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Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION
New independent commissioner to look at political party funding
William Neville
A University of Manitoba political scientists has been asked to find a workable way to fund registered political parties in Manitoba using taxpayers’ dollars.
William Neville was appointed today as the province’s first independent allowance commissioner.
His task is to come up with an alternative to the controversial per-vote subsidy introduced several years ago when the province banned corporate and union donations to political parties.
Of the three main political parties, only the Liberal party has accepted the annual subsidy, which amounts to $1.25 for each vote a party received in the previous general election.
When the subsidy was unveiled, the Progressive Conservatives immediately declared it a ‘vote tax’ and vowed not to collect it. The governing NDP, which introduced the subsidy, also eschewed it, much to the chagrin of its rank and file.
This past spring, the government passed a bill that would turn the political hot potato of taxpayer funding of political parties to a new independent commissioner.
"I’d like to thank William Neville for agreeing to act in this capacity," government House Leader Jennifer Howard said in a news release.
"Mr. Neville brings to the table the right mix of familiarity with the political process as well as independence. With the appointment, we are moving Manitoba forward towards a more fair, transparent and non-partisan process to fund registered political parties."
Under the old system, the NDP would have been entitled to an annual subsidy of close to $249,000 based on last fall’s election results, while the Conservatives could have received more than $235,000.
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