Today, the Provincial Government released a budget entitled Getting the Job Done that maintains a course of austerity and service cuts.

“Manitobans who are concerned about reduced services for things like health care and education will find little comfort in this budget,” said MGEU President Michelle Gawronsky. “This Government ran on a promise to protect public services and the people who provide them, but that’s certainly not what we’re seeing. Instead, we’re paying for tax cuts with service cuts.”

Today’s budget includes:

  • Continued under-spending in health care as the government presses forward with its austerity agenda;
  • Cuts to the highway maintenance budget;
  • Reductions in grants to universities and colleges by 2%;
  • A reduction in flood mitigation and infrastructure funding;
  • Cuts to corrections and court services;
  • Cuts to funding for CFS agencies; and
  • Reduced funding for staffing at Selkirk Mental Health Centre.

Overall spending per department is virtually flat, up just slightly from 2018-19 (about $14.204 billion from $14.169 billion). But the slight rise still doesn’t keep pace with the rising costs of inflation.

The departments of Finance, Agriculture, and Sustainable Development will all see their budgets cut (2.3%, 1.5%, and 1.3% respectively), while the departments of Municipal Relations, Infrastructure, Families and Education will see their budgets effectively frozen (with increases of 0%, 0.2%, 0.2%, and 0.2% respectively).

The department of Sport, Culture and Heritage will receive the biggest increase in funding (20%), while Indigenous and Northern Relations will get the second-largest spending increase (6%). Health, the largest government department, will not see its funding keep pace with rising costs — it will receive a very modest increase of 0.5%.

“If you’re a patient in need of hospital and health care services, or a student looking to upgrade your skills, or a driver on Manitoba roads, you’re going to feel the effects of this budget,” said Gawronsky. “We continue to see the narrow focus on the bottom line in today’s budget, and all the while they are balancing the books on the backs of hard working Manitobans.”

In 2019/2020, the government will press ahead with its plan to cut the provincial sales tax by one percentage point to seven per cent as of July 1, 2019. 

The tax cut is expected to cost the government $237-million this year (or $325 million for a full year). At the same time, the provincial government will see a $324-million increase in transfer payments from the federal government, which will help, in part, to offset this lost revenue for public services. About $176 million of the $325 million is expected to be saved by Manitoba consumers, while the cut saves $133 million for the business sector.

“This tax cut is coming at the expense of our hospitals, our colleges, and our roads,” said Gawronsky. “While the Premier brags about the PST cut, he glosses over all of the cuts coming at the expense of that lost revenue.”

Percentage change in revenue, broken down by Provincial department

20.2%

Sport, Culture and Heritage

6.0%

Indigenous and Northern Relations

2.4%

Growth, Enterprise and Trade

1.7%

Civil Service Commission

0.7%

Justice

0.5%

Health, Seniors and Active Living

0.2%

Education and Training

0.2%

Families

0.2%

Infrastructure

0.0%

Municipal Relations

-1.3%

Sustainable Development

-1.5%

Agriculture

-2.3%

Finance