Manitoba election: Manitoba Party promises to cut PST to 5%

The Manitoba Party made its official entry into the provincial election on Wednesday afternoon with just 21 days left before the vote.

The party's leader and candidate for Kildonan Gary Marshall says the party is running on a platform to cut the provincial sales tax from eight per cent down to five per cent.

Marshall said the party would also raise the personal exemption on provincial income tax to $20,000 for individuals, $40,000 for couples and $48,000 for a family with children under the age of 18.

And it would institute a flat income tax of 10 per cent for all personal and business income, end photo enforcement and mandate 90 per cent of education funding be spent at the school level instead of on school boards and administration. 

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Marshall said the other parties in the running have little in comparison with the Manitoba Party. 

"As you can see by the election, we aren't seeing much of anything. These people have had four years to prepare. They've got all the research, the experience, the money and they come out with nothing but fancy brochures and for the people of this province nothing. So we're here to do something about it," he said. 

Marshall says the core goal of the Manitoba Party is creating the conditions for economic growth in the private sector.

Manitoba has too many people working for the public sector, Marshall said, and it needs to grow the private sector in order to foster prosperity.

"The people of the province have to support [government workers], so what are we getting for our money?" he said. "What products are they putting out? We have no idea. We're assured they have value but do they have any value? We don't know."

Marshall didn't have a breakdown of what the party's proposed cuts would cost but he maintained they would benefit the provincial economy by attracting more businesses and investment, bringing in more revenue to provincial coffers. 

Marshall said the measures his party is advocating could turn Manitoba into a tax haven. 

"There's huge numbers of people engaged in all sorts of schemes of evasion and avoidance in taxes, and as soon as they see — with our flat tax at 10 per cent — this province will all of a sudden become a target for that money. Money will flow here," said Marshall.

The party is running 17 candidates in ridings throughout the city and rural Manitoba. 

Manitobans head to the polls on April 19.