The Saskatchewan government is giving its public safety agency $50 million through a special order in council, something the Opposition NDP said should have been handled more publicly.
The special warrant, approved and ordered by the provincial government last week, provides $50 million to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA). In an online summary of the warrant, the government states the expense is “urgently and immediately required for the public good,” but provides no details on what the money is earmarked for.
A special warrant is signed in extenuating circumstances when government approval is urgently required but the provincial parliament has dissolved.
When asked by Global News, a SPSA spokesperson said in an emailed statement the funds are being used to help those who applied for provincial flood and wildfire relief.
The SPSA said it received a higher-than-usual number of requests for the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program (PDAP) following significant flooding during spring and early summer.
“These supports help get families back on their feet, helping businesses reopen their doors, and helping communities recover from damages incurred by this year’s floods,” the SPSA’s statement reads.
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Thus far in 2026, the SPSA said it has approved 172 designations — far above the 10-year annual average of 43 designations. The agency added that it has also supported hundreds of local authorities and residents in processing their claims.
Before the SPSA issued its statement, an NDP Opposition MLA spoke in front of the office of Community Safety Minister Michael Weger, questioning the process of using warrants to issue millions in budgetary funds.
“They (the Saskatchewan Party) are using special warrants to mask their complete inability to put a budget together. And it’s really all to avoid accountability during the budgetary process,” the Opposition’s Shadow Minister for Energy and Resources and SaskEnergy Sally Housser told reporters.
Housser said when Opposition and taxpayer voices are silenced amid major spending of public funds, the government deserves scrutiny.
“This is a pattern with this government that tries to stifle information at any chance they get,” she said. “The people of Saskatchewan deserve a government that is open and honest with them about how their taxpayer dollars are being spent.”
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