The Manitoba Legislature is once again sitting for the Spring session
Promises of wage freezes for tory MLA’s and accusations of wage freezes and cuts to health care by the opposition made today’s sitting of Question Period interesting but predictable.
Just before the session started Premier Brian Pallister, with his caucus around him like they were attending a pep rally, announced that tory MLA’s would not be accepting the 1.6% annual pay raise that happens in April. According to Pallister every Conservative MLA will be writing the government a personal check equal to the amount of the pay increase for the year. All told the PC caucus members will return approximately $70,000.00 to provincial coffers.
The self imposed wage freeze will remain in place until the next general election the Premier said.
The NDP announced in the house that they would also be taking a wage freeze this year as a show of support for public sector workers who they believe are soon to have their wages frozen through legislation this session.
The three members of the provincial Liberal caucus followed suit and announced that they would not be taking a pay increase but they said they are doing it because the NDP had overspent while they controlled the finances.
It has been widely speculated that the conservatives will introduce legislation this spring that will impose a wage freeze on the civil service and possibly roll back wage increases agreed to in negotiated contracts.
In the house today the opposition questioned the government regarding cuts to health care, specifically in the north and were met with what has become a standard rehearsed answer that lays the blame for cuts on 17 years of NDP rule and close to a $1 billion provincial deficit.
-News4 Staff-
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