Question Period (30 October 2025)

From Hansard (30 October 2025)

To view this section on video, click here and start play at 10:36:05 AM.

Inquiry into Government’s Wildfire Response

Carla Beck: — Mr. Speaker, more on the theme of out of touch. Every day this Premier and his Public Safety minister have failed the people of Denare who have lost so much during this past summer’s wildfire crisis. Each day they have refused to agree to a truly independent inquiry so that we can get to the bottom of what happened this summer and so that it never happens again to any community.

Now we have the Denare Beach Council issuing a public statement saying that it is extremely disappointed about the Sask Party’s refusal to call this inquiry. Clearly, Mr. Speaker, trust with the people of the North has been lost.

Why won’t this Premier call that public inquiry into his government’s mismanagement this summer?

Hon. Tim McLeod: — Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The Saskatchewan people, especially those who were tragically impacted and lost their homes by the fires this summer, deserve answers about what happened this fire season. And that is why the SPSA [Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency] has commissioned Meyers Norris Penny to lead an independent review, Mr. Speaker, not an internal review like the opposition keep incorrectly stating. It’s an independent review of the 2025 wildfire season. This will be the first of its kind in Saskatchewan and the results of those, the result . . .

[Interjections]

Speaker Goudy: — Please, when the minister is giving an answer, let’s listen respectfully.

Hon. Tim McLeod: — Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The opposition will be pleased to know that the results of that review will be made public, Mr. Speaker. It will include opportunities for the people that were directly impacted by the wildfires to share their experiences and their perspectives, Mr. Speaker. It will be a comprehensive review — again, the results of which will be made public — and it will cover the evacuations, the recovery efforts, and the fire response, Mr. Speaker.

Meyers Norris Penny is led by experts in this area. They have been used in British Columbia, Alberta, Northwest Territories, and again we will rely on that expertise for our review.

Carla Beck: — The Public Safety minister seems to think that the problem is that the people of Denare do not understand what he is proposing. That is not the problem. The problem is they have rejected it and then called for an independent, truly independent, public inquiry. That’s what he’s refusing to do, Mr. Speaker.

Now we have the Denare Beach Council saying that a full public inquiry, not the one he’s talking about, Mr. Speaker, would be the appropriate response. They say that people of that community need assurances that the mistakes that have been made will be acknowledged and that more will be done to protect their communities and communities like theirs, Mr. Speaker.

The Denare residents who joined us in the legislature all week say that they no longer have trust in that Public Safety minister to get the job done. They say that he’s told them things that are false, and that he’s made commitments that never came to be. Mr. Speaker, as I said, trust has been broken.

My question to the Premier: why has he refused to fire that Public Safety minister?

Hon. Tim McLeod: — Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have met with the community leadership in Denare Beach. My colleagues — the Minister of Government Relations, the Minister of Environment, and the Premier — have met with the community leadership in Denare Beach, Mr. Speaker. We have spoken with them about the response. We have spoken with them about the recovery efforts. And we have spoken with them about moving forward on a path together, making sure that we rebuild that community together with them so that they have the confidence that that situation will not be repeated, Mr. Speaker.

We will work together with them. We set up the resilience centre for them, so that anybody who has experienced a tragic loss has the mental health supports, has their questions answered, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we will continue to walk alongside that community leadership as they rebuild, with unprecedented investments from this government, making sure again that they have the confidence that they can rebuild that community with the full support of this government. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

 

---

Back to 2025/2026 Session