Legend

• PC Progressive Conservative
• LIB Liberal
• NDP New Democratic Party
• CPC-M Communist
• GPM Green
• IND Independent
• MF Manitoba First
• MBFWD Manitoba Forward

• The provincial government says consolidating Winnipeg’s six acute care hospitals down to three will improve overall medical care for patients. Is that the right move?

  Great idea

  Good idea

  We’ll see

  Not a good idea

  Terrible idea

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: The government needs to find economies in how health care is delivered but this proposal has been implemented in too hasty a fashion without sufficient consultation with the health care providers.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: When I talked to families they all tell me the same thing—they didn’t vote to close emergency rooms or cause chaos in the health care system. Brian Pallister closed three emergency rooms across Winnipeg and it’s caused wait times to get longer and the quality of care to worsen. No one believes Brian Pallister when it comes to health care. The front line experts, like nurses and doctors, say his cuts have damaged our system and put patients at risk.

• How much control should the provincial government have over the operations of Crown corporations like Manitoba Public Insurance and Manitoba Hydro?

  Hands-off

  Not much say

  50/50

  Some oversight

  Direct supervision

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: Oversight and supervision to ensure the crowns operate in alignment with government direction is necessary, but we need to avoid the kind of political interference that occurred under the NDP.

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: The government needs to set clear overall goals and objectives for these corporations and then let them operate without interference to achieve them. If it doesn’t like the way they’re operating, then it should review the goals and objectives and set more appropriate ones.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: Manitoba Hydro must stay public so rates can stay affordable for families and we can transition it into a renewable energy company by creating thousands of clean jobs across the province. Pallister’s political interference in the affairs of MPI is wrong. Time and again, he puts the profits of insurance brokers ahead of the needs of Manitoba drivers. Families have already seen their autopac rates rise because of his interference. Brian Pallister’s plan to privatize Manitoba Hydro and MPI will means higher bills for families, big payouts to executives and poorer quality service. The NDP will keep our Crown Corporations public so that life is affordable for all of us.

• The Pallister government plans to eliminate the deficit by 2022. Should balancing the books be a priority?

  Essential

  High priority

  Neutral

  Low priority

  Not important

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: Not at the expense of providing services which strengthen the social and ecological fabric of the province. The fact is that the cost of servicing the debt, as a per cent of total expenditures, has gone down from 6.7 per cent in 2008/09 to 5.5% in 2017/18.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: Brian Pallister’s cuts to health care—like closing emergency rooms, cutting CancerCare or cutting physiotherapy—are hurting patients and causing chaos for front line workers. He’s made cuts on the backs of families, nurses, students and workers. It’s the wrong approach. I believe the solution to Brian Pallister’s extreme austerity is not extreme spending. The NDP’s fully costed platform has a plan to return to balance by 2024. We will achieve balance by making the right choices for Manitobans and eliminating Pallister’s wasteful spending--like $23 million in contracts to high-priced consultants or millions in expensive overtime pay for understaffed nurses.

• In Budget 2019, the provincial government spent approximately $350 million on highways. The construction industry says we need to invest more. Is $350 million the right amount?

  Way too little

  A little under

  About right

  A little too much

  Way too much

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: The PC government says we’ve been spending too much on roads and physical infrastructure, based on the idea that it has exceeded the rate of inflation. But that benchmark is false if the deterioration of the physical infrastructure has been happening at a rate faster than the rate of inflation. What is required is a level of capital investment that maintains the infrastructure at an acceptable state of repair. But, even more, we need a level of investment in green infrastructure that reverses the deterioration in the province’s natural capital like the water quality in our waterways, the health of wetlands, the health of our agricultural soils. These have been deteriorating over the last 30 or 40 years and continue to deteriorate. We need substantial investments to reverse these trends.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: Brian Pallister cut the infrastructure budget by 40% and then underspent it by about half. It’s meant less jobs for working families and millions in lost revenue for the provincial economy. The NDP has a plan to invest $6.6 billion in strategic infrastructure—like roads, buildings and highways—to create 50,000 good jobs and keep our economy moving.

• There have been calls to install safe consumption and/or injection sites in Manitoba, so that people with addictions can consume or inject drugs in a space with medical supervision and more readily available access to addiction services. Are these sites a good idea?

  Urgently needed

  A good idea

  Not sure

  Not necessary

  A bad idea

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: The experience in other cities like Vancouver demonstrate the importance of safe injection sites. They reduce health care and policing costs and improve the quality of life of the users.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: Experts are clear—safe consumption sites save lives and keep our communities safe. By providing safe and supervised access, these sites help people struggling with addictions to find treatment. Under Brian Pallister, Manitoba’s meth problem became a full blown crisis. His inaction has meant tens of thousands of needles in public parks, an unprecedented spike in syphillus and HIV rates, and a dramatic increase in property and violent crime rates. The NDP has a plan to immediately address the meth crisis, with some action being taken in the first 100 days of office. We will invest in long term treatment, harm reduction and supports for people with addictions so we can keep our communities safe.

• How important is it for the provincial government to take steps to address climate change?

  Urgent

  Important

  Neutral

  Not important

  Unnecessary

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: The latest reports from the InterGovernmental Panel on Climate Change indicate that the world must reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) by half over the next couple of decades to avoid catastrophic climate change. The provincial government has to do its part by committing, at a minimum, to a 30 per cent reduction in GHG emissions by 2030.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: The fight against climate change is a fight for our future—a safer, cleaner future for our kids. Families in my constituency want to do their part to help solve the climate crisis, but they also want life to stay affordable. Under Brian Pallister, emissions rose and our lakes and rivers continued to be polluted. First he supported a carbon tax, then he flip flopped and let big polluters off the hook. The NDP has a plan that will help families make cleaner choices. It starts by taking $350 off every household’s Hydro bill to encourage them to use clean energy. We’ll also invest millions to upgrade the North End Water Treatment plant to help return Lake Winnipeg to health and to protect wetlands across the province. Our plan to transition Manitoba Hydro away from building dams and towards funding renewable energy sources will not only protect the future of our environment but create thousands of good jobs across the province.

• Will a carbon tax influence consumer behaviour, such as encouraging people to drive less or make their homes more efficient?

  Definitely won't

  Probably won't

  Not sure

  Probably will

  Definitely will

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: Every consumer knows that increasing the cost of a product or service results in their buying less of it or looking for a cheaper substitute. Economists know this to be true. Recently, 5 prominent Canadian economists released a report through the Eco Fiscal Commission of Canada refuting 10 common myths about carbon taxes. The bottom line is that they work and they can be designed to be fair to the consumer and result in lower carbon emissions.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: I believe a price on pollution will help families to become more aware of their greenhouse gas emissions. Our plan will go farther by incentivizing families to use more clean, Hydro power while giving them a break on their monthly costs. The money families save can go towards home retrofits or electric vehicles. The NDP will ensure 90% of revenue will be returned to families, and the remaining 10% will go towards green programs and infrastructure projects.

• I would rather have more money in my pocket through tax cuts than have the provincial government increase spending on public services.

  Strongly disagree

  Somewhat disagree

  Neutral

  Somewhat agree

  Strongly agree

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: Strong public services are the backbone of a civilized society. Where would we be without publicly funded health care, public works, police and justice services etc.? These are all funded through tax dollars and too many of them are underfunded. The wait times for medical services and justice services are huge. On the other side of the coin, many of us are awash in private consumer goods and services that we don’t use or throw out. One of the fastest growing industries is storage lockers for the storing of household goods that aren’t being used. The world is awash in used clothing. We waste half of the food produced. The electronics industry is constantly bringing out new products making the old obsolete. We live in houses that are too big for our personal needs and comfort resulting in high debt loads.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: We know Brian Pallister’s cuts to health care, education and social services has made the system less efficient and more costly. The NDP’s plan commits to keeping the PST at 7%, but we do ask the top one percent of earners (those making over $250,000/yr) to contribute a little more in taxes to fund public services that benefit all of us. I believe this is a fair and balanced approach.

• Manitoba’s K-12 education system is currently undergoing a review of curriculum and spending models. How much control should school boards have when it comes to making education budgets?

  Total control

  More control

  Current system

  Less control

  No control

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: Manitoba is the only province in Canada that still gives local school boards the authority to set budgets and raise taxes through the highly regressive education property tax which sees low income homeowners often paying a larger per cent of their income on education taxes as high income homeowners. The Green Party of Manitoba will replace the education property tax with an increase in the personal and corporate income tax rates that, overall, raise the same amount of money. It will leave some discretionary spending authority with local school divisions.

  NDP

  Carla Compton: Local school boards have the expertise and knowledge about the communities, parents and students that they serve. We know Brian Pallister is planning to cut education just like he cut health care. The NDP has a plan for education that will help every student be successful—by keeping class sizes small for early years, hiring EAs and investing in French-language education. I believe education is next on Pallister’s chopping block. Only the NDP can put a stop to his cuts and create a better education system for all of us.

• How much do you consider a candidate’s personal history - before they entered politics - when deciding who to vote for?

  Not at all

  Very little

  Neutral

  Somewhat

  A lot

  PC

  Heather Stefanson: No Comment

  GPM

  Kristin Lauhn-Jensen: No Comment

  NDP

  Carla Compton: As a New Democrat, I’m proud to be part of a team that reflects Manitoba and I know voters feel the same way. My fellow candidates bring a diverse experience and skills that will make us the best team to lead a government that works for all of us—not just those at the top.

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