Two research facilities at the University of Saskatchewan are benefitting from the federal budget’s commitment to supporting continued innovation, with $3 billion invested in research over the next five years.

Seamus O’Regan-Minister of Labour and Seniors says USask’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, or VIDO, will receive $30 million in construction funding to support the study of high-risk pathogens for vaccine and therapeutic development and to become Canada’s Centre for Pandemic Research.

“We are also giving $83.5 million to the Canadian Light Source here in Saskatoon, to build up the infrastructure at this amazing facility. Their synchrotron light source lets scientists and researchers examine the microscopic nature of matter,” O’Regan explains.

Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Employment and Languages, says the University of Saskatchewan stands out among other post-secondary institutions across Canada.

“Take a look at who has staffed the United Nations over the last three decades. You will see a great weighting to University of Saskatchewan graduates, which means there is something special about this province.”

Boissonnault says students won’t be able to see the results of this budget until 2025, as the Conservative Party has blocked the implementation bill for the 2024 Fall Economic Statement.

“Because what we have to do is we have to now take the budget, put it into a budget implementation act, which gets debated for a number of days, which goes to the senate, and then it comes back to us. Then, it has to go to Treasury Board, which will be in the fall, so this is a 2025 conversation by the time students will be able to see the results of this budget.”

He says the conservatives are ‘trying to gum-up the system and slow things down’.

“Those of you who come from rural Saskatchewan or rural Canada should have got, three days, four days go, an increase on the top up on the price of pollution (rebate). You have not got that top-up, because the Conservatives are blocking us from passing the fall economic statement, in which the legislation to do a doubling of the rural top up exists.”

He encourages concerned residents to speak with their MLAs.