Erika Ritchie, NDP's Shadow Minister for Municipal Affairs, sits next to Prince Albert resident Bradley Campbell. On Friday, they shared their thoughts on the province's announcement of over $1 billion in additional funding to SaskPower and how that is going to negatively impact residents, pushing some deeper into the red. (Logan Lehmann/paNOW)

By Logan Lehmann

Cost of Living

Sask NDP says new SaskPower funding will push more families into the red

Dec 5, 2025 | 5:00 PM

The Saskatchewan NDP believes the SaskParty’s approval of additional spending for SaskPower will sink families deeper into the cost-of-living crisis.

Erika Ritchie, the Shadow Minister for Municipal Affairs, was joined by a concerned Prince Albert citizen on Friday, who fears a hike in power bills will further strain their budget by rising costs for rent, food and more.

“As a family of four, my partner and I and two young kids, we have multiple debts, including student loans, and then considering power bills, electricity, so on and so forth, as well as kids’ sports,” explained Bradley Campbell. “This is starting to really add up, and we’re not seeing a break anywhere in sight, regardless of what expense it might be.”

On Thursday, the SaskParty approved $813 million of more spending for SaskPower as well as a further $194 million. That extra cash is needed to cover the expense of not collecting the industrial carbon tax from SaskPower customers, the cost of refurbishing and bringing coal-fired power plants back online and expanding the province’s power transmission system, according to Crown Investments Minister Jeremy Harrison.

Ritchie said that $1 billion will hike the power rates for Saskatchewan residents.

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“Jeremy Harrison, who didn’t even have the courtesy of showing up in committee and speaking to the reasons for why there has been such a massive increase in spending – unplanned spending. A reckless, reckless $1 billion of additional spending partway through the year, [and] no indications whatsoever back when the budget was originally tabled in the legislature last spring, and how the people of Saskatchewan are supposed to pay for that,” she said.

“We’ve done the math and from what we can tell, based on the available information, is that this increased spending is going to lead to a 10 per cent increase in rates to Saskatchewan rate payers for the added cost to cover this massive spending increase that came.”

She continued that the SaskParty is “missing in action” and that they won be accountable for their overspending, adding that it will directly impact people’s pockets ahead of the holidays.

The province said that the SaskPower announcement will not affect the provincial deficit.

Finance Minister Jim Reiter said the province’s current forecast for the deficit – $427 million – won’t change because the money was already included in the mid-year report.

“There’s the spending that you saw in there. There’s also the revenue that was up. There’s also the changes to crop insurance. That’s all impacted. That’s all already accounted for.”

Back in Prince Albert, Campbell said the situation is getting dire.

“As somebody who works in addictions, I’m starting to see people who are really falling off the deep end. We’re seeing professionals and working-class people who are struggling to keep up and resorting to coping mechanisms that aren’t healthy for themselves, their families, or our society as a whole.”

Ritchie echoed Campbell, and said the Prince Albert economy is suffering.

“When you think about the local economy here in Prince Albert, there’s only been a three per cent increase in economic activity here in Prince Albert since Scott Moe became Premier. That’s an abysmal record. That means that people’s wages are stagnating, and as the cost of living goes higher, they’re being pressured and finding it harder and harder to get by.”

“The Saskatchewan Government is failing the people of Prince Albert at a time when they need additional support, not added spending pressures.”

-with files from 980 CJME’s Lisa Schick and Daniel Reech

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loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com