Economic plan includes cash for back lanes

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 01/09/2011 (5394 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Conservative Leader Hugh McFadyen promised to help pave Winnipeg back lanes and establish a $375-million municipal infrastructure fund as he released a 29-page economic plan on Wednesday that had the feel of a provincial budget speech.

The economic strategy promises to boost immigration, increase support to local governments, cut red tape for business owners and maintain plans to build the Keeyask and Conawapa hydroelectric dams.

As the Free Press reported on Monday, the party aims to balance the provincial books by 2018 — four years later than the timetable proposed by the NDP. It bases that estimate on the premise that the Selinger government is hiding unpleasant facts about the nature of the province’s finances — and on an unwillingness to raise taxes or cut front-line services.

What’s unusual is the fact it was released this week — days before the election campaign has officially begun.

The Conservatives run the risk of flooding voters with information while many are on vacation. On the other hand, with the NDP waiting until next week to fully jump into the campaign, the Tories can seize the early initiative and perhaps sway voters.

“Overall what our plan does is it keeps taxes down, it invests in key public services and it helps to rebuild some of our crumbling infrastructure,” McFadyen said Wednesday. He said he believes Manitobans should have “the basic questions about our priorities addressed early in the campaign.”

Among the new initiatives contained in the document is a promise to enhance the successful provincial nominee program for attracting immigrants. The PCs plan to speed up applications by allowing them to be done online. And they vow to fund local settlement offices to ease immigrants’ transition to Canada and keep them in Manitoba.

The Conservatives also promised to speed development of CentrePort Canada, the new transportation hub being built northwest of Winnipeg. And they pledged to boost training and the number of apprentices in the province.

As earlier reported, the Tories would also: reroute the proposed BiPole III hydro transmission line down the east side of Manitoba, join the three western provinces in an economic partnership, make unspecified cuts to personal income tax, introduce a child-care benefit for families, introduce a home-renovation tax credit, extend the fitness tax to all Manitobans, exempt first-time homebuyers from the land transfer tax and extend the $700 education property tax credit to cottage owners.

NDP spokeswoman Jennifer Howard said the Tories seem to be flip-flopping on support for provincially mandated wastewater treatment upgrades for the City of Winnipeg. The upgrades were part of a law passed last spring that was designed to help clean up Lake Winnipeg. “They opposed it (a city treatment plant that would remove both phosphorus and nitrogen) in May. They voted for it in June and now they’re going to cut it in August,” she said.

She noted there’s no mention in the document about how the Tories would pay for the 1,700 new nurses and 250 new doctors the party promised on Tuesday. She said that calls into question the Tory commitment to health care.

Doug Dobrowolski, president of the Association of Manitoba Municipalities, said the $375-million pot for municipal infrastructure projects is far short of what local governments need. “That’s only $75 million per year. We’re asking for $249 million or (the equivalent of) one per cent of the PST.” But McFadyen said Wednesday the province can’t afford such a high expenditure without raising taxes — and his party has pledged not to do that.

Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz said the back lane paving pledge and a long-term commitment to an infrastructure fund (although short of what the city is asking for) are positive developments. He was especially pleased to hear the Conservatives would not force Winnipeg to build a waste water-treatment plant that would remove both phosphorus and nitrogen, claiming there is no scientific basis for the removal of the latter. “I commend them on that.”

Dave Angus, president of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, said he would like to see more specifics on the Tory tax policy. He noted the document is silent on payroll and corporate taxes, education property tax and basic personal exemptions for income tax. “We’re hoping that we’re going to see more details as the campaign goes on,” Angus said.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca