Murray Wood: Who's hot and who's not
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As people in northern Saskatchewan begin to pick up the pieces after wildfires, Saskatchewan NDP on Friday called for the Saskatchewan Party government to step up to help rebuilding efforts.
Nathan Pitka, who owns a cabin in East Trout Lake that was destroyed by the Shoe Fire in May, sent a letter asking for the removal of the Provincial Sales Tax (PST) on labour costs and the NDP is backing his call, saying the provincial government shouldn’t profit from people’s misfortune.
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NDP Northern affairs critic Jordan McPhail said Pitka’s letter was also sent to the provincial government but he has had no reply.
“I have yet to hear from the provincial government,” he said. “So once they’ve (cabin/home/business owners) already spent astronomical amounts to remove the debris from their lots, they are now going to be adding a 6 per cent tax to rebuild on that very same lot.”
McPhail said the ball is in Premier Scott Moe’s court.
“They have their hands on the levers of power and they can make this happen for northern Saskatchewan people,” he said. “ … they’re ready to rebuild today.”
McPhail said the government’s answer should be “yes.”
“This should not be a partisan position, it is simply the right thing to do,” he said. “To help rebuild after so much heartbreak and loss in the north.”
It would be a Canadian first if the Saskatchewan Party did remove the PST for labour costs — there is no record of a province ever doing it before.
But NDP Leader Carla Beck said that in dropping the tax the province would be making the right kind of history.
Many homes were destroyed in East Trout Lake as the massive Shoe fire merged with the Camp fire, which has charred an area of 256,171 hectares so far. (SaskLakes.ca/Facebook)
“It’s the right thing to do. It’s something that would allow these builds to not come at such a cost,” she said.
“Frankly, given the way that people in the north have been abandoned by this government during this wildfire crisis … it would be a much needed gesture of not only practical help but goodwill.”
Beck said removing the tax on labour could save people a lot of money.
“The numbers are about 30 to upwards of 50 per cent of the cost,” she said. “Applying the PST to construction labour has really shot up the price of building or rebuilding.”
Beck said it’s not like the people are asking for the moon or sun with this request.
“This was a very reasonable ask that came from someone who had lost so much,” she said.
“This is an incredible portion of the cost to rebuild, it’s a simple measure that the government could take today.”
CKOM reached out to the provincial government for comment, but had not received any at the time of publication.
In early July, the provincial government committed $20 million to support initial wildfire recovery.
The money was earmarked for debris removal, environmental testing, creation, expansion, maintenance of landfills near communities that suffered loss, and project management support to assist local recovery efforts.
A majority of the funding will be provided by the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program, and will be made available to those who suffered losses between May 29 and June 26, 2025.
— with files from CKOM News
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