Manitoba PCs $373-Million Surplus Confirmed During Public Accounts Committee Review
WINNIPEG — Midland MLA Lauren Stone, PC Critic for Finance, is pleased that the Manitoba Legislature’s independent Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has approved the 2023 audited statements confirming that the previous PC government posted a restated $373-million surplus for the 2023 fiscal year. This was the last full fiscal year of the Progressive Conservative government.
Stone says the approval from PAC shows that the financial accounting leading up to the 2023 provincial election was accurate and refutes NDP claims that they were left in a poor fiscal position.
“The NDP have falsely claimed that they were left in a financial mess after the 2023 election,” said Stone. “The PAC approval confirms the NDP were left with a significant $373-million surplus and shows that NDP complaints are nothing more than misdirection and smoke-and-mirrors.”
After being handed a $373-million surplus in 2023, the Kinew government posted a $2-billion deficit in 2024. The fiscal mismanagement and spending spree continued in 2025 when the New Democrats estimated the deficit would be somewhere between $796 million and $1.9 billion, but could not provide any details on how that additional money will be spent.
“From a $373-million surplus in 2023 to a deficit as high as $1.9 billion in 2025. It took Wab Kinew’s NDP government less than two years to turn a fiscal advantage into a financial liability for all Manitobans,” said Stone. “This government should be ashamed of its fiscal record. Instead of making life more affordable for Manitoba families, this NDP government is now saddling future generations with unimaginable debt, higher taxes, and NDP failures on healthcare, education, and rising crime.”
In addition to passing the 2023 Public Accounts, the Committee began reviewing the 2024 public accounts. During the committee session, the Auditor General stated that there were more errors in the 2024 Public Accounts than he had seen in his previous years with the Auditor General’s Office.
“During the 2024 audit, we identified significant weaknesses in financial statement preparation,” said Auditor General Tyson Shtykalo. “We found an unprecedented number of errors that required correction by the Province during the audit.”
“It is very concerning that, under the NDP’s watch, the errors being found by the Auditor General in his review have grown considerably,” said Stone. “It leads us to ask why there were so many errors that needed correcting under the NDP and what other problems there may be with the 2024 Public Accounts that may not have been found by the Auditor General.”
The Auditor General also confirmed during the meeting that his office does not do the audit of Manitoba Hydro and other Crown entities that are included in the Summary Public Accounts of the Province.
The full Public Accounts report can be viewed at: AnnualReportPublicAccounts2022-2023.pdf
The restated surplus can be found in the 2024 Public Accounts at: Annual Report and Public Accounts
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