The Empire Club of Canada
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
The Empire Club of Canada Presents:
The Honourable Brad Wall, Premier of Saskatchewan With The Case for Energy East: Why Canadians Should Embrace Their Good Fortune
Hon. Brad Wall, Premier President of Executive Council Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs MLA for Swift Current Brad Wall was first elected Premier of Saskatchewan in the November 2007 provincial election. His government was re elected in the 2011 provincial election with 64 percent of the popular vote and in the 2016 provincial election with 62 percent of the popular vote, the highest percentages of any political party in Saskatchewan history. Premier Wall’s government can point to a remarkable list of achievements, including: The largest personal income and property tax cuts in the history of Saskatchewan; Reducing the province’s operating debt by 40 per cent and saving $1.2 billion in interest payments since 2008; Saskatchewan receiving a AAA credit rating from Standard and Poor’s for the first time; the highest level possible for a provincial government: Population growth of 132,000 people in 8 years, more growth than the previous 75 years combined to an all time high of 1.14 million people; Implementing a Patients’ First Review of the province’s health care system and reducing surgical wait times from the longest in Canada to among the shortest: The most aggressive youth retention program in the country to ensure Saskatchewan’s young people stay and work in the province; Record infrastructure spending to improve roads, schools, hospitals and senior’s facilities all across Saskatchewan. Premier Wallis also a passionate advocate for the province’s most vulnerable, often saying that the purpose of pursuing economic growth is to secure a better quality of life for all Saskatchewan people. His government created a new direct income support for people with disabilities called the Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability, SAID, program, eliminated service wait lists for those with intellectual disabilities and have increased autism support and services by 1500 percent. During the last few years, Premier Wall has been consistently rated as Canada’s most popular premier in public opinion polls. He has earned a national reputation as a forceful and articulate defender of Saskatchewan’s and Canada’s trade interests, particularly in the areas of energy and agriculture. Premier Wall was first elected to the Saskatchewan Legislature in 1999, representing the constituency of Swift Current. Prior to entering elected politics, he was active in his local business community and involved in service work spanning local events, economic development and health care recruitment. Premier Wall was born and raised in Swift Current, which is in Saskatchewan’s southwest. He still lives there with his wife, Tami. He and his wife have three children. Premier Wall received his post secondary education at the University of Saskatchewan, where he earned an Honours degree in Public Administration. In his spare time, Premier Wall enjoys spending his time with family, reading, cooking, golfing, cheering for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and tinkering with his 1967 Dodge Coronet.
Speaker:
The Hon. Brad Wall, Premier of Saskatchewan
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