Manitoba Tory government promises savings in its first budget

Manitoba's Progressive Conservative government is promising a change of course in its first provincial budget Tuesday — a blueprint expected to include some small tax cuts, spending restraint and a gradual path toward balancing the books.

"This has been lightning speed for us," Finance Minister Cameron Friesen said Monday of the task he and his Tory colleagues have faced since sweeping the NDP from power in the April 19 election.

"We went straight to work ... and got to work on trying to identify areas for savings, being sure that we were not creating any challenges with the delivery of front-line services."

The Tories outlined some of their immediate budget priorities during the election campaign: reducing ambulance fees, increasing money for tourism and indexing tax brackets to inflation. 

They have also promised a quick end to an annual public subsidy for political parties, based largely on how many votes they receive in each election, that the former NDP government brought in.

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At the same time, the Tories say they will hold the line on government spending and eventually whittle down a deficit recently estimated at more than $1 billion. Friesen and Premier Brian Pallister have said cost-cutting will not be sudden and front-line services will be protected.

The Opposition New Democrats are expecting the axe to fall, but probably not until next year.

"It'll be a very underwhelming budget that will be primarily status quo ... and the real shoe will drop a year from now," said NDP finance critic James Allum.

Manitobans will likely have to wait at least several months before finding out where many of the cuts are to be made. The government has promised to find $50 million in savings through a value-for-money review of government operations that is not yet underway.

The Tories' biggest campaign promise — a reduction in the provincial sales tax to seven per cent from eight — will not be in the budget because they promised that for the latter part of their four-year mandate. The NDP raised the tax to eight per cent in 2013 and immediately plummeted in opinion polls.