NORTH BATTLEFORD - Jeremy Cockrill will once again be running for the Saskatchewan Party in The Battlefords riding in the upcoming provincial election, seeking his second term since he was first elected in 2020.
The incumbent most recently served as the education minister, and before that he was the minister of highways and the minister responsible for the Water Security Agency.
Some of the projects Cockrill has been involved with include banning cellphones in classrooms, with the exception of students with special permissions.
"I know some might find it controversial, but I don't think personal cellphones belong in the classroom," he said. "I'm already hearing anecdotally from teachers, educational assistants, both here in town, but also around the province, that they're starting to see positive effects of having a better learning environment now that those cellphones are out of the classroom."
Another initiative Cockrill has been proud of is the financial literacy course requirement for high school students that was recently introduced.
"We think about all of our lives, you know, dealing with personal financial matters is very important," he said. "You got to be able to do that. You got to know what's coming in and what's going out, and being able to manage that and manage debt that you have. For me, when I came into the education file, it was a priority to move that forward as quickly as possible. So, I was really proud of that."
A couple other projects Cockrill is pleased with includes the addition of 14 inpatient treatment spaces for addiction treatment at the former Drumming Hill Youth Centre facility in North Battleford that were announced in December 2023.
"I want to make sure that they [people] have that opportunity as close to home, so that they can be supported through treatment and then post treatment as well," he said.
Another highlight was the plans announced to replace the aged Battleford District Care Centre located in Battleford.
Cockrill was also happy to see the province's investments into the Battlefords to support infrastructure projects.
Improving healthcare access has also been top of mind for him, Cockrill says.
"A couple years ago, coming out of the pandemic, certainly, we had some staffing challenges here at our hospitals and some of our long-term care facilities, so we made sure that [the Battlefords] was on the list for the Rural and Remote Recruitment Incentive," he said. "Through these incentives, we've filled 173 healthcare positions in town. That is massive. I've been able to meet a lot of these healthcare workers that have come to our community as I've been out knocking on doors around town. To make sure that our families can get better quality and more timely care, whether that be at the Battlefords Union Hospital or one of the long-term care facilities in town, that's really important to me. So, I think we've seen an improvement on that in the last several years, which is really encouraging for me."
Looking at challenges, Cockrill has been facing two conflict of interest investigations from the Conflict of Interest Commissioner. Cockrill does not have any concerns about the investigations, saying he has been honest and forthright in his disclosure statements from the start.
"Whenever the Conflict of Interest Commissioner has made a recommendation to me, or made a request of me, I followed all of those recommendations," he added.
Cockrill questions the NDP's interest in bringing up old disclosure statements from two or three years ago.
If re-elected, Cockrill said he wants to continue to work to "keep the economy strong" in Saskatchewan, as part of his goals ahead.
"I think the number one priority for any political candidate, anybody in government, has to be focusing on keeping the economy strong," he said. "It has to be. It's the economy that pays for all the services that we have. It's when the economy is strong, it means we have money to invest in healthcare and education and highways. It also means that we can take some of that economic success and ensure that all of us benefit from making our lives more affordable. So, my number one priority is keeping our Saskatchewan economy strong, and making sure that the Battlefords are an active participant in that."
