Local MLA Dan’Autremont’s new role as the Speaker of the House for the Saskatchewan Legislature was more than 20 years in the making.
“Dan wanted this since he was first elected,” said his Alida office administrator, Jean Ball.
D’Autremont, who was first elected in Cannington in 1991, was up against former speaker Don Toth in a private ballot vote by all 58 MLAs held Dec. 5.
When D’Autremont’s new position was announced, the veteran MLA playfully struggled against Premier Brad Wall and Interim NDP leader John Nilson as they dragged him to the front of the house, a nod to the era when the position could hold deadly consequences.
As the Speaker, D’Autremont is tasked with controlling the flow of business and acting as a referee during debates. He must remain impartial.
In addition to voting in a new Speaker of the House, the 27th session of the Legislative Assembly began with Lt.-Gov. Gordon Barnhart reading the Speech from the Throne.
The throne speech outlined the Government’s plan to put together a pool of 20 locum physicians to relieve existing rural doctors.
The Sask. Party Government also promised to introduce a new $10,000 tax credit to first-time homebuyers before the end of December and to introduce legislation extending the notice periods for rent increases from six months to one year for property owners who choose not to participate in the newly created tenant assistance initiative established by the Saskatchewan Housing Industry Association.
Also, the throne speech reiterated the government’s plan to introduce a new Seniors Personal Care Home Benefit that would subsidize the difference between a senior’s monthly income and the cost of their personal care home space – up to a threshold of $1,800 in 2012, with an increase to $2,000 by 2015.
The government outlined another initiative dubbed the Community Rinks Affordability Grant that would provide $2,500 a year to help with the cost of operating roughly 750 municipally-owned indoor ice surfaces in the province.
As far as legislation goes, the throne speech reaffirmed the Government’s desire to introduce legislation standardizing the start of the school year so that instruction would begin after the Labour Day long weekend right across the province.
Additional points in the Speech from the Throne restated the Sask. Party’s election promises including:
• continued economic and population growth;
• more improvements to Saskatchewan’s highways;
• improving the availability and affordability of housing;
• extending the Active Families Benefit to all children under 18;
• introducing a new Saskatchewan Advantage Scholarship available to all new high school graduates starting in 2012;
• introducing a new Saskatchewan Advantage Grant for Education Savings to help parents save for their children’s education;
• increasing support for low-income seniors through the Seniors Income Plan;
• adding 2,000 new childcare spaces;
• improving support for persons with disabilities by increasing both support levels and access to the Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability program;
• increasing support for autism;
• continuing to reduce surgical wait times;
• improving access to health care services in rural communities;
• improving services for persons with diabetes;
• making communities safer by hiring new police officers to closely monitor repeat offenders; and
• continuing to improve Saskatchewan’s provincial parks
The fall sitting of the Legislative Assembly is expected to last two weeks - enough time to debate and pass the Throne Speech and introduce several pieces of legislation that will be passed during the spring sitting.
lizz@oxbowherald.sk.ca
