Jewish organizations’ pre-budget meeting with government ‘important milestone,’ participant says

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This article was published 26/02/2025 (248 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More than a dozen Jewish organizations met with Finance Minister Adrian Sala in what they’re calling a “milestone” pre-budget consultation.

It was the first time the community had a seat at the table for provincial budget discussions, said Gustavo Zentner, Manitoba and Saskatchewan vice-president for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.

“It marked an important milestone,” he said Tuesday.

At Thursday’s meeting with Sala, Minister of Innovation and New Technology Mike Moroz (River Heights) and Tuxedo NDP MLA Carla Compton, the government was asked to step up safety and security at a time of rising antisemitism and attacks targeting Jews.

“The Jewish community is the most targeted in Canada for hate,” Zentner said.

The elected officials were asked to consider ways to help the Jewish community with security costs that have increased since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, he said.

Although the meeting was with representatives from the Jewish community, it wasn’t just about that community, said Zentner.

“Our goal is to contribute, to support and to work collaboratively with government and other parts of civil society to ensure Manitoba remains a province that upholds diversity, security and opportunity for all,” he said.

“We wanted to inform the government about the various ways the Jewish community serves all members of that community. We highlighted the ways we are serving people outside the Jewish community, providing benefits for all of Manitoba.”

Zentner said the community appreciates the government accepting its invitation to meet and its “willingness to engage, to listen and to understand the needs of our community.”

Support for newcomers, social-service programs that assist seniors, low-income people and those struggling with mental-health issues and ensuring safety and security at synagogues and other Jewish organizations were discussed, he said.

A spokesperson for the Manitoba Multifaith Council said they were not aware of any other similar consultations with a faith group.

Manitoba Islamic Association spokesperson Tasneem Vali said there have been “conversations” with the province but she’s not aware of any pre-budget consultation involving all of the major Muslim organizations.

The finance minister said he’s consulted with more than 30 organizations and groups for Budget 2025, but that last week’s meeting was the first time he’s met with faith groups during this cycle.

“We were asked to consult with that community,” Sala told the Free Press Tuesday. The discussion focused on social programs, health care, security and safety issues for the community, he said.

“It was just a great conversation where really they really helped us understand what they wanted to see in our upcoming budget and those areas that they thought were a priority for our government.”

Sala, the MLA for St. James, said he’d be “happy to meet with any group that reaches out to us, because that’s important.”

Pre-budget outreach included town hall meetings from Thompson to Lac du Bonnet, telephone town halls, an online survey and a chance to hear from “thousands of Manitobans,” he said.

“Those inputs are critical to making sure we develop a budget that reflects the priorities of Manitobans,” said the finance minister, whose budget is expected in March.

Zentner said he would be open to facilitating another consultation with government, this time including members of other faith groups in the province.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca