reforms and in response to public criticism that the reforms would result in an acceleration of small rural school closures, he ordered a moratorium on all school closures for a three-year period. The reforms were criticised by the opposition but have remained in place despite the change in government following the 2007 general election. At the post-secondary level Thomson commissioned changes to the community college structure to improve their ability to meet Saskatchewan's labour market needs. He introduced a new graduate tax credit that would allow recent graduates to earn up to $100,000 over a five-year period tax free if they started their careers in Saskatchewan. He also introduced a four-year freeze on university tuitions, despite initially opposing the idea. Minister of Finance As the rookie Minister of Finance during a period of rising resource revenues, including $1 billion in oil revenue alone, Thomson announced a then record $7.7 billion budget, and introduced several large tax cuts. These cuts included cutting the corporate form 17% to 14% and cutting the 0.6% capital gains tax in half, while promising the further lower the former to 12% and eliminate the latter altogether. The budget also expanded health funding by $200 million, including $4.9 million to the University of Saskatchewan's College of Medicine, an increase in education spending, as well as an increase in welfare rates. The budget's financial projection were based on a $60 barrel of oil. This was followed in 2007 by introduction of the graduate tax credit and a cap on prescription drug costs for seniors. Despite concerns by the opposition that the cuts were too deep and unsustainable, the province posted a $2 billion surplus that year and remained in a strong financial position. This budget was balanced by taking just over $500 million from the Fiscal Stabilization Fund, the province's emergency contingency fund, an act criticized, but continued, by SaskParty Leader Brad Wall. In 2013, six years after Thomson left office, Saskatchewan's then auditor and current auditor general for Ontario, Bonnie Lysyk said that if Saskatchewan had used the same accounting standards as the federal government and all other Canadian provinces, nine out of ten budgets, should have been presented as deficit, not surplus. However, she also notes that both of Thomson's budgets achieved actual surpluses of $575M and $1.9B using her preferred accounting standards. Thomson's time in finance was also marked by an ongoing battle with the