It did not take long for New Democratic Party leader Dwain Lingenfelter to make his way to the Battlefords in this election campaign.
Just two days after the provincial election was called by Premier Brad Wall Oct.10, Lingenfelter was in the Battlefords to officially open MLA Len Taylor's campaign office on 100th Street.
Lingenfelter made an announcement at Crandleberry's the next day, saying the NDP was committed to eliminating the small business tax.
The NDP leader said this would help small businesses create jobs and bring the province on par with Manitoba, which has eliminated its small business tax.
"Small businesses create jobs, they create economic activity and build the province," said Lingenfelter, who said small businesses are great employers and great for the community.
He says the NDP will also work with small businesses to provide on-the-job training for skilled workers to fill a gap in trades and skilled labour.
Lingenfelter and his team then travelled to nearby Red Pheasant First Nation south of the Battlefords in the Cut Knife-Turtleford constituency. There, Lingenfelter made a commitment to build a better relationship with First Nations and Métis people and to negotiate a revenue sharing agreement on resources .
The NDP leader also committed to increasing the aboriginal high school graduation rate by 50 per cent in four years and to expanding post-secondary and other opportunities for First Nations, Métis and remote communities.
The visit by the leader is just one of many expected in the coming campaign, with the Battlefords expected to be a major battleground between Taylor, Saskatchewan Party candidate Herb Cox and Liberal leader Ryan Bater. The NDP leader already indicated he will be back in the riding again this week, with more visits likely here and in nearby ridings targeted by the NDP where they lost by a close margin last time.
Lingenfelter's announcements in the Battlefords and area were among a flurry the NDP has made during the opening days of the campaign.
At the campaign office event Oct. 12, Lingenfelter repeated many of the policy pledges that had been made in the previous 48 hours, including a policy announced earlier in the day in Prince Albert that the NDP would be reviving the school dental program for children between five and 12. The program would be prevention-focused and would cover checkups, fluoride treatments, sealants and basic fillings.
Lingenfelter also talked about NDP plans for rent control as well as a Bright Futures Fund. That fund would see $100 million of royalties annually put away over the next four years into an independently managed growth fund, with dividends used for capital costs after 10 years and the principal not accessed for 20 years.
The NDP leader told reporters he believes his policies were getting a positive reaction.
"People are pretty excited about our platform with the Bright Futures Fund, our health care program, the announcement that we would be getting more from our potash in terms of royalties and also our dental program for children between five and 12," Lingenfelter said.
Taylor told the audience he has received a warm reception at the door and said his campaign already has more sign locations in place than in the entire 2007 campaign.
"I'm just delighted with where we sit," Taylor told reporters. "People are responding quite well to the fact they know me, I've been around, they feel comfortable with me. They're telling me that on the doorstep."
He noted that two themes coming up regularly include the lack of affordable housing and the lack of skilled labour available to fill jobs in the province.
While the reception was warm from NDP supporters at the campaign office, it was more frosty for Lingenfelter the next day at Crandleberry's, as assembled provincial media demanded specifics about the cost of items in his platform.
Lingenfelter did say removing the small business tax would cost $64 million a year, but reporters wanted to know the cost of other pledges. The NDP leader pledged the information would be made available in a few days in the party's full platform.
That response didn't satisfy some reporters who wanted immediate answers for the specific costs of items, such as from the NDP's health care announcements.
When asked by the News-Optimist if the election was turning into a bidding war, Lingenfelter responded, "no, I'm not bidding against anyone. I'm putting forward positive platform items that we have heard from the public of Saskatchewan." He added the party had committed to the public to do everything possible to make life more affordable.
Despite the grilling from the press, Lingenfelter tried to keep the tone of the news conference positive and restrained himself when one reporter asked his reaction to a Saskatchewan Party gaffe- a press release that claimed the cost of the NDP promise on health care was $840,000,000 when it was over 10 times less than that.
"I guess I won't be taking any math lessons from the Sask. Party," Lingenfelter responded, "but having said that, mistakes happen and I'm just sticking to what we're announcing, which is positive change."
