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Open Letter to Premier Wab Kinew and the Government of Manitoba:  Invest in Manitoba and reverse the tax cuts 

Dear Premier Kinew and the Manitoba Government,

The public services that Manitobans count on continue to feel the strain of $1.6 billion of tax cuts over seven years under the previous government. Vital areas like health care, education and core government and social services have been under-resourced for years. 

The previous government has left the province facing a challenging fiscal position with a much larger deficit than originally forecasted in Budget 2023. Given this new information, the Budget 2023/24 tax cuts create a structural deficit with a substantial opportunity cost for investment in services and addressing the social deficit. Politicians should take their promises seriously, but the economic circumstances have changed since the tax cuts were legislated.

We, the undersigned, urge you to avoid committing to any fiscal framework that unnecessarily constrains the province’s ability to follow through on commitments made during the election campaign, including major commitments to:

• Fix health care, including launching the biggest health recruitment campaign in Manitoba’s history and reversing privatization;
• Increase the number of Personal Care Home Beds and strengthen public home care
• Reduce class sizes and strengthen school funding;
• Uphold Manitoba’s commitments in the bilateral agreement on child care: adding 23,000 new licensed affordable child care spaces and improving hours while raising wages for ECEs;
• End chronic homelessness and build hundreds of social and affordable housing units and maintain Manitoba Housing properties;
• Adequately fund capital infrastructure and public programs, municipalities, transit and transportation; 
• Rebuild the public service; and
• Make the energy grid net zero by 2035 and achieve net zero targets by 2050

Research by Engage Manitoba consistently finds that fixing health care and education are the top priorities for Manitoba, and tax cuts are the lowest. Borrowing money to fund tax cuts is unsustainable, and pressure to balance the budget could force deep cuts to services and programming. 

Research shows that Manitoba’s pre-existing tax regime is competitive and we are middle of the pack of provinces in terms of taxes collected relative to the size of the economy. 

We recognize that working and middle-class Manitobans are facing an affordability crisis and that policy to ease this is crucial. However, tax cuts disproportionately benefit well-off Manitobans, and provide little to no relief for those struggling most with the rising cost of living. Research shows that the best way for a provincial government to help with the affordability crisis is through redistributive means such as boosting income transfers and quality public services. 

The December 2023 $1.6 billion deficit projection makes it clear that the previous government’s fiscal framework was unsustainable and should not be committed to, moving forward. Any realistic path forward that honours your election commitments entails exploring means of shoring up revenue. It also means extending your timeline to return the budget to balance given the shockingly high deficit and deep cuts inflicted on public services in Manitoba.

We encourage you to take an approach that ensures sustainable revenue to meet the province’s urgent need to rebuild public services, provide good jobs for Manitobans, and ease the affordability crunch for those who need it most. There are options for progressive measures that accomplish these goals. Many of the organizational and individual signatories to this letter stand ready to dialogue with you on these options.  

[Backgrounder to letter here]

Signed by: 

Organizations

Aboriginal Council of Winnipeg

Amalgamated Transit Union

Association of United Ukrainian Canadians Winnipeg

ATU Local 1505

Better Manitoba 

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Canadian Union of Postal Workers

Car Dependency Index 

Charleswood Mennonite Church

Fridays For Future Manitoba

Green Action Centre

Green Party of Manitoba

Harvest Manitoba 

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) 

IBEW 2034

IBEW 2085

International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists &   Allied Crafts of the U.S., It’s Territories & Canada – Local 63

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2085

Las Americas & Chilean Human Right’s Council Canada,- Etnorama News Magazine.

Main Street Project

Make Poverty History Manitoba

Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals (MAHCP)

Manitoba Building Trades

Manitoba Child Care Association 

Manitoba Eco-Network

Manitoba Health Coalition

Manitoba Low Income Intermediary Project

Manitoba Nurses Union

Manitoba Public Health Association

Manitoba Research Alliance

National Farmers Union

New Directions

North End Women’s Centre 

North Point Douglas Women’s Centre 

On The Lake Carpentry

Portage and District Labour Council

Reweaving Support Project – Collaboration for Systems Change

Right to Housing Coalition

Social Planning Council of Winnipeg

Sustainable Building Manitoba

Thrive Community Support Circle

UFCW Local 832

United Steelworkers  

University of Manitoba Faculty Association

University of Winnipeg Faculty Association

West Central Women’s Resource Centre

Winnipeg Labour Council

Woman Healing for Change

Individuals

Adam Johnston

Adam King

Adele Perry

Adeline Savy

Aiden Enns

Alex Passey

Alexandra Merrill

Alison Conrad

Alison Foster

Allison McCulloch

Amanda Cowie

Amanda Hever

Andres Nieto

Andrew Loewen

Andrew Tod

Andrew Woolford

Ann Tigchelaar

Anna Rothney

Anne Lindsey

Annette Desmarais

Anny Chen

Anthony Leong

Arthur Antony

Augustine Watanabe

Barbara Toews

Bev Fredborg

Bill Kirkpatrick

Bill Reid

Bob Gooding

Brenda Hildebrand

Bronwyn Dobchuk-Land

C E

Care Grant

Chanelle Lajoie

Chantal Shivanna Ramraj

Chantel Jersak

Charmayne Dube

Christie Macdonald

Christine Bye

Christopher Clacio

Clark Brownlee

Colin Bonnycastle

Courtney Stephens

Curt Hull

Cynthia Drebot

Dagen Perrott

Dale edmunds

Dana Mackie

Daniel McClelland

Daniel Moulden

Daniel Smith

Daniel Waycik

Darren Hampson

Dave McPhail

David Alper

David Camfield

David Foltz

David McMillan

David Sawatzky

David Willems

Dean Harder

Debbie Leaman

Debby Sillito

Devon Mallett

Dion Borley

Donna minkus

Edgar Paulo

Ee-Seul Yoon

Elizabeth Comack

Elizabeth Kondratuk

Ellen Bees

Ellen Friesen

Ellen Kruger

Elly Martin

Élyse LeBlanc

Emilie St Pierre

Emmanuel Allieu

Erika Wiebe

Erika Wiebe

Erin McNally

Esther Epp-Tiessen

Ethan Osland

Finley Allison

Fiona Green

Garry Loewen

Gary Borger

Genevieve Funk-Unrau

Gerrie Prymak

Gillan Glover

Glenn Bergen

Glory Boyce

Goldwyn Jones

Gord Mackie

Hannah Beardy

Harold Shuster

Heather Frayne

Heather Gifford

Heather Mathis

Hesham Aly

Hilary March

Holly Scotland

Ian Fraser

Ian Hudson

Jacob Nikkel

James Bedford

James Mulvale

Jane Karpa

Janet Nowatzki

Janice Pennington

Janine Gibson

Jason Alguire

Jason Hannan

Jason Ljepava

jean altemeyer

Jeane Bergen

Jeff Ames

Jenna Wilson

Jess Klassen

Jesse Hajer

Jessica Antony

Jill Klassen

Jim Silver

John Finch

John-Paul Harris

Jon Sears

Jonathan Jenner

Jonathan Kroeker

Jordan Granovsky

Jordan Reimer

Jorge Maldonado

Jose Espinoza

Josée VAillancourt

Joshua Duerrstein

Joshua Lindal

Josiah Neufeld

Judith Baldwin

Judith Owens

Julia Smith

Julia Thiessen

Julie Guard

June Welsted

Justin Fraser

Kailyn Boulet

Kathleen Mallett

Kathleen Venema

Kathy Majowski

Kayleigh Russell

Keith Lowe

Kemal Ahmed

Ken Friesen

Ken Friesen

Kenneth Fish

Kerniel Aasland

Kerry Sinanan

Kirk Baldwin

Laura Cowie

Laura Donatelli

Laura Forsythe

Laura Funk

Laura Rempel

Laura van den Brul

Laurel Sarginson

Lawrie Cherniack

Leanne Kennedy

Lesia Peet

Lia kruger

Liam Noga

Lisa Boland

Lisa CAMPBELL

Lisa Forbes

Lui Deluz

Lynda Trono

Lynne Coughlan

Lynne Fernandez

Mara Fridell

Marcus Matczuk

Maria Epp

Maria Vergara

Marjan Peric

Mark Cohoe

Mark Etkin

Mark gatward

Mark Granger

Mark Kosatsky

Marleny Bonnycastle

Martha K. MacKinnon

Marty Donkervoort

Mary Jane McCallum

Maureen Kilgour

Meghan Kynoch

Meghan Mast

Melanie Braith

Melanie Wight

Melissa M Lindsay

Michael Bailey

Michael Bell

Michael Halldorson

Michael Hohner

Michael Link

Michelle Owen

Morgan Albl

Nancy Hall

Natalie Wiebe

Nav Brar

Nic Kaneski

Nick Colley

Nicki Bruce

Nicole Herpai

Norah Richards

Orly Linovski

Orvie Dingwall

Pamela Robertson

Patrick Falconer

Paul Betts

Paul Hutlet

Paula Keirstead

Paula Migliardi

Pauline Ripat

Peter Ives

Peter Krahn

Peter Miller

Phil Tessier

Ransom Slack

Reinaldo Contreras

Rhonda Elias-Penner

Rob Sarginson

Robert Chernomas

Robert G. Roehle

Roberta Simpson

Robyn dyck

ROSEMARY HNATIUK

Rosemary Miguez

Roslyn and Barry Silversides

Russ Rothney

Ryan Schultz

Samantha Klassen

Sandra Summers

Sandy Pool

Sante A. Viselli

Sara Poppel

Sarah Cooper

Sarah Harvey

Sarah Story

Sarah Zell

Scott Durling

Scott Forbes

Scott Perrax

Sean Buchanan

Sean McGrath

Sean Scammell

Shannon Moore

Sharon Wall

Shauna MacKinnon

Shawn Kettner

Sheldon Hummel

Shelly Blanco

Sheri Andres

Sheri Clow

Sheri Oberman

Shreya Ghimire

Sid rogers

Sig Laser

Sonia Kowalewich

Steph Ringer

Stephan Pambrun

Stephanie Delorme-Forsman

Steve Rauh

Steven Main

Susan Barnett

Susan Hall

Susan Maxson

Sushil Kumar

Tannis Zimmer

Teri Loewen

TETANG SESSINGNONG

Tim Sale

Tim Smith

Trixie Maybituin

Tyler Bezpalko

Urmee Dasgupta

Urmee Dasgupta

Victoria Lehman

Vincent Dureault

Wayne Antony

Wendy Boyd

Wendy Land

Wilma Sotas

Wolfgang Heidenreich