REGINA - Saskatchewan residents will have to pay more for cigarettes and alcohol as the government raises taxes and prices in an effort to boost dwindling provincial. offers.
The measures are in a new budget that sees the province spend more than it takes in.
The government says it expects to collect $9.95 billion in revenue this fiscal year and spend $10.1 billion _ meaning the province must dip into its savings account to keep the books in the black.
It hopes to raise almost $36 million by hiking the tobacco tax and just over $18 million with the liquor markup.
The province is also trimming costs by cutting civil service jobs by 15 per cent _ about 1,800 full-time positions _ over four years.
Saskatchewan will also delay promised cuts to the education portion of property taxes, eliminate coverage for chiropractic treatment and shut down its government TV channel to save money.
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