Saskatchewan Throne Speech and Fall Session 2026
Saskatchewan has a pitch. Now it needs voters to buy it.
“The world is uncertain. Saskatchewan isn’t.”
With that opening line, Lieutenant Governor Bernadette McIntyre set the tone for a Throne Speech built around a single message: while tariffs, global conflict, and market turmoil shake economies everywhere, Saskatchewan remains strong and steady. Strong and steady was repeatedly mentioned in the speech and harkens back to the Harper government’s “strong and stable” messaging. The Moe government is making the case that in uncertain times, Saskatchewan is the place to build.
That case starts with building at home. The government reiterated its support for pipelines, ports, and power grids, including an east-west pipeline that doesn’t have to run through the United States to reach Ontario. It pointed to a national power grid MOU signed with nine other provinces, and a new agreement with Alberta and the Northwest Territories on a nuclear-backed electricity system. The numbers are meant to impress and show a growing economy in the province: more than 60 major projects worth over $100 billion, led by Bell Canada’s data centre near Regina, now valued at more than $50 billion and billed as the largest private capital investment in Canadian history.
On resources, the pitch was centred on who to buy from. Saskatchewan supplies 35 per cent of global potash demand, and NexGen’s Rook I mine alone could meet 20 per cent of the world’s uranium needs. The speech noted that the world’s three largest potash producers are Russia, Belarus, and Saskatchewan, and worked to build a narrative of commodity exports being about trust, stating that the province is “an affordable, reliable, and ethically produced supply option.”
The speech also signalled a busy session ahead. The government announced new legislation on health care scope of practice, oversight of personal care homes, MAID safeguards, opioid cost recovery, critical infrastructure protection, mandatory testing for first responders, human trafficking reporting, deceptive AI, impaired driving, support payment enforcement and adoption records. Add a promised income tax cut in the spring budget, and this is shaping up to be a legislation-heavy sitting.
The priorities read like a checklist of what voters say they care about: affordability, health care, schools and safer communities. Getting back to basics comes at a time when a recent Abacus Data poll found the Saskatchewan Party at 48 per cent among decided voters and the NDP at 46, with the NDP holding strong leads in Saskatoon and Regina. Half of respondents said it’s time for a change. Not every pollster sees it that way. An Angus Reid poll, released yesterday, has the government at 51 percent to the NDP’s 40, close to the 2024 result.
Either way, the math is familiar. The Saskatchewan Party’s rural base remains solid, but its growth path runs through the cities and the small urban centres that decide close races. This Throne Speech is aimed squarely at them: while some voters may be itching for change, the Saskatchewan Party under Premier Moe’s helm will continue to march along to a steady drumbeat that has served them well.
The speech closed by acknowledging that many challenges are beyond the province’s control, but by focusing on what it can control, Saskatchewan will stay strong and steady, and is ready for whatever comes next.
New West Public Affairs is following the Saskatchewan legislative session closely and is ready to help clients understand the government’s priorities and what they mean for your organization.
