The Manitoba government has released their third quarter fiscal update, and those in opposition aren't pleased with what they're seeing. Premier Greg Selinger revealed they'd release the fiscal update in lieu of a budget prior to the provincial election. Progressive Conservative MLA's expressed their concerns over the move, as a fiscal update can't be debated, unlike an actual budget. Portage la Prairie MLA Ian Wishart says that was the reason the Oppositions PCs decided to ensure the NDP government couldn't present the budget in the legislature.

"A budget, we get an appropriate period to debate in the house so we can have a look at it, examine it, ask some questions, and make some statements. A fiscal update, we get no such period on the floor to discuss it, so we used our time left in grievances to make the point this was unfair to Manitobans, because they don't get to ask the hard questions about the numbers."

The fiscal update included a projected year-end core deficit of $646 million, up from the $421 million originally in the forecast. It also showed economic growth slowed to two per cent from 2.5 per cent, and tax revenue had declined by $148 million. Despite that, it proposed increasing spending to child welfare by $57 million, and a $49 million boost to healthcare. Wishart notes while there's fiscal accountability with an actual budget, this update seemed like a campaign announcement.

"It really provides them with the opportunity to talk about the good things, in terms of spending plans that they'd like to go to Manitobans with, but not to have to tell Manitobans where they might be getting those dollars from."

The update also included a proposed new tax bracket for incomes over $170,000, which would see those Manitobans paying 20 per cent. Wishart says Manitoba has the highest tax bracket west of Quebec, so adding an extra bracket at a higher rate would just create a more difficult situation. Wishart says also included in the update were projected revenues coming from the federal government, which he says are exponentially higher than what's been seen in the past.

Overall, Wishart feels the province has released an overly optimistic plan, that would see higher taxes if the NDP were to move forward with those plans in a budget.

"I think for the average Manitoban, that if we were going to do anything under this document, it would mean an additional tax burden. I think they're being extremely optimistic in the promises they're making, and extremely optimistic in their projections in how many dollars they're going to get from various sources. I think it really is a fantasy statement, to be quite honest."