Minister of Environment

Duncan held the environment portfolio at a time when the province was resisting federal planning to address climate change, and in particular the imposition of carbon pricing.^[12] Duncan was Environment Minister when Saskatchewan launched a court challenge against the federal Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act; Duncan stated in 2018 that he was confident the province could "put forward a very strong argument... as to why the federal government shouldn't have this ability."^[13] The case ultimately progressed to the Supreme Court, where in 2021 the Act was ruled constitutional, which resulted in Saskatchewan having to adopt a carbon pricing scheme.^[14][15]

Duncan introduced Saskatchewan's own climate change strategy in 2017, which originally did not feature carbon pricing.^[16] When the province unveiled the performance standards for the plan in 2018, Duncan stated that Saskatchewan would not be submitting the plan to Ottawa for assessment.^[17] While environmental critics offered praise to the Saskatchewan government for releasing a climate change plan for the first time, the plan, called "Prairie Resilience," was widely criticized as inadequate in its targets for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and lacking in enforcement mechanisms.^[18][19]

In late 2019, Duncan announced that the government would not be meeting its pledge to reduce GHG emissions 20% by 2020, but unveiled a new, narrower target of a 40% reduction in SaskPower emissions by 2030.^[20]

Minister of Education

Duncan took on the education portfolio after the 2020 election and in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Duncan persistently downplayed the need for public health measures in the school system, and at one point in 2021 wrote a letter to school divisions directing them to allow unvaccinated students to participate in extra-curricular activities, which at the time was in contravention of a directive by a local medical health officer.^[21] The Opposition education critic, Carla Beck, called for Duncan's resignation in January 2022 after it emerged that he lied about consulting with school divisions about delaying the start of the semester, as Saskatchewan was experiencing a new COVID wave with record case counts and high levels of hospitalization driven by the omicron variant.^[22][23]

In the summer of 2022, the Ministry of Education came under scrutiny after more than two dozen former students of a private Christian school in Saskatoon—one of many such schools that had begun receiving funding from the Saskatchewan Party government in 2012—came forward with allegations of abuse against current and former staff members at the school. Those students launched a class action lawsuit against the school, in which the government was also named as a defendant.^[24] The case brought funding for private schools, and in particular private religious schools, under increased scrutiny. In response to the allegations, Duncan appointed administrators to provide oversight at the school in question along with two other schools employing former staff from the first; those administrators also reported on the schools' finances and curriculum, which the Opposition later revealed to contain charges of financial impropriety.^[25][26]

Just weeks before the start of a new school year, in August 2023, Duncan unveiled new policies placing restrictions on sexual health education in Saskatchewan schools—including a ban on third party sexual health education—and requiring parental consent for children under the age of 16 who wished to change their preferred names or pronouns while at school.^[27] Duncan stated that the policy was an attempt to bolster "parental rights," while critics denounced the policy for potentially endangering vulnerable children. While it became clear that the Ministry did not consult its school divisions, the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation, or the province's Advocate for Children in designing the policy, a national Christian lobbying group took credit for pushing the policy, claiming to have sent over 10,000 messages to Duncan and Moe and to have met with Duncan's staff earlier in 2023.^[28][29] The assistant deputy minister of education reported receiving 18 letters over the summer of 2023 that were in support of a similar policy that was introduced in New Brunswick.^[30] It was later reported that the policy was developed in only 9 days.^[30] The province's Advocate for Youth reviewed the policy and recommended extensive revisions, while the University of Regina's UR Pride centre launched a lawsuit against the government to try and have the policy repealed.^[31][32] On September 28, a Regina Court of King's Bench Justice granted an injunction against the policy, stating that "the protection of these youth surpasses that interest expressed by the government, pending a full and complete hearing."^[33] The policies would ultimately form the basis for the Parents' Bill of Rights, which was passed into law on October 20 2023.^[34]

In a cabinet shuffle on August 29, 2023, Duncan was moved out of the Education portfolio and became the Minister of Crown Investments Corporation, responsible for the province's crown corporations.^[35]

Minister of Crown Investments Corporation

Duncan took over the crowns portfolio at a time of renewed tension between Regina and Ottawa surrounding the federal carbon tax. After the federal government decided to introduce limited carbon tax exemptions to home-heating oil, Saskatchewan argued that the exemption unfairly excluded natural gas, which is used by the majority of homes in Saskatchewan. The province quickly introduced legislation instructing SaskEnergy to stop remitting the carbon tax on natural gas, with Duncan apparently assuming full legal responsibility and stating that he was willing to go to "carbon jail" over the issue.^[36][37]