Bronwyn Eyre: Sask.Bold attempt to regain constitutional authority

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Howard Leeson (“Using the Courts to Determine the Constitutionality of the First Law of Saskatchewan,” Nov. 22) questions whether our laws pass the “constitutional litmus test.” I’m here.

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To do. The Federal Energy Minister recently acknowledged it. And in 2021, the Prime Minister made it clear that provinces, like Quebec, have the power to unilaterally amend their constitutions.

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The Saskatchewan First Act asserts exclusive constitutional jurisdiction over natural resources, and its strength has allowed it to weather recession and inflation storms better than other countries.

Despite harmful federal policies that risk costing the state hundreds of millions of dollars and even more, we have achieved economic success by creating a strong investment climate.

Congressional budget officials say that at least 60% of Canadian households are financially disadvantaged by the federal carbon tax, even before the overheads passed on by businesses and industries (which do not receive rebates) are added to the calculation. I testified that

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By 2030, state growers will be burdened with $28 million a year just from drying grain.

Federal fuel standards, which take effect next year, will cost Saskatchewan $700 million annually in gas and diesel consumption. This will hit the rural retail, rail, agricultural, trucking and manufacturing sectors particularly hard, driving up home heating and fuel costs.

Meanwhile, the looming federal Clean Power Regulation stipulates that by 2035 there will be no fossil-generated electricity anywhere. Bad news for all of us, including Saskatoon, which is powered by natural gas at the Queen Elizabeth Power Plant.

Under Sask. As a first act, we establish an independent court whose sole task is to analyze and quantify the economic impact of federal government policy. is recognized.

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We believe it is within our right to demand fair dealing from the federal government, to be treated as a partner of honor, and to amend the constitution of our provinces as Quebec does.

Amendments to both the Saskatchewan Acts and the Constitution Act of 1867 (Part V) are expressly authorized under Section 45 of the Constitution Act of 1982. Nothing in this Act prejudices the treaty rights enshrined in Article 35 of the Constitution. state law.

Not all parts of Saskatchewan Law are part of the Canadian Constitution. For example, state boundaries could not be unilaterally amended.

However, the state alone can change the state’s seat of government under a Saskatchewan law that changed the size of the legislature and the composition of the courts without federal approval.

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Contrary to Leeson’s claims, we do not intend to “add new powers to the Saskatchewan Legislature.” Section 3 only claims and enumerates the exclusive rights of the states.

As Quebec policy analyst Michel Kelly Gagnon wrote recently, governments sometimes acquire not only powers conferred, but powers they dare to take.

In Saskatchewan, we chose to dare to take on that challenge in our Saskatchewan Act One.

Bronwyn Eyre is the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Saskatchewan.

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