OTTAWA -- When it comes to prime ministerial visits, Stephen Harper appears to be giving Manitoba the cold shoulder.
A tracking of the 82 official trips Harper has taken since being sworn into office in February 2006 shows Manitoba is at the bottom of the list when it comes to destinations for the prime minister's Challenger jet.
With this week marking the anniversary of Harper's first of only two visits to Manitoba, the travel record shows the province lumped in with much smaller locales such as Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and the territories when it comes to attention from the prime minister.
Because tradition dictates that prime ministers stay clear of provinces in the midst of election campaigns, a possible election call within weeks by Premier Gary Doer could keep Manitoba off Harper's travel itinerary even longer.
Manitoba Tory caucus chairwoman Joy Smith insists Harper continues to care deeply about Manitoba, but opposition MPs are not so sure.
"I feel shortchanged that he has not seen fit to drop in more on Friendly Manitoba," said Winnipeg Centre NDP MP Pat Martin.
"All we get to do is wave as the prime minister flies over the province.''
Winnipeg South Centre Liberal MP Anita Neville said she believes Harper isn't spending more time in Manitoba because he is focused on potential electoral gains elsewhere in the country.
Neville also wonders if the fact Manitoba has a high aboriginal population may be playing a role in his travels.
"What it shows us is that we are not important to the Tories and not on his radar screen,'' Neville said.
At the top of Harper's radar screen is Ontario -- especially the Toronto area, where his party hopes to make a major breakthrough next election. In total, Harper has made 26 visits outside of Ottawa to cities within the province, which has 106 seats in Parliament.
Also high on Harper's list of places to visit is Quebec, which has seen him 14 times. The Tories have made no attempt to hide the fact that Quebec is key to their plans for a majority government, so the prime minister has held a number of high-profile events in La belle province and even had his cabinet meet in Quebec City last summer for a two-day retreat.
Harper's third-favourite destination is British Columbia, which has seen 11 visits, the bulk of them in the Vancouver area.
On his first Winnipeg visit on April 19, 2006, he made a speech on crime to a downtown business crowd. He also flew to Gimli last May 31 for a meeting with the western premiers.
Manitoba's 14 seats in Parliament represent 4.5 per cent of the total. Manitoba's two visits from Harper represent 2.4 per cent of his prime ministerial visits in Canada.
When tracking his public appearances, events in the Ottawa area and across the river in Gatineau, Que., were not included as visits to either Ontario or Quebec.
University of Toronto political scientist Nelson Wiseman said prime ministerial visits have long been a mix of both official business and the political needs of the ruling party.
Wiseman said he is surprised that Harper has made only 14 trips to Quebec, given the number of headlines his visits there have made over the past 15 months.
"You've got to differentiate between quantity and quality,'' he said.
Smith (Kildonan-St. Paul) said no one should interpret Harper's travels as a sign he isn't concerned about Manitoba issues.
"He is very, very interested in Manitoba and I know he will be back,'' she said. "Stay tuned.''
The Prime Minister's Office did not respond to a request for comment.
paul.samyn@freepress.mb.ca
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