Saskatchewan.

• Date: 22 December 2021
• Author: Gudereit, Miranda

Resignation of a member

On August 15, 2021, Buckley Belanger, MLA for Athabasca, a member of the Opposition (NDP) caucus, resigned his seat in order to run as a Liberal Party candidate in the federal election. As per section 46 of The Legislative Assembly Act, 2007, a by-election to fill a vacancy in the Legislative Assembly must be held within six months after a seat in the Assembly becomes vacant. A date for the by-election has not yet been announced.

Independent member and resignation of Deputy Speaker

Nadine Wilson, MLA for Saskatchewan Rivers, resigned from both the Saskatchewan Party caucus and her role as Deputy Speaker on September 30, 2021. The resignation came in the wake of a government caucus requirement to disclose COVID-19 vaccination status.

Following the resignations of Mr. Belanger and Ms. Wilson, the composition of the Assembly is now 47 Saskatchewan Party members, 12 New Democratic Party members, one independent member, and one vacancy.

New cabinet responsibility

On September 20, 2021, Premier Scott Moe announced a small change to cabinet. In addition to her existing role as Minister of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety, Christine Tell became the Minister Responsible for the Firearms Secretariat, a new cabinet responsibility.

Provincial Auditor competition

In February, Judy Ferguson, the Provincial Auditor of Saskatchewan, announced her intention to retire on June 30, 2021 after leading the office for nearly eight years. Ms. Ferguson was officially appointed as Saskatchewan's Provincial Auditor on June 1, 2015, following almost two years of...