|
Stonechild
| Immigrants don't want
to live here | Crime Statistics
from 2003 | Income stats
2003 |
Saskatchewan:
injustice to youth
Scroll down
to check out the budget -- In 2005, the centenary year, thre
is still nothing to address youth problems
Sask. leads in jailed
youth
Anne Kyle, Saskatchewan
News Network; Regina Leader-Post, October 15, 2004
REGINA -- More young offenders
are locked up in Saskatchewan than anywhere else in Canada, says
a Statistics Canada report.
The province has the highest
youth incarceration rate in Canada at 34 per 10,000 youth, according
to 2002-03 figures released by the national agency. The national
average is 12.5 per 10,000 youth.
"These aren't the most
current figures, but it is true Saskatchewan had the highest
youth incarceration rate in that year and has had in the previous
10 years," said Corrections and Public Safety Department
spokesperson Bob Kary.
Kary, the executive director
of youth offender programs, pointed out Saskatchewan's overall
crime rate is the highest of the provinces. And he said there
is a correlation between the crime rate and the incarceration
rate for adults and young offenders.
Kary also acknowledged there
was an over-representation of aboriginal youth in custody. The
high rate of incarceration among aboriginal youth is generally
seen as a reflection of the circumstances that affect many of
these teens and put them at risk of offending -- such as drug
and alcohol use, dropping out of school, high levels of unemployment,
lack of supervision in the home, a breakdown of families and
associated with other teens involved in crime.
Incarceration rates are coming
down provincially and across the country, Kary said.
The average number of youths
in custody in Saskatchewan on any given day was 260 in 2003-04
compared to 331 in 2002-03, he said. The average number of youths
on probation also decreased to 1,358 in March 2004 from 1,751
in April 2003.
The Statistics Canada report,
which tracked young people involved in the criminal justice system,
noted the country's youth incarceration rate reached its lowest
point in eight years in 2002-03.
On any given day in 2002-03,
an average of just under 29,400 youth aged 12 to 17 were either
in custody or under supervised probation in Canada The vast majority
-- about 26,400 -- were on probation, the report said.
Of the remaining 2,980 youth,
850 were in temporary detention awaiting a court appearance or
sentencing 1,070 were in secure custody and 1,060 were in open
custody.
The national figures excluded
Ontario, because data for 12 and 15-year-olds was unavailable,
according to Statistics Canada.
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2004
Few Surprises in budget
By TIM COOK, Canadian Press,
March 23, 2005
Regina - Saskatchewan's NDP
government will hold the line on taxes and increase spending
by $400-million to shorten surgical waiting lists and freeze
university tuition in the coming year.
The government also plans to
stick to its guns when it comes to new contracts for unhappy
public-sector workers, refusing to offer more than a 2 per cent
wage increase over the next three years.
Finance Minister Harry Van
Mulligen introduced the 2005-06 budget in the legislature Wednesday,
calling it a plan that focuses on Saskatchewan's priorities.
"As you can tell, the
smile I have is a little bit wider than it was last year,"
he said.
"I'm excited about the
budget."
Mr. Van Mulligen is predicting
a razor-thin $69,000 surplus when it comes to government programs.
But when deficits at Crown corporations and treasury board organizations
- such as regional health authorities - are included, the budget
is actually more than $173-million in the red.
Spending is up in the budget
by about $400-million over the previous year to nearly $7.2-billion.
That's thanks in large part
to high oil prices that have been a boon to the province in recent
months and are expected to stay above $35 dollars (U.S.) a barrel
into 2007.
The government will spend an
extra $192-million on health this year, including $36.5-million
for new or upgraded facilities in at least 10 different communities.
About $4-million will be spent
to reduce the list of people who have been waiting for a medical
procedure for more than one year. Nearly $5-million will be spent
to increase the number of MRI and CT scans.
Education will see an increase
of $74-million dollars for an overall budget of $1.2-billion.
The extra spending will include $6.7-million for the universities
in Regina and Saskatoon so they can hold the line on tuition
this year.
While there are no new taxes
in the budget, there is little new tax relief either.
There is $55-million for a
previously announced eight per cent cut to the education portion
of property tax bills. The government will also reduce the aviation
fuel tax by $800,000 to encourage airlines to buy their fuel
in Saskatchewan.
Mr. Van Mulligen dismissed
suggestions that his government should rescind the percentage-point
hike to the provincial sales tax brought in last year, saying
that would have cost $145-million.
He also ruled out boosting
the 2 per cent wage mandate the government instituted last year
for public-sector contracts.
About 50,000
teachers, nurses and health support workers will be looking for
new contracts this year and have dismissed the government's cap
on wage increases.
Members of
the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation have voted overwhelmingly
to approve job action if necessary to push their demands.
The Opposition Saskatchewan
Party said the government should have done more with the windfall
it has been reaping from high oil prices.
Finance critic Ken Cheveldayoff
said the government should have cut income tax rates, especially
for low income earners.
He also said more money should
have been set aside for contract negotiations, particularly with
teachers.
"This budget is remarkable
for what it doesn't contain," Mr. Cheveldayoff said.
"Never before has a government
done so little with so much."
BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS
- No tax increases, but several
fee hikes announced earlier, such as increased court fees and
traffic fines, will add $2.2-million in revenue.
- Health spending increases
by $192-million to $2.9-billion, with $4-million to reduce surgical
wait times and $4.7-million for more MRI and CT testing.
- Education
spending increases by $74.4-million to $1.2-billion, including
a $6.7-million one-time grant to allow universities in Regina
and Saskatoon to freeze tuition for the year.
- $6-million will be spent
to boost social assistance rates and help people move off social
assistance and into the work force.
- The province
will fund 18 new police officers across Saskatchewan.
- In an attempt to attract
more airline service, the province will cut the aviation fuel
tax from 3.5 cents to 1.5 cents per litre; the tax will be eliminated
for international flights that stop over in the province.
- The province will set up
a business tax review committee to recommend tax changes to boost
job creation.
|
Truth can never be
told so as to be understood, and not be believ'd. William Blake, The Proverbs of Hell
