premier of saskatchewan threatens to sue federal government
ryan29 @ Wed Jun 13, 2007 7:31 pm
Amid growing anger over changes to the equalization formula, Saskatchewan Premier Lorne Calvert says he has told his provincial Justice Department to pursue legal action against the federal governmentThe news comes the day after the Conservative budget passed in the House of Commons.
"This is a betrayal of a promise that was made," Calvert told reporters in Saskatoon on Wednesday, referring to the federal budget.
"This is a very poor way to run a country, to suggest that provinces, to get a federal government to keep their promise, needs to go to the courts to get it done. ... This said, that is the option before us."
Calvert said he is taking legal action against Ottawa because he feels his province is being singled out and treated unfairly under equalization. Earlier in the week, Prime Minister Stephen Harper challenged the provinces to take him to court over the issue if they are unsatisfied with the plan.
Calvert maintains Harper promised to remove non-renewable natural resource revenues from the equalization formula, but instead capped the amount of funding a province can receive under the program.
full article on news.symaptico.msn.ca
my question is this really about geting more money for saskatchewan or is this about trying to hurt the conservatives chances in saskatchewan in the next election and help the federal ndp's chances since they have zero mp's currently.
premier calvert is an ndp government and the opposition party the saskatchewan party has ties to the federal conservatives.
Patrick_Ross @ Wed Jun 13, 2007 9:02 pm
Here's my take on Calvert, and some of the stuff he does in his own province:
http://nexusofassholery.blogspot.com/20 ... court.html
$1:
Calvert to Drop the Gloves in Court
Saskatchewan Premier Pushes the Envelope of Credibility for Political Gain
In the most recent twist in the ongoing drama over federal equalization payments, Saskatchewan New Democrat premier Lorne Calvert launched a new attack against the Conservative federal government, asking his provincial Justice Department to launch legal action against Ottawa.
At the heart of the issue is the equalization scheme, particularly in relation to non-renewable resources. Calvert insists that Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised to remove non-renewable resources (such as oil, gas, and potash) from the equalization formula. Harper insists he made no such promise, and merely capped the amount that can be collected from such resources under equalization.
In order to try and resolve the dispute to his liking, Calvert has resorted to precisely the tactic that his party's federal leader, Jack Layton, lampooned Harper for: "I'll sue ya!"
Yet, Calvert has a relatively more private taxation-related embarrassment brewing in his own province.
Under the NDP, the government of Saskatchewan has taken to claiming all of the property taxes collected in its various municipalties. Essentially, every year all of the property taxes collected by the municipalities are sent to Regina. There, Calvert's treasury redistributes the funds amongst the municipalties as it sees fit -- something of a intra-province equalization program.
Through this practice, Calvert ensures that municipalities with little or no industrial activity -- particularly related to the oil and gas sector -- recieve funds for needs such as road maintenance.
Unfortunately, many municipalties with the aforementioned oil and gas activity occuring within their boundaries aren't recieving enough of their own property taxes (which they themselves collect) to maintain their roads. Oil and gas activity in these municipalities means that an exponentially larger portion of traffic is active on their roads compared to municipalities that aren't blessed with the revenue that these activities should bring to the municipality.
This sad state of affairs has progressed to the point where many municipalities have been forced to use their road ban powers as weapons against the oil companies that make such stringent use of their roads. In many cases, oil companies have struck deals with the municipalities wherein the oil companies contribute a portion of funding toward road maintenance.
On one hand, it's wrong that the municipalities use their road ban powers in such a way. On the other hand, however, they have to do what they have to do -- and it's wrong that they should have to do it at all.
Consider that oil and gas companies already pay property taxes on their leases, and this becomes a case of these companies paying extra funds to cover government responsibilities that they already pay taxes for.
Given the level of profit earned by oil and gas companies recently, there's little reason that anyone should be shedding crocodile tears for them. For the municipalities, however, the situation is very different. They are essentially caught between the raiding of their property taxes by the provincial government and the generosity of the oil and gas industry. Caught between a proverbial rock and a hard place, indeed.
So, while premier Calvert is threatening legal action against the federal government over alleged broken promises over equalization, Calvert's own centralizing tendencies within his own province are leaving Saskatchewan's oil- and gas-producing municipalities stretched to the point of desperation, with too many road maintenance expenses, and not enough funds to meet them.
Meanwhile, Calvert has taken the liberty of declaring his 2007 budget a surplus, despite the fact that various analysts have joined the Saskatchewan party in pointing out that it is, in fact, a deficit. All this while Calvert and his lapdogs insist that the 2007 budget is a surplus despite the need to draw on government savings in order to have more funds on hand than it is spending.
In the end, it all comes across as rather absurd. Consider all this in concert with the fact that Calvert is facing an upcoming election (all he has to do is call it) and that many of his MLAs are resigning from what many observers opine to be a sinking ship, and Calvert seems to be reduced to a desperate politician, trying to score some quick political capital by shaking his fists at the "big, bad Conservatives" in Ottawa. Ralph Goodale's constant pouting (essentially about the injustice of being relegated to Opposition) can't hurt Calvert's cause either.
In the meantime, the citizens of Saskatchewan seem to know the score. In the 2005/06 federal election, Saskatchewan sent 12 Conservative MPs to the House of Commons, along with 2 Liberal MPs (including Goodale), and...
...Zero NDPers. In a province governed by the NDP, not a single riding in Saskatchewan elected an NDP candidate federally.
That could turn out to be big trouble for Calvert, and he likely knows it. Given that his primary opposition, the Saskatchewan party, is closely aligned with the Conservatives, Calvert could be forgiven if the premier of the NDP's heartland is sweating bullets looking toward the oncoming election.
Whether or not his gambit succeeds has yet to be seen.
Saskatchewan Premier Pushes the Envelope of Credibility for Political Gain
In the most recent twist in the ongoing drama over federal equalization payments, Saskatchewan New Democrat premier Lorne Calvert launched a new attack against the Conservative federal government, asking his provincial Justice Department to launch legal action against Ottawa.
At the heart of the issue is the equalization scheme, particularly in relation to non-renewable resources. Calvert insists that Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised to remove non-renewable resources (such as oil, gas, and potash) from the equalization formula. Harper insists he made no such promise, and merely capped the amount that can be collected from such resources under equalization.
In order to try and resolve the dispute to his liking, Calvert has resorted to precisely the tactic that his party's federal leader, Jack Layton, lampooned Harper for: "I'll sue ya!"
Yet, Calvert has a relatively more private taxation-related embarrassment brewing in his own province.
Under the NDP, the government of Saskatchewan has taken to claiming all of the property taxes collected in its various municipalties. Essentially, every year all of the property taxes collected by the municipalities are sent to Regina. There, Calvert's treasury redistributes the funds amongst the municipalties as it sees fit -- something of a intra-province equalization program.
Through this practice, Calvert ensures that municipalities with little or no industrial activity -- particularly related to the oil and gas sector -- recieve funds for needs such as road maintenance.
Unfortunately, many municipalties with the aforementioned oil and gas activity occuring within their boundaries aren't recieving enough of their own property taxes (which they themselves collect) to maintain their roads. Oil and gas activity in these municipalities means that an exponentially larger portion of traffic is active on their roads compared to municipalities that aren't blessed with the revenue that these activities should bring to the municipality.
This sad state of affairs has progressed to the point where many municipalities have been forced to use their road ban powers as weapons against the oil companies that make such stringent use of their roads. In many cases, oil companies have struck deals with the municipalities wherein the oil companies contribute a portion of funding toward road maintenance.
On one hand, it's wrong that the municipalities use their road ban powers in such a way. On the other hand, however, they have to do what they have to do -- and it's wrong that they should have to do it at all.
Consider that oil and gas companies already pay property taxes on their leases, and this becomes a case of these companies paying extra funds to cover government responsibilities that they already pay taxes for.
Given the level of profit earned by oil and gas companies recently, there's little reason that anyone should be shedding crocodile tears for them. For the municipalities, however, the situation is very different. They are essentially caught between the raiding of their property taxes by the provincial government and the generosity of the oil and gas industry. Caught between a proverbial rock and a hard place, indeed.
So, while premier Calvert is threatening legal action against the federal government over alleged broken promises over equalization, Calvert's own centralizing tendencies within his own province are leaving Saskatchewan's oil- and gas-producing municipalities stretched to the point of desperation, with too many road maintenance expenses, and not enough funds to meet them.
Meanwhile, Calvert has taken the liberty of declaring his 2007 budget a surplus, despite the fact that various analysts have joined the Saskatchewan party in pointing out that it is, in fact, a deficit. All this while Calvert and his lapdogs insist that the 2007 budget is a surplus despite the need to draw on government savings in order to have more funds on hand than it is spending.
In the end, it all comes across as rather absurd. Consider all this in concert with the fact that Calvert is facing an upcoming election (all he has to do is call it) and that many of his MLAs are resigning from what many observers opine to be a sinking ship, and Calvert seems to be reduced to a desperate politician, trying to score some quick political capital by shaking his fists at the "big, bad Conservatives" in Ottawa. Ralph Goodale's constant pouting (essentially about the injustice of being relegated to Opposition) can't hurt Calvert's cause either.
In the meantime, the citizens of Saskatchewan seem to know the score. In the 2005/06 federal election, Saskatchewan sent 12 Conservative MPs to the House of Commons, along with 2 Liberal MPs (including Goodale), and...
...Zero NDPers. In a province governed by the NDP, not a single riding in Saskatchewan elected an NDP candidate federally.
That could turn out to be big trouble for Calvert, and he likely knows it. Given that his primary opposition, the Saskatchewan party, is closely aligned with the Conservatives, Calvert could be forgiven if the premier of the NDP's heartland is sweating bullets looking toward the oncoming election.
Whether or not his gambit succeeds has yet to be seen.
Wally_Sconce @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 12:59 am
oooooooooooo !!!
I'm shaking in my boots
ShepherdsDog @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 2:35 am
It's much better when Lucien Bouchard says it in the singular
Banff @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:31 am
duh of course .
If saskatchewan sues the feds then it has to be good for sask , hell sue Alberta , Indians , immigrants ,Quebec the US and Manitoba too ..... 
Clogeroo @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:33 am
We should just get rid of equalisation. Why should a province's money be used to fund projects in other provinces?
ryan29 @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:41 am
Banff Banff:
duh of course .
If saskatchewan sues the feds then it has to be good for sask , hell sue Alberta , Indians , immigrants ,Quebec the US and Manitoba too .....
If saskatchewan sues the feds then it has to be good for sask , hell sue Alberta , Indians , immigrants ,Quebec the US and Manitoba too .....
but are all these lawsuits really needed ? it seems like there is alot of them now days.
Banff @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:44 am
Clogeroo Clogeroo:
We should just get rid of equalisation. Why should a province's money be used to fund projects in other provinces?
Canada is dependant on Ontario for different reasons than say Alberta or labor immigrants from the east coast . Most people in Alberta are from other parts of Canada . Noone really lives in alberta do they ?
ryan29 @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:45 am
Clogeroo Clogeroo:
We should just get rid of equalisation. Why should a province's money be used to fund projects in other provinces?
i think the conservatives could end this arguement by simply telling voters in ontario, quebec , alberta and bc. sure i'll honour these deals but if you want me to i'm going to have to raise your taxes to give all this money to the east coast and saskatchewan.
guarantee no one in these provinces is willing to pay more taxes just to see the money given to these provinces.
Clogeroo @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:46 am
$1:
Canada is dependant on Ontario for different reasons than say Alberta or labor immigrants from the east coast . Most people in Alberta are from other parts of Canada . Noone really lives in alberta do they ?
What is your point?
Clogeroo @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:47 am
$1:
guarantee no one in these provinces is willing to pay more taxes just to see the money given to these provinces.
Yes but the grits will come in and say it is feasible.
Vote for us we give you hand outs.
Banff @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:47 am
ryan29 ryan29:
Banff Banff:
duh of course .
If saskatchewan sues the feds then it has to be good for sask , hell sue Alberta , Indians , immigrants ,Quebec the US and Manitoba too .....
If saskatchewan sues the feds then it has to be good for sask , hell sue Alberta , Indians , immigrants ,Quebec the US and Manitoba too .....
but are all these lawsuits really needed ? it seems like there is alot of them now days.
yes you do realize americans have a social program to compensate for the lack of Gov social programs its called suing each other . They do it alot and since we are becoming more americanized we are beginning to do like wise . "The best of both social programs"
Delwin @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:50 am
If Harper hadn't overpaid Quebec, it could still be feasible and why are their energy profits left out of the equation ?
Clogeroo @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:52 am
$1:
If Harper hadn't overpaid Quebec, it could still be feasible and why are their energy profits left out of the equation ?
Because Quebec is also another one of the big freeloaders.
ryan29 @ Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:54 am
Clogeroo Clogeroo:
$1:
guarantee no one in these provinces is willing to pay more taxes just to see the money given to these provinces.
Yes but the grits will come in and say it is feasible.
Vote for us we give you hand outs.unfortuently it seems that everyone is looking for hand outs these days, i still don't think the voters in these provinces would be willing to pay more taxes to only see the money given away to other provinces.