COLUMN: Report from the Legislature – NDP education policy raises taxes, lowers service

With the start of another school year, I want to wish all students the best this year and I commend all the educators, staff and parents that work so hard to prepare them for the future. As MLAs are also getting ready to head back into session at the Manitoba Legislature, this is a good time to take a look at Manitoba schools and education funding.

In 2019, the Progressive Conservatives prioritized the building of 23 new schools over 10 years. By 2023, 14 of these schools were completed, under construction, or in design and the remaining nine schools were on plan to be operational by 2027 – two years ahead of schedule. We also gave more funding to every Manitoba school division in 2022 and 2023.

This coming school year, the NDP are shortchanging two out of every three school divisions with operating increases less than inflation, and cancelled the Manitoba Schools Project to build nine new schools. That has forced school divisions to hike school taxes up to 17 percent this year. This means many Manitobans will be paying more per year in school taxes. Eventually these annual tax increases will erase any benefit from the education property tax rebate gained over the past few years. Wab Kinew’s NDP have ended the promised phase out and are orchestrating ever higher taxes on homeowners and seniors.

In 2022 our PC government invested $260 million in capital improvements for schools across Manitoba, plus provided additional money from a separate funding stream that was made available for ventilation upgrades. Our Budget 2023 provided a $62.9 million increase in operating support plus another $106 million to make one-time funding in Budget 2022 permanent. This meant all school divisions received at least a 2.5 percent increase in funding. I’m pleased to note that we did all of this without raising any taxes, and in fact lowered taxes in 2023 while ending the fiscal year with a $270 million surplus.

Here at home, Sunrise School Division received over a seven percent increase in funding under the PCs in 2023, but in 2024 saw only a 1.8 percent increase under the NDP. Manitoba school divisions are getting less funding from the provincial government while the NDP raise taxes on homeowners. Which leaves us to wonder how the NDP are mismanaging things so badly.

In post-secondary education, previous PC investments are bringing many new training seats to Manitoba universities and colleges this fall. These investments are supporting post-secondary students for this school year. In 2023 Wab Kinew said his NDP would reassess tuition fees for 2024/25, yet there has been little word from the premier or his minister. In contrast, the PCs increased the Manitoba Student Loan maximum benefit by 43 percent, helping students who are facing financial hardship, as well as making Manitoba more competitive with other provinces.

As Progressive Conservatives, we believe creating a strong and modern education system focused on student outcomes is one of our province’s most pressing needs. It’s up to the NDP to choose whether or not they want to build schools and properly fund education, but what has become clear is that education is certainly not one of their top priorities. Our PC Party is committed to building the schools our students need and investing in our children’s future.

I had the pleasure of participating in the parade and serving up some pancakes, at the annual Double B Agricultural Festival that took place in Beausejour/Brokenhead Sept. 6 to 9. As we approach summer’s end, we can look forward to the wonderful tradition of fall suppers. I encourage you to support our community organizations by visiting as many as you can. I can assure you that the scenic views of the beautiful Lac du Bonnet constituency in the fall time and the tastes of home, will be worth the drive.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me at wayne@wayneewasko.com, or call me at 204-268-3282. Also, you can follow me on X (formerly Twitter) @wayneewaskomla and friend me on Facebook.