By Thia James

Prince Albert Carlton MLA moves up exit from politics

Feb 13, 2015 | 2:18 PM

Prince Albert Carlton MLA is moving up the date of his permanent exit from provincial politics to early March.

Last April, Hickie announced he would not be running in the next provincial election, which is expected to be called either this fall or in the spring of 2016. But Hickie will be resigning from his seat in the Saskatchewan Legislature effective March 9 to return to active duty with the Prince Albert Police Service.

He said he decided to leave in March because he “felt a very strong pull” after he did his police requalification training last year. “I did say, I didn’t want to cause a by-election,” he admitted on Friday.

Hickie took time to weigh all of the factors and realized that if he resigned after March 7, a by-election doesn’t have to be called automatically. Premier Brad Wall now has the option of calling a by-election for the constituency if he so chooses.

“P.A. Carlton constituency has been well-served since 2007, but we also have a very strong MLA in Northcote, and she’s able to manage the entire city after I resign, so I didn’t want to cause a by-election automatically and put undue stress on the taxpayers of the province either, so that’s why I picked March 9.”

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For the time being all of Prince Albert will be represented by Prince Albert Northcote MLA Victoria Jurgens.

When asked about his level of concern that Prince Albert will be represented by only one voice in Regina, Hickie pointed to the fact that when he was first elected, he was the only government MLA elected.

“We had an opposition MLA, and my office fielded many, many calls from that constituency to talk to the government MLA and to get to the government cabinet ministers and to the premier. Same thing will hold true this time,” he said.

He described is constituency as a very stable and quiet one, which is much different than what it was like when he first took office in 2007. He said this is another reason why he decided to leave at this time.

“Victoria is a very strong representative for Prince Albert, and she’ll be … easily capable of managing both ridings,” he said, adding that there’s also Rosthern-Shellbrook MLA Scott Moe, Saskatchewan Rivers MLA Nadine Wilson and Batoche MLA Delbert Kirsch representing the area.

Hickie said he is not worried about leaving the area unrepresented after he resigns.

And although Hickie is leaving politics to return to policing, he won’t be diving back into active duty right away. He will need to complete some additional training on the police computer systems, as well as operations, which he said he didn’t have a chance to finish last year.

Where Hickie is assigned will be up to the discretion of Prince Albert Police Service Chief Troy Cooper. He has talked to Cooper and requested a return to patrol.

Hickie’s return to police training last year was the source of a controversy, as he was both serving as an MLA and working as a police officer.  Criticism from the opposition NDP led to Premier Brad Wall stating that if Hickie were to return to active duty, he would have to choose between that or staying on as an MLA. 

On Friday, when asked if he has been doing any work for the local police since last summer, he said “not at all.”

Hickie will not be returning to politics at all after returning to active police duty.

Leaving on a high note

When Hickie decided to enter the political realm, he did so because he felt there were unfulfilled promises made by the previous NDP government regarding policing.

Hickie said that he wanted the Saskatchewan Party to take power and fulfill the promises made by Wall.

“We’ve done so many good things in Prince Albert in the last seven years.”

Timing is everything, he added, saying his return comes at a time that allows him to get up to speed before the busy summer season.

“I think now is the best time to return to serve and protect the citizens of Prince Albert.”

And he doesn’t feel that he has any unfinished business politically.

According to Hickie, the government has fulfilled the promises it made to Prince Albert. He noted there is a study looking at Victoria Hospital’s renewal, which was something he wanted to see happen before he made a decision to leave. He also said there have been increases to revenue sharing funding for Prince Albert, more benefits to local schools, corrections and policing than there were in 2007.

“So, I’m very proud and very happy to be leaving it in the state it is [in] right now.”

Premier Brad Wall thanked Hickie for his service to his constituents and to the province in a statement issued on Friday afternoon.

“Darryl Hickie has been a strong voice in the Legislature and in our government,” Wall said in the statement. “I know that his dedication to public service will continue as he returns to active police duty.”

And in preparation for the incumbent-less race in the Prince Albert Carlton constituency, Sask Party members chose the new candidate to represent the party on the ballot in the next election. In early October 2014, local businessman Joe Hargrave was chosen to be the Sask. Party candidate.

He will face the NDP’s candidate in the constituency, Shayne Lazarowich, who won his party’s nomination in late November 2014. 

tjames@panow.com

On Twitter: @thiajames