MLA Jordan McPhail reflected back this week on 2025. (Submitted photo/Saskatchewan NDP)

By Derek Cornet

year in review

Wildfire season kept MLA Jordan McPhail busy during 2025

Dec 26, 2025 | 6:00 AM

Cumberland NDP MLA Jordan McPhail has finished his first full year representing Northern Saskatchewan.

“I would describe it as an incredible honour, and obviously I had some challenges,” he remarked. “I don’t know if there would have been a way that we could have had a busier first year. Basically, right upon the election, we were hearing about the first cases of scurvy in Northern Saskatchewan. Our team took to the legislature right away and started to call for an investigation into food prices in Northern Saskatchewan. We were seeing things like $20 grapes in Northern Saskatchewan, $168 turkeys in places like Wollaston. We tried to get answers for the people in the North, but were obviously shut down by government. They didn’t let the motion get to the floor and shut it down in committee.”

Undoubtedly, the most pressing issue in Cumberland in 2025 was the devastating wildfire season that led to a major loss of homes, cabins, businesses and for the boreal landscape itself. At least 10,000 northerners were forced from their homes and were evacuated to communities as far as Regina.

“I don’t think anybody in Northern Saskatchewan won’t remember the year of 2025 for a whole lot of good things, but the good thing that I do recall from the wildfire season is seeing northerners step up like no other to band together and support each other in what has been some of the worst times of their life. They entrusted our office to stand with them and for them at the provincial legislature and demand answers.”

Wildfire destroyed more than 200 homes in Denare Beach, as well as 24 on the adjacent Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation reserve. Communities such as East Trout Lake, Hall Lake, La Ronge and Sucker River also experienced property damage. In addition, 30 cabins were lost on Lac La Ronge alone and 2.9 million hectares of northern forest burned.

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McPhail explained the NDP called for a public inquiry into the wildfire season, which has been repeatedly ignored by the provincial government. They have also advocated the elimination of PST for those rebuilding their homes, pushed for a strategy for rebuilding Northern Saskatchewan, and asked for local fire experts to be brought into the conversation on what wildfire management should look like.

The NDP called former Minister of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety Tim McLeod to resign or be fired. He was replaced last week by MLA Michael Weger during a cabinet shuffle and the NDP renewed their called on Tuesday for him to launch a public inquiry into the wildfire season.

“The government is going to be doing their budget deliberations right now,” McPhail noted.

“They can put additional resources into preparation … [and] into the frontline, so we don’t see grounded waterbombers at the beginning of a wildfire season ever again.”

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com