Sunday, October 26, 2008

Oil royalties could give Sask. $2.7B more: economist

Neil Scott, Leader-PostPublished: Friday, October 24, 2008

Erin Weir, an economist employed by the United Steelworkers Union, said the tax breaks provided to Saskatchewan citizens by the provincial government earlier this week only cost an amount equal to about one-ninth of the revenues lost by the province by not charging oil companies appropriate royalties.

"The government of Saskatchewan has some room to increase oil royalties,'' Weir told an audience of more than 600 at the Conexus Arts Centre.

Weir said he believes there was room last year for the provincial government to have charged $2.7 billion more in oil royalties while still leaving oil companies room to make an adequate profit.
The provincial government could also have earned about $800 million more last year by raising potash royalties, Weir said.

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Gov't needs to respect labour: SFL

Neil Scott, The Leader-PostPublished: Saturday, October 25, 2008

"It doesn't have to be that way,'' Hubich said in an interview. The SFL is open to having improved relations with the provincial government, he added.

But "the ball is clearly in the government's court,'' Hubich said.

Relations between the province and labour will improve "if they're prepared to give the same level of respect,'' to labour as is provided to business interests and organizations, Hubich said.

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Labour, Sask. Party equally to blame

Gov't may levy big polluters

James Wood, Saskatchewan News Network; Canwest News Service
Published: Friday, October 24, 2008


The Saskatchewan Party government may not meet its initial climate change target of stabilizing greenhouse gas emissions by 2010, forcing it to introduce levies on big polluters, Premier Brad Wall said Thursday.

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