Saskatchewan NDP Leader Ryan Meili was in Prince Albert on Monday.

If the NDP has any chance of forming government in the upcoming provincial election later this year, the party will need to retain the Northcote seat currently held by Nicole Rancourt and take away the Carlton seat form Saskatchewan Government Insurance Minister Joe Hargrave.

Meili said he is confident the NDP can do both.

“These are seats that have had great representation from Nicole, haven’t had great representation from Mr. Hargrave,” he said. “It’s also absolutely essential for us in terms of getting to the point where we can make the change (in government, by winning both seats in the election).”

The Saskatchewan NDP Leader also spoke about the recent spike in crime in the Prince Albert area.

The Prince Albert Police Service released statistics last week that show both property and violent crime were dramatically on the rise in 2019.

Overall, police say they simply do not have the adequate number of officers in place to properly respond to the number of service calls they are receiving.

Meili said an NDP government would look to address the causes of crime, such as poverty and drug addiction, but stopped short of saying whether the government should fund additional police officers for Prince Albert.

“We haven’t come to that exact position but it’s absolutely a discussion worth having. If we’re going to be talking about addressing crime, it’s often cities like Prince Albert and North Battleford, and others, that are dealing with that directly and they need to have the supports in place to have the sufficient number of officers on the ground to respond.”

Police say the number of service calls they received last year approximates what a city of 100,000 people receives.

Meili also addressed the provincial government’s plans to build a new hospital in Prince Albert.

He said the NDP is closely monitoring the planned hospital which includes ensuring only Saskatchewan companies are involved in the project.

The Sask. Party government has recently come under fire for using companies based out of Saskatchewan on major infrastructure projects such as the Regina bypass and the new North Battleford Hospital.

The Saskatchewan NDP Leader had plans to meet with the leaderships of the Prince Albert Grand Council and One Arrow and Muskoday First Nations on Monday.

(PHOTO: Prince Albert Carlton NDP Candidate Troy Parenteau, left, and Saskatchewan NDP Leader Ryan Meili, right, shown here in Prince Albert on Jan. 20. Photo by Fraser Needham.)