NDP Leader Ryan Meili made a stop at 105 CJVR and Saskatchewan's New Beach Radio during his travels through the northeast. (Mat Barrett/northeastNOW Staff)

By Mat Barrett

Meili in the Northeast

Meili talks education, mental health concerns in northeast visit

Sep 12, 2019 | 11:07 AM

Saskatchewan’s NDP and official opposition leader encountered several topics as he toured through the northeast region of the province this week.

On Wednesday, Ryan Meili visited the James Smith Cree Nation where he spoke to members of the local health board. He said one of their concerns is a common one he hears about throughout the province.

“Mental health is a growing concern,” Meili told northeastNOW. “(Tuesday) was World Suicide Prevention Day. Saskatchewan is the only province that doesn’t have a suicide prevention strategy and our rates of suicide, especially in northern communities are way too high.”

Meili said there needs to be work done to help provide assistance for those in crisis, and invest in people’s lives so they don’t find themselves in that position.

Later in the day, Meili was in Melfort to talk to teachers about some of the struggles they face. Meili said there are 7,000 more students in Saskatchewan classrooms today than there was in 2016, yet provincial funding hasn’t increased.

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“As a result, our classrooms are more crowded than before. They’re more complex. There’s more kids with special needs, or English as a new language, or mental health troubles,” Meili said. “And the teachers just don’t have the support they need to make sure every kid has their best chance to thrive.”

Meili has been a big proponent of more funding for education.

“If we don’t invest in education, the dollars we think we’re saving there, we wind up spending way more down the road in health care costs, in social services, and justice and policing,” he said. “We need to make the investments up front for a stronger economy, lower costs, and better lives years down the road.”

Meili stopped at the James Smith Cree Nation during his travels and spoke with the Health Board there. (submitted photo/Ryan Meili)

Although the provincial election is more than a year away, Meili said the upcoming federal election will give him the opportunity to garner input that will help shape his own platform. One topic that he said has been top of mind is renewable energy. He wants to bring in a ‘Renew Saskatchewan’ program that gives citizens the ability to switch to different renewable energy forms and reap the benefits later.

One area Meili may focus on in his campaign trail is rural Saskatchewan, where he feels there is an opening to gain a bigger foothold.

“I think people have sort of written off the NDP in rural Saskatchewan before,” Meili said. “But now I’m hearing more and more the feeling from people outside the big cities that the Sask. Party has been taking rural Saskatchewan for granted, just assuming those votes are there, and not even really working alongside people to understand their needs and invest.”

Voters head to the polls for the federal election on Oct. 21 and for the provincial election in October of next year.

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mat.barrett@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @matbarrett6