A spokesperson for the deputy prime minister confirmed to Global News that Chrystia Freeland will meet with the Saskatchewan premier on Tuesday.
Premier Scott Moe‘s office, in a statement, said “the Premier has had a positive working relationship with Minister Freeland, and he looks forward to discussing issues that are facing our province.”
In a previous meeting between Moe and the prime minister, Scott Moe said he told Justin Trudeau he was tired of hearing “more of the same,” and that he asked Trudeau to cancel the carbon tax, commit to renegotiating equalization and work on more efficiently getting Saskatchewan products to market.
After that meeting, which Moe called “disappointing,” he said he was looking to expand provincial autonomy.
Trudeau, in turn, tweeted that he is “committed to working together to keep fighting climate change, creating jobs, and making life more affordable for people in Saskatchewan and across Canada.”
The meeting with Freeland comes less than a week after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed her to the posts of deputy prime minister and minister of intergovernmental affairs. Trudeau previously said that the Alberta-born MP will focus on western alienation.
The Liberals won just four seats in Manitoba and none in Saskatchewan or Alberta, prompting efforts by the government to quell western frustration.
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Former cabinet minister and Winnipeg MP Jim Carr will act as an envoy for the Prairies in Ottawa.
The meeting will also take place shortly after Trudeau’s sit-down with Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has also publicly disagreed with the federal government.
—With files from Emerald Bensadoun and David Baxter
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