NDP Deliver More Taxes, More Debt, No Vision in 2024
Wab Kinew picks winners and losers as part of NDP plan for a divided Manitoba: Ewasko
WINNIPEG — Manitobans will pay more and get less in 2024 as the NDP’s first budget raises taxes, drives up debt, cuts frontline services and infrastructure, defunds public safety, and offers no vision for Manitoba’s economy or future, Official Opposition Leader Wayne Ewasko shared today.
“This budget is not what the NDP promised six months ago, and draws a clear dividing line through the province to pick winners and losers,” Ewasko said. “The NDP has failed to meet the needs and expectations of Manitobans, who are quickly realizing this new government is not as advertised.”
Here’s what Wab Kinew and the NDP do not want Manitobans to know about Budget 2024:
- Provincial property taxes are increasing $150 million. That means more expensive housing for homeowners and renters across the province.
- The NDP is borrowing $6.2 billion in new loans and adding $1.9 billion in net new debt. That means interest payments of 10 cents on every dollar.
- Infrastructure spending has been slashed by $163 million. That means fewer road projects, more potholes, and dirty water.
- New school construction has been slashed by $100 million. That means nine cancelled school projects and over 660 cancelled daycare spaces.
- Policing and justice have been defunded $9 million, including cuts to provincial police, prosecution and correctional services, court operations, crime prevention, victim services, Legal Aid, the Manitoba Criminal Intelligence Centre, and more. That means less law enforcement to protect Manitobans.
- Park infrastructure has been cut in half by $6 million. That means no new campsites, yurts, or other much-needed improvements—just as camping season is about to get underway.
The NDP’s lack of fiscal discipline is only compounded by a lack of planning, particularly in healthcare. Not only does Budget 2024 offer broad targets with no plan to retain, train, and attract staff, the NDP’s commitment to raise taxes and increase housing costs will only drive more healthcare workers away. The NDP budget also neglects to offer any alternative to their ill-considered decision to cut Manitoba’s short-term surgical capacity, leaving Manitobans who are in pain today with no immediate help.
“Even with a billion dollars more in federal transfers, the NDP have brought in a budget that seems as though it was slapped together at the last minute,” Ewasko said. “The NDP is not working for Manitobans because the NDP is not working at all. The time for deflection and distraction is over. The time for accountability is now.”
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