Tories sending $200M in inflation-relief cheques to Manitobans – Winnipeg Free Press
Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative government is distributing cheques totalling $200 million to ease pressure on voters’ wallets in an election year, but critics say the tax dollars would be better spent bringing down costs and strengthening public services.
The Tories’ “Carbon Tax Relief Fund” will help an estimated 700,000 Manitobans cope with rising costs for everything from food to fuel, Stefanson told reporters at a west Winnipeg Food Fare grocery store Thursday morning.
“It is getting hard to afford the basic necessities,” Stefanson said. “We hear Manitobans when they tell us they can hardly afford to put gas in their cars.”
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
Premier Heather Stefanson today announced a $200 million “carbon tax relief fund” that aims to help 700,000 Manitobans cope with rising costs, from food to fuel.
Cheques will be mailed soon to all adult Manitobans who lived in the province on Dec. 31, 2021 and have a net family income less than $175,000. Single people will get $225 and couples will receive $375, with the lower income earner receiving the payment.
Stefanson also took a swipe at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the federal Liberals, saying Ottawa’s carbon pricing system is a burden on Manitobans that hurts their bottom line. The federal government imposed a backstop after Manitoba did not advance a plan that met Ottawa’s standard.
The premier has repeatedly called on the federal Liberals to pause collection of the carbon tax, which Ottawa estimates to cost the average Manitoba household $559 annually. The average household also receives an estimated $788 in Climate Action Incentive rebates deposited directly to their bank account.
On Thursday, Stefanson said Ottawa does not appear willing to back down.
“It is getting hard to afford the basic necessities… We hear Manitobans when they tell us they can hardly afford to put gas in their cars.”–Premier Heather Stefanson
“The carbon tax is not helping Manitoba families right now,” she said, citing a report by the Parliamentary Budget Officer that shows the net cost (fiscal and economic) of the carbon tax on the average Manitoban after rebates is $402 this year. The average includes the province’s highest earners.
Asked why her government chose to send cheques instead of reducing the 14 cent-per-litre tax it collects on gas, Stefanson said direct payments are the fastest way to distribute the money.
The $200 million to pay for the program will come from “larger than anticipated” revenues from taxation and Manitoba Hydro and a 19 per cent boost to federal equalization payments in the next fiscal year.
“We believe we should be giving that money back to Manitobans,” she said.
In a statement, the office of federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault said eight in 10 families will receive more in carbon tax rebates than they pay at the pump.
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
The Carbon Tax Relief Fund is part of a larger $850 million spending package to support health care, municipalities, communities and industry, Stefanson said.
“Putting a price on carbon pollution drives innovation by creating demand for low-carbon goods and services,” the statement read, in part. “The climate crisis won’t pause, and neither will our efforts to combat the climate-change threat to our health, economy, livelihoods and communities.”
Stefanson said the Carbon Tax Relief Fund is part of a larger $850 million spending package to support health care, municipalities, communities and industry. The premier is scheduled to make an announcement with Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham Friday morning.
Opposition Leader Wab Kinew described the cheques as a pre-election gambit and said Manitobans want help with monthly, recurring costs that are wearing them down. A general election is due by Oct. 3.
“Your utility bills, your mortgage or rent payments, grocery prices, the price at the pump — the government can’t do everything, but in some of those areas the government does have influence,” Kinew said.
“Your utility bills, your mortgage or rent payments, grocery prices, the price at the pump — the government can’t do everything, but in some of those areas the government does have influence.”–Opposition Leader Wab Kinew
With additional cash in provincial coffers, the NDP MLA for Fort Rouge said money could be spent to help with the cost of Manitoba Hydro rates, Autopac rates, fuel costs and rent.
“If you’re going to get one of these cheques, I encourage you to go cash it, use it pay for something that needs covering, in terms of your expenses,” he said, adding an NDP government would act to reduce day-to-day costs.
“Where can a government take action that’s actually going to cut through the political noise and make your life more affordable on a monthly basis?”
JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES
Opposition Leader Wab Kinew described the cheques as a pre-election gambit and said Manitobans want help with monthly, recurring costs that are wearing them down.
Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said long-term, targeted spending is needed more than a mass mail-out.
“Instead of focusing investment on the people in desperate need, like students or seniors on fixed incomes, the PCs are giving millions to people who already make six figures,” Lamont said in a statement. “That includes PC MLAs, who already have plenty of perks on the public dime.”
University of Winnipeg political science professor Félix Mathieu said it’s unlikely cheques issued more than eight months away from election day will have a significant impact on voter intentions, but it may spark a short-term boost in the polls the Tories can ride through to the spring budget.
Stefanson-era inflation relief programs
• $200 million Carbon Tax Relief Fund — January 2023
• $87 million Family Affordability Package — August 2022
• $349 million Education Property Tax Rebate — Budget 2022-23 (March 2022)
• Monthly increases of $50 and $25 for employment income assistance and disability clients, respectively — August and December 2022
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• $200 million Carbon Tax Relief Fund — January 2023
• $87 million Family Affordability Package — August 2022
• $349 million Education Property Tax Rebate — Budget 2022-23 (March 2022)
• Monthly increases of $50 and $25 for employment income assistance and disability clients, respectively — August and December 2022
Carbon Tax Relief Fund eligibility and fine print
• All adults who were residents in Manitoba on Dec. 31, 2021 and who have filed their 2021 Manitoba income tax return by Dec. 31, 2022.
• Net income for single and couples must be less than $175,000 in 2021. Marital status will be determined based on the 2021 income tax return.
• Cheques will be mailed to the address used on the 2021 income tax return. People who have moved, including people who have left Manitoba, can update their mailing address at manitoba.ca/helpingmb.
• The deadline to make address changes is Feb. 10 at 9 a.m.
• People who moved to Manitoba after Dec. 31, 2021 are not eligible for the program.
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“It’s pretty clear that they’re trying to gain some points with the electorate,” Mathieu said.
Over the past few weeks, the Tories’ public image has suffered, owing to announcements from a number of senior MLAs and cabinet ministers who will not be seeking re-election, he said.
“This is one way for the government right now to try to redirect the attention and to at least give this idea that they’re working for Manitobans right now, that they’re going to receive money in their pockets to help them cope with the challenges we’re facing right now.”
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives-Manitoba director Molly McCracken said her organization is very concerned about the use of tax dollars for direct payments to residents. For $200 million, the province could make significant progress on child poverty, social-assistance rates, child care, housing and public transportation, she said.
“To really help people most affected by the cost-of-living crisis, it needs to be a targeted measure that would have a great impact on people,” she said. “If there’s public money to be spent supporting people who are the lowest (income earners) and are actually reliant on provincial policy programs, it should start there.”
The Canadian Taxpayers’ Federation applauded the Tory initiative while saying attention must be paid to deficit reduction.
“We believe that money should be going to back to taxpayers first. The government is still in a deficit position this year, so they need to take a long look at that and how they’re going to balance the budget,” said CTF Prairies director Gage Haubrich. “We see this is as much more of a spending problem than a revenue problem.”
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