The report follows on the heels of a scathing independent MNP review that found serious shortcomings in the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency's response to last year's unprecedented wildfire disaster, which saw entire communities devastated, including the destruction of roughly two-thirds of Denare Beach and the entire loss of East Trout Lake.
"People lost their homes. Entire communities were turned upside down. Families were forced to flee for their lives and then endured weeks and months of chaos afterward," Beck said.
"Today, Saskatchewan people learned that many of the warning signs were there all along. Year after year, the Sask. Party failed to properly fund wildfire response, failed to properly plan and failed to properly prepare. At some point, accountability has to mean something. Tim McLeod should be removed from Cabinet today."
The Auditor found the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency has failed to determine the number of firefighters, aircraft and other resources required before wildfire season, has repeatedly underestimated wildfire costs, and lacks key recruitment and retention plans.
The Auditor found that actual wildfire costs exceeded SPSA budget projections by roughly $70 million annually over the last three years and noted there has been little change to the agency's operating budget despite increasingly severe wildfire seasons.
The report also found that the SPSA spent $26.3 million on contracted wildfire resources in 2025 compared to just $1.9 million the year before, while failing to consistently track those resources or evaluate their costs. Contracted personnel took an average of 15 days to arrive and deploy to fires.
"Bluntly, the Sask. Party was missing in action," said Jordan McPhail, Shadow Minister for Northern Affairs.
“My constituents lost so much. They had been raising concerns for years and no one at the Sask. Party listened.
“Now, we have the MNP report and the Provincial Auditor reaching many of the same conclusions: this government was not prepared for the reality on the ground. Northern families deserve a government that takes their safety seriously."
The Auditor also found that the SPSA has not determined the optimal number of firefighters, pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers or air attack officers needed to effectively combat wildfires and has not conducted a staffing gap analysis.
Further, the agency could not provide the Auditor with a complete list of firefighters who fought fires during the 2025 season.
"We were told lessons were being learned after last year's disaster," said Hugh Gordon, Associate Community Safety Shadow Minister.
"Instead, what we are seeing is a government that still doesn't know how many people it needs, still doesn't know whether it has enough resources and still isn't budgeting for the wildfire seasons Saskatchewan now faces. That's unacceptable."
The report also found that the SPSA paid approximately 35 per cent more for certain short-term helicopter contracts than it would have paid under longer-term agreements and noted the agency could have saved approximately $500,000 through better planning.
"People were let down before the fires started, during the evacuation process and in the months that followed,” said Leroy Laliberte, MLA for Athabasca.
“The government ignored warning signs, failed to prepare and then failed to take responsibility. Saskatchewan people deserve much better than that."
Carla Beck's team is renewing its call for meaningful accountability, including Tim McLeod's removal from Cabinet, implementation of the Auditor's recommendations and immediate passage of The Wildfire Strategy Act, introduced by Laliberte, which would ensure Northern people have a voice in wildfire response.
"If Scott Moe is truly listening, if he truly cares about the people of the North and those who lost everything last year, he will act today," Beck said.
"Tim McLeod failed from top to bottom. Saskatchewan people deserve accountability, and they deserve change."
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