LEGISLATURE RESUMES SITTING MARCH 14TH

Premier Lorne Calvert today announced that the first sitting of the 25th Session of the Saskatchewan Legislature will resume on Monday, March 14th, 2005.

"March 14th will be a historic day, with this being the first legislative sitting during our province's Centennial year," Calvert said. "Our plan for the first days of the Session is to highlight the importance of the Centennial and the many volunteers and organizations who are making the year-long celebrations a success."

Due to recent reforms to the Legislative process, there will no longer be a Throne Speech during the Spring Session of the Legislative Assembly. The traditional Throne Speech, which lays out the broad agenda of the government, will be read during the Fall sitting of the House. The Spring Session will include the traditional Budget Speech that provides more detail on the direction government plans to take to achieve its goals and objectives.

"I am looking forward to getting back into the Session in order to talk about many of the important issues facing Saskatchewan, such as the fair deal we are seeking from Ottawa on Equalization," Calvert said. "We will also look at building upon the outcome of the Centennial Summit to continue the expansion of the provincial economy, developing our rich natural resources, and supporting our farmers and livestock producers."

In addition to the release of a new Budget, the Spring Session will involve debate and review of legislation introduced during the brief Session held in November 2004, as well as several new Bills that will be introduced in the coming weeks.

The government will continue to focus on four major initiatives:

- Saskatchewan will be the most affordable place to live and raise a family.
- We will provide the best public health care in Canada.
- We will build a green and prosperous economy.
- We will build the future here for our young people.

The date of the Budget Speech will be announced in the coming days.

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