It's not a drinking binge, but a building binge for the provincial government. Spending on the construction of government liquor stores in Saskatchewan has more than doubled over the past year, according to information obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) through Freedom of Information.

In 2000-01, the SLGA spent $2.7 million on major construction, compared to $1.2 million last year, $1.6 million in 1998-99, and only $178,917 in 1997-98. Further adding minor construction, maintenance, and repairs the preceding numbers increase to $2.9 million, $1.6 million, $1.9 million, and $323,665 respectively).

Why is our government spending our tax dollars on shiny new liquor stores Shouldn't they be focused on building hospitals, roads and schools Private entrepreneurs, not taxpayers, should be paying these capital costs. Retailing is a job for retailers, not central planners. The government should allow private investors to decide what kind of liquor stores to open, where to open them, and let them pay for it.

It's been done elsewhere. The Alberta liquor industry was successfully privatized back in 1993. All retailing, warehousing, and distribution of liquor in that province is now done through the private sector. The Alberta government, however, still continues to regulate and licence the industry and, of course, collect revenues from the sale of beer, wine and spirits.

What happened in Alberta when the government there opened up the industry First of all, according to a 1997 University of Alberta study, government revenues were not negatively affected when the province of Alberta privatized its government-run liquor stores. That same study showed also revealed that product selection doubled and full-time employment triple.

Some detractors might say that if the government pulls out, the current stores will close. That's not what happened in Alberta. According to more recent information posted on the Alberta Government's web-site, after privatization, the number of retail outlets has nearly tripled while product selection has increased five-fold. Besides, the CTF also got a hold of other SLGA documents that show every government-run retail outlet in Saskatchewan is viable since every single one made a profit last year.

Privatization of Saskatchewan's liquor outlets would also mean more jobs. There are more than 2 ½ times the number of full and part-time jobs in the Alberta liquor store distribution and retail sector than before privatization. Heaven knows Saskatchewan, especially rural areas, could use a few new jobs to keep more of our young people from moving away.

Furthermore, according to further information obtained by the CTF from the SLGA, selling the retail liquor stores to entrepreneurs and using the proceeds to reduce the provincial debt would allow the government to double or triple the paltry $8.3 million they have budgeted for debt reduction this year.

Clearly, private liquor retailing would be a huge opportunity for local business people and would still leave plenty of money in the province's coffers. But it would also be a boon for consumers throughout the province, who would benefit from better selection, more stores in convenient locations, and better hours of operation. And, of course, taxpayers wouldn't be on the hook for the government's liquor store building binge.