• CTF Questions Sask Olympic Spending
  

REGINA: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) questions the purpose of the Saskatchewan government's $1.5 million expenditure on the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

"What will Saskatchewan taxpayers get for $1.5 million " asked Lee Harding, Saskatchewan Director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. "With Olympic security costs to rise to anywhere between $400 million to $1 billion, maybe the Olympic committee should re-allocate its $44 million bonus fund before it goes looking for handouts from other provinces."

According to a news release on January 26 by the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC), contributions by provinces are to be made in proportion to their population size. This same release revealed Ontario, with a population of 12.9 million, gave just $5 million under the Contributing Province/Territory Program (CPTP).

"If Ontario taxpayers paid 40 cents each for their contribution, why did Saskatchewan taxpayers pay a buck fifty " Harding asked. "If these contributions are supposed to be in proportion to population, why is Saskatchewan blowing out almost four times as much per capita as Ontario "

"It is no wonder VANOC Chief Executive Officer John Furlong thanked 'Saskatchewan for its generous commitment to the Games…' It certainly was generous," added Harding.

Saskatchewan's payment to VANOC includes $750,000 to the Own the Podium 2010 program, which supports elite athletes, and a $750,000 unspecified payment to VANOC. The federal government has already committed to accelerating its $55 million contribution to the Own the Podium program.

The federal contribution paid for by Saskatchewan taxpayers is money enough," said Harding. "As for the rest, we may never know where it went because VANOC is not subject to Freedom of Information legislation."