Pallister government wants to privatize Manitoba Public Insurance, NDP says

Manitoba's NDP say they have documents that prove the governing Progressive Conservatives are considering a scenario where Manitoba Public Insurance "no longer exists."

NDP Leader Wab Kinew says Premier Brian Pallister plans to privatize MPI "piece by piece" until private brokers own 100 per cent of all online transactions, leading to higher rates for customers.

"Brian Pallister has a secret plan to privatize Autopac, which would make you pay more for car insurance," Kinew said at a news conference on Friday.

"We know that in other jurisdictions where there is private auto insurance that motorists, drivers, everyone who has to pay for car insurance pays way, way more than we do here in Manitoba."

The documents, obtained through freedom of information requests, include emails, reports and briefing notes detailing ongoing efforts to reshape the relationship between the public auto insurer and the network of private insurance brokers. 

One of the documents outlines six potential operating models, including one scenario titled "MPI Disbanded." The same document also outlines a scenario titled "Broker Network Disbanded." 

The document lists pros and cons for each scenario.

For the scenario in which MPI is disbanded, the document says one potential benefit is that all insurance products would be available from a single entity, providing customer consistency. It also has several negative consequences, including job losses, loss of negotiation leverage and significant change for customers. 

Other scenarios reviewed in the document offer a range of options between an entirely private or public insurance model:

• Brokers handling all in-person and online transactions.
• Brokers handling all online transactions while MPI or a broker handle in-person transactions.
• Brokers and MPI sharing handling of online and in-person transactions.
• MPI handling all online transactions while sharing in-person transactions with private brokers.

The overhaul of MPI is scheduled to be completed by 2023, Kinew said.

The various models were reviewed by MPI management as part of its initial efforts to offer online services and were meant for "internal discussions only," an MPI spokesperson said in an email. 

"This review was designed to identify ALL possible scenarios however likely or unlikely they would be implemented," the spokesperson wrote. "This enables MPI to evaluate the potential impact of online services for each model."

'100% of all online'

The documents also include an email from MPI president and CEO Ben Graham to members of MPI's board, saying the government has decided that once the legacy modernization project is completed, "brokers will own 100% of all online MPI transactions — insurance and [driver and vehicle administration]."

Read in conjunction with the scenarios outlined in the documents, this spells out a plan for privatizing auto insurance in Manitoba, Kinew said.

"Everything is moving online in the insurance industry. Owning 100 per cent of online operations in the coming years in Manitoba will mean owning 100 per cent of the insurance operations in the province," he said.

In an email statement, the press secretary for Crown Services Minister Colleen Mayer said the department is involved in negotiations between MPI and the Insurance Brokers Association of Manitoba, and that "there was no official directive" from the department. 

"Both MPI and IBAM are encouraged to work together to find a way to provide Manitobans with the services that meet their needs, while understanding the value of professional insurance advice provided by brokers."

The current contract between MPI and brokers has been extended for two years, which will "allow for sufficient time for MPI and the broker community to work together to define the long-term service delivery strategy," she said.

Mayer's press secretary also denied the government has any plans to privatize MPI.

"This is an outright lie and another example of Wab Kinew's troubled relationship with the truth," she said.

The fact that the government has even considered an option that involves the dissolution of Manitoba's public auto insurer is troubling to the union that represents workers at MPI.

"Given that the fact that we have a public auto insurance system in Manitoba is the reason we have the lowest auto insurance rates in the country.… It kind of boggles our mind that any government that's supposedly putting the public interest first would even consider this," said Jean-Guy Bourgeois, director of internal operations for the Manitoba Government and General Employees Union.

Government intervened to keep brokers involved

Internal documents, obtained by the Opposition NDP and made public last month, show MPI thought brokers weren't required for some of its customers' simplest interactions with the Crown corporation, but the government repeatedly intervened to ensure brokers would remain involved. 

The decision is expected to cost Manitobans an extra $23 million over five years, above the $84.5 million brokers already receive in compensation from MPI. 

The non-profit Crown corporation has provided basic public auto insurance in the province since 1971.

Bourgeois echoed Kinew's concern over what he views as the piecemeal privatization of MPI.

"The documents really look like they're part of an exercise in exploring ways to privatize pieces of the system. And we know that that's one of the ways that this government has privatized other services," he said.

The province has switched to exclusively using private planes in its Lifeflight air ambulance program, recently laying off nine pilots and a maintenance crew.

It follows the privatization of the province's wildfire fighting service.

The NDP also has alleged that Jay Grewal, the new CEO and president of Manitoba Hydro, was brought in to sell off that Crown corporation.

She was employed by B.C. Hydro when segments of that corporation were privatized in 2003.