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A day after changes in age eligibility and offered vaccine saw long lines and hours-long wait times at Regina’s drive-thru vaccination site, Saskatchewan has set another new single-day record for vaccinations.
On Friday, 12,615 doses of COVID-19 vaccine were given in the province, raising the total number to 268,895.
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Friday’s doses were given in the far north west (268), far north central (seven), far north east (225), north west (776), north central (704), north east (964), Saskatoon (2,321), central west (700), central east (1,588), Regina (1,565), south west (871), south central (578) and south east (1,664) zones. There were 384 doses administered with zone of residence pending.
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In the four years since Jerilyn Nixon first bought an electric vehicle, she has never regretted her decision.
The newly implemented electric vehicle (EV) tax, introduced in the 2021-2022 provincial budget on Tuesday, certainly isn’t enough to make her wish for a regular vehicle. But she fears it may dissuade others from making the switch to cleaner energy.
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“To tax when we’re just starting to see more EVs coming to the province is kind of disheartening,” said Nixon, who is a board member with the Saskatchewan Electric Vehicle Association (SEVA). “It seems to put almost a damper on anything green.”
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Flags flew at half-mast over Saskatchewan government buildings on Friday, as the province mourned the death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, at 99.
Premier Scott Moe shared his condolences to the Queen, who has been married to Philip for more than 73 years.
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“It is with profound sadness that I learned today of the death of His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh,” Moe said in a statement. “I join all of Her Majesty’s loyal subjects in Saskatchewan in sending our sincere condolences to Her Majesty in her bereavement, as well as to all members of the Royal Family.”
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The provincial government will have to juggle demands for new funding in the face of strong fiscal headwinds, as it prepares to table another deficit budget on Tuesday.
Premier Scott Moe has framed the 2021-22 fiscal plan as a “recovery budget,” while both he and his finance minister have signalled that the government is likely to jettison the four-year balanced budget pledge it made during election season.
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Jim Farney, head of the politics and international studies department at the University of Regina, doubts the reversal will prove especially damaging for the Saskatchewan Party.
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Saskatchewan’s government will not fund safe consumption sites for people who use drugs, despite advocates’ cries for help after a record-setting year of overdose deaths.
Instead, the province’s 2021-22 budget includes partnerships with policing agencies, $2 million in funding for youth-centred mental health treatment, and services that aim to reduce other harms of drug use.
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The budget also includes a combined $500,000 to address higher need for mental health and addictions services during the pandemic.