Food price, conflict of interest motions blocked by government

On Thursday, as proceedings ended for the week, government MLAs once again blocked emergency motions from the Sask. NDP. 

There were two motions – one to strike an all-party committee to investigate the high prices of food in Northern Saskatchewan.

27 cases of scurvy have been diagnosed in the north, and it’s been blamed on incredibly high food prices.

The other would have brought former Sask. Party MLA Gary Grewal into the legislature to answer questions about social services and his hotels.

Grewal was found to be in violation of the conflict-of-interest rules when his hotels began taking social services clients and charging apparently inflated rates.

Neither of those motions was granted leave for discussion by government members.

Premier Scott Moe said Gary Grewal is no longer a government member.

“This individual didn’t run for our party, he’s not running for our party, he’s a private citizen now and I don’t know the last time, under any government, that a private citizen has been summoned to appear before, whether it be a committee or it be the legislature itself,” Moe said.

Grewal is still getting thousands of dollars in transition allowance from the government for his four years as an MLA, about which Moe said he’s just being treated like other MLAs are.

The conflict of interest commissioner left any penalty for Grewal breaking the rules up to the MLAs in the assembly.

Responding to continued questions, Moe repeated that the policies around hotel rooms within social services have now changed, and he’s set an expectation that all of his members are in compliance with the conflict of interest rules.

Carla Beck, Sask. NDP Leader, said the people of the province expect there would be some kind of penalty for Grewal breaking the rules and making money off of it.

“Essentially the message we heard from the government today, was that an MLA can break the law and as long they don’t run again there is no penalty,” she said.

Beck said that message isn’t good for the people of the province or other members in the assembly.

“We should hold ourselves to a higher standard than that, there should be a penalty,” she said.

As to what an appropriate penalty would be for Grewal, Beck said her party is still getting legal advice on that.

When it comes to northern food prices, Moe put much of the onus for that on the federal government, saying it’s a national problem and is due in large part to national policies like the carbon tax.

“The tax that we’re seeing on the gas that we drive, the carbon tax that’s going to be increasing this spring, is that really the right time for that?” Moe said.

The premier went on to insist that a federal election is needed.

Moe said he’d been in several northern communities in the past year.

“(I’m) very pleased to have these discussions and to work with the community leaders on, what can we do to address some of the access to food security challenges that are there, and nutritious food security,” he said.

And Moe continue that the government needs to work with those northern communities to make sure they can access affordable, and good food.

Beck said her party’s motion on northern food prices would have done just what the premier suggested, “get to the bottom of food prices in the north, look into solutions for what – frankly – is unacceptable in 2024, that is 27 people experiencing symptoms of scurvy.”

At least of the responsibility for finding solutions to this problem, according to Beck, does lie with the provincial government.

“They have to, at least, be willing to acknowledge the problem, and at least be willing to do something as reasonable to meet in a committee to figure out what we can do to ensure that people have access to good food in the north, reasonable food prices,” Beck said.

The NDP tried to bring up both motions in committee earlier in the week, but the party claims the government members ignored the attempt.