Manitoba's throne speech too little, too late, say opposition politicians
Speech is the last before Manitobans vote in a provincial election April 19
Manitoba's opposition parties say they don't believe the promises laid out by the governing NDP in the latest speech from the throne, while the reaction outside the provincial legislature is mixed.
The speech, read by Lt.-Gov. Janice Filmon on Monday, promises to double its infrastructure spending plan, move rail lines out of Winnipeg and create 12,000 new child-care spaces, among other things.
The throne speech will be the last before Manitobans vote in a provincial election on April 19. Premier Greg Selinger and his New Democrats are vying for an unprecedented fifth term in government.
But Progressive Conservative Leader Brian Pallister said the NDP has already broken its promises to keep taxes low and balance the province's budget, and the latest throne speech won't make a difference.
"After this record of breaking every election promise last time, the government trots out a number of other promises and says, you know, 'Forget about those ones we broke, we got a bunch more we can make today.' That's not enough."
The Tory leader cited the NDP's commitment to taking rail lines out of Winnipeg city limits as an example.
"This has been one of the premier's top priorities for a quarter of a century and it, too, did not get done; no progress for two decades. Now it's another wonderful sentiment," Pallister said.
More like a new government's speech: Liberals
Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari said the NDP's ideas are good in principle, but they don't make sense for a party that has been in government for 16 years.
"It felt like a throne speech from a government just coming in," she told reporters.
"If you've been there for 16 years, most of this stuff should've been either implemented, in place or dealt with already."
Bokhari said the issue is how the NDP government can be trusted after this much time.
In talking about the throne speech on Monday, Selinger said the government's plan is to balance the budget by 2019 and not raise taxes, but he admitted that things could change if the economy sours.
Pallister said fiscal mismanagement underpins the problems the NDP has with keeping its promises. He added that the speech's commitment to spend more on infrastructure means another tax hike would be likely.
Bowman encouraged, but also disappointed
Meanwhile, Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman said he is encouraged to learn the city will receive more infrastructure funding, but officials want to find out how much of the money being promised is new.
"Obviously we need to get the details so that we can determine what is existing funds and what is recycled," Bowman said.
The throne speech details a new "enhanced and flexible partnership" with the city that would provide $1 billion over five years for Winnipeg's roads, public transit, wastewater treatment plants and recreation centres.
Bowman said he is disappointed that the throne speech did not introduce major changes to how the city gets provincial funding.
"There's an opportunity with this speech from the throne to offer a solid commitment to establishing a new modern funding model for the City of Winnipeg, and we didn't hear that today," he said.
Bowman said the city has been in discussions about "rail rationalization" for some time, and it's an issue that officials want to keep looking into.
"There may be opportunities for rail rationalization. We want to pursue them. These are long-term big ticket items, and it is something that is going to require the willingness of a number of parties well above and beyond the City of Winnipeg. But we want to be a constructive partner and look at what's realistic," he said.
Mixed reactions
Other agencies and organizations weighed in on the throne speech.
The Canadian Union for Public Employees, which represents about 25,000 workers in Manitoba, called the NDP's plan an "incredibly progressive plan that reflects the needs of a great cross-section of Manitobans" with promises to offer paid leave to victims of domestic violence and ensure support for refugees coming to the province, among other things.
"After over a decade of steady growth and pragmatic stewardship over the economy, this government is well poised to tackle some pretty big issues," CUPE Manitoba president Kelly Moist said in a news release.
"Manitobans expect a government that is both responsible and visionary, and that's what today's throne speech offers."
However, Deena Brock, provincial co-ordinator for the Manitoba Association of Women's Shelters, said no one was clamouring for paid leave given many victims of domestic violence are unemployed.
"My biggest concern is making sure the shelters have everything they need to be able to do their jobs properly," she said. "Part of that, unfortunately, is funding."
The speech was welcomed by the Manitoba East Side Road Authority, which learned that its mandate will be expanded to include construction of "Freedom Road," which will connect Shoal Lake 40 First Nation to the mainland.
But the Manitoba Métis Federation said the throne speech shows that the provincial Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development caters to First Nations to the exclusion of the province's Métis people.
"I suggest the NDP government change the name of the department to First Nation Affairs. It is becoming evident this department only represents First Nation interests and needs," MMF president David Chartrand said in a statement.
Royce Koop, a political science professor at the University of Manitoba, said the vision laid out by the NDP is designed to bring back disaffected voters and firm up the party's base before the looming election.
"It's not really reaching out to new voters," Koop told The Canadian Press. "It's reaching out to people that … have probably voted for the NDP in the past."
With files from The Canadian Press