cabinet care? The SaskParty rivals the government of Texas for incompetent inaction followed by gaslighting 'thoughts and prayers.' Just don't force the SaskParty to call those bastards in Ottawa for help. That would be an admission that we've messed up, didn't maintain our water bombers before forest fire season and don't have the capacity to cope with Climate Change. Or, as the Americans call smoke drifting south: 'Canadian Forestry Mismanagement.' We all need to do our part. I talked to a local in front of the post office yesterday. Our conversation went on too long. When the talkative man turned to get into his SUV, he confessed it had been running for 45 minutes. No wonder David Suzuki was frothing at the mouth on YouTube a few days ago. Stephen Quinn, a CBC Vancouver radio host, just looked over his glasses and kept mum as the frustrated scientist ranted about the Sixth Great Extinction. 'Take more time for your program to talk about these issues. Please!' Suzuki barked while Quinn looked on with obvious fatigue. It's the same energy-depleted expression I try, and fail, to conceal when someone spital-spouts their conspiracy theory about Jeffrey Epstein's 'apparent' suicide. Only this time, Suzuki is speaking truth to power. Prime Minister Mark Carney's federal government isn't helping matters when they allow U.S. President Donald Trump's obnoxious reach to extend into Canada's taxation policies. Oh, sure, we'll dump the digital tax. Just let us keep producing shoddy cars in Ontario's rust belt. I was kicked off Facebook three months ago for marketing my new book 'too aggressively' without buying an ad. I have 180 days to grieve their decision. Don't hold your breath, Mr. Zuckerberg. It's more productive and profitable in exile. Which leads to the unbearable lightness of life without the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement. Can Canada survive a protracted American trade shun? I'm still reeling from ignorant U.S. politicians instructing Manitoba to stop 'ruining American summers' with wildfire smoke as if Premier Wab Kinew placed a giant fan directed at the U.S. as just another trade irritant. What part of state of emergency aren't they registering in their heat-stroked delirium? If our only vision for a national makeover is a new pipeline, we're already the 51st state. Enough pancake flipping and magical thinking, Carney. It's just another Stampede midway shell game to keep premiers Smith and Moe too distracted with federal promises to separate. How about a high-speed train from Winnipeg to Montreal? But it won't stop in Toronto. That's one thing upon which Western Canadians can agree: No one wants to go to Toronto. Saskatchewan satirist Patricia Dawn Robertson wrote this commentary during an air quality advisory. Her new book, Media Brat: a Gen-X memoir, can be purchased at
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sask. Opposition says province mishandling homelessness crisis as thousands of units sit vacant
Saskatchewan's Opposition NDP held simultaneous media conferences in Regina and Saskatoon on Wednesday to reapply pressure on the province to address the ongoing homelessness crisis. In Regina, NDP social services critic Brent Blakley accused the province of mishandling the crisis despite thousands of vacant social housing units across Saskatchewan. The Opposition said it obtained data for 2024 through a Freedom of Information request made to the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation. It shows there were approximately 17,200 social housing and affordable housing units in the province and approximately 12.5 per cent were vacant. Blakley said it's all too common to see people sleeping in the streets, some of whom are battling addictions and struggling with food insecurity. "The Sask. Party has taken us backwards with harmful and thoughtless changes to critical income support programs and zero plans for housing. In fact, they aren't even using the public housing that they have available," he told reporters in front of the Legislative Building on Wednesday. Blakley said the government needs to focus on getting people a roof over their heads, food on the kitchen table and access to supports to ensure they can live their lives with "dignity." The NDP said there are nearly 200 units vacant in Saskatoon and more than 400 in Regina. It also said homelessness is on the rise in both urban centres. "These homes have the potential to save lives, to get people off the streets, to set them up with supports, to get their life back on track and much more," Blakley said. He said there are some communities across the province where more than half of publicly owned houses are vacant. "We know these public housing units are vacant for two reasons — failure to maintain them and make them suitable for people to live in, or a complete lack of planning and foresight by the Sask. Party to address this houselessness crisis," Blakley said. The NDP MLA called on the province to repair units that need it. He also said Saskatchewan Income Support (SIS) payments and housing benefits are not nearly enough to address the crisis. "People are not getting the benefits they need and they're having to make decisions whether they pay rent this month or whether they feed themselves, he said. "The SIS payments this year went up a whopping two per cent, which is $30 a month per person. And I don't know if you've been out shopping, but $30 doesn't buy much." According to an NDP release Wednesday morning, Saskatchewan is the only province to see an increase in rent prices this month. The average price of rent has decreased by 2.9 per cent in a statement to the CBC Wednesday afternoon, the Government of Saskatchewan said that through continued investments, it is making progress to ensure all residents have access to stable and affordable housing. The province said that since 2021, it has seen a 30 per cent decrease in the number of vacant units. Regina activists call for new policy on encampments Shortly after the NDP news conference in, advocates in front of Regina city hall to call on the city to adopt a new policy on encampments. They also want the city to put pressure on the province to get people into social housing units that are currently sitting empty. The concerned citizens said they want the city to listen to people who have experienced homelessness when designing its protocols. Activists also called on the city to commit to not removing encampments on municipal property unless people staying there can be provided with permanent housing. They also want more support for encampments, including potable water and bathrooms, and for the city to allow people to remain in a park past 11 p.m. CST. Mandla Mthembu, a community activist, said the city is not moving fast enough to help its vulnerable population in the summer months. "It's July, it's a heat dome. If the city was to make a decision today, it would be too little too late. But it doesn't mean we can't still push for it," he said. Mthembu has been a regular volunteer in the city, working to help people who live on the streets, including at the large encampment at Regina city hall in July 2023. He said he is often asked by people in the community what advocates like himself are doing in the fight and what the plan is for people living in encampments. "No one has an answer beyond if you stay on property that's private, you get kicked off. If you stay at public parks and you break a bylaw, you'll get kicked off. Like, that is not a strategy." In a statement to the CBC, the City of Regina said it acknowledges and shares in the concern raised. "The challenges posed by houseless encampments continue to grow, not just in Regina, but in municipalities across North America. Efforts to develop and improve supportive responses and approaches are ongoing," the city said. It said the municipality's current practice is designed to balance the needs of all stakeholders, from encampment residents to the broader community. "This approach prioritizes the dignity, safety and well-being of all individuals experiencing houselessness, while maintaining public safety." The city said it is not a direct service provider, but does play a crucial role in co-ordinating with various agencies and service providers to manage and respond to encampments.
CTV News
18-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Sask. government says individuals attempted to ‘trespass' into restricted area of La Ronge airport
Conair Dash 8-400AT Airtankers are parked on the tarmac in Abbotsford, B.C., Friday, April. 26, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) alleges several individuals were caught 'attempting to trespass' at the La Ronge airport earlier this week. In a media advisory Wednesday, the SPSA said members of its frontline staff reported the group was found at the air operations base on Monday, June 16. 'At any time - but especially during a wildfire crisis - it is unacceptable for anyone to interfere with wildfire and emergency personnel operations,' the advisory read. The agency went on to encourage residents to respect the safety rules posted around its emergency operations centres. Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck and MLA for Cumberland Jordan McPhail visited several communities damaged by the fires over the course of June 16-17 - one of which included La Ronge. The NDP released a statement shortly after the SPSA advisory – explaining that its members were recording a video in the airport's parking lot. 'The Sask. Party government's statement is desperate, ridiculous, and a blatant attempt to distract from the fact that nearly half of their air tankers were secretly grounded during the worst wildfires in a decade,' the NDP statement read. 'Standing in a paid public parking lot to shoot a video is not trespassing.' Beck shared the video on social media. During the minute-long clip, Beck and McPhail can be seen standing in front of a hangar and several aircraft. 'We're going to continue to listen to those voices from the front line about what is needed now and about the lessons they've learned, should have been learned by the government,' Beck said. 'We're going to push for better preparation.' Water bomber capacity On Monday, the NDP highlighted that the province's newest addition to its water bomber fleet, a Conair Dash 8-Q400AT airtanker, was forced to sit idle – due to a lack of qualified pilots. SPSA officials quickly revealed that four of its pilots were training to operate the new aircraft – and had completed simulator training as well as other requirements. However, due to Transport Canada regulations, each pilot would have to train for a certain number of hours in the physical aircraft with an experienced instructor. Due to the provincial state of emergency and overall worsening fire season across Canada, the agency put the training efforts on hold and reallocated the pilots to other aircraft. 'Furthermore, there is a national, critical shortage of qualified and experienced aircraft maintenance engineers (AMEs),' the province said in its statement. 'We have filled some vacancies by partnering with schools to fill positions with apprentices to build our capacity in the future. We have also had some success in contracting AME's and continue to work to increase our capacity.' According to the Government of Saskatchewan, the province operates four Convair 580A land-based air tankers, six CL-215T turbine powered water-scooping air tankers and seven smaller 'bird-dog' aircraft – which guide air tankers and direct other air traffic near wildfires. Mandatory inspections caused two of the CL-215Ts to be unavailable for five days this fire season – while another CL-215T is out for the season due to 'extensive structural inspections and repairs.' Two CV580s are currently grounded due to unavailable parts and necessary maintenance. One of the planes is expected to be up and running by the end of the month while the other is grounded until further notice due to a failed propeller. The province noted that extra aircraft were also commissioned from other jurisdictions to help fight the blazes.
