Manitoba

Manitoba Budget Links Manitoba Finance Dept: Your pocketbook Related Items Articles Mayor says provincial budget a bad deal for Winnipeg Dan Lett: 5 Things you need to know about the budget Cigarette, gas taxes up in Manitoba budget Links Manitoba Finance: Tax Savings Estimator Manitoba Finance: Full budget papers Tobacco taxes are going up. The tax per cigarette as of midnight tonight will rise 2.5 cents to a total 25 cents. Effective May 1, the tax on gasoline and diesel fuel will go up by 2.5 cents a litre to a total of 14 cents. On the same day, there will be a new three cent a litre tax on marked gasoline farm fuel . It will cost an extra $35 to register a vehicle. The government will charge the PST on the following services as of July 1: spa treatments, pedicures, manicures and facials, haircuts, and hairstyling, tattooing and piercings. Haircuts costing less than $50 will be exempt. Also subject to the PST will be purchases of property and group life insurance, trip cancellation insurance, baggage insurance and land titles insurance. Fees for birth, marriage and death certificates will each rise by $5 as of Sept. 30, according to Winnipeg Free Press. The province s finances Highlights of the 2012 Manitoba budget: Belt-tightening Government department spending will go down 3.9 per cent from last year. However last year s spending was greatly affected by hundreds of millions in unanticipated flood costs Ten government departments and agencies will see a freeze or reduction in their budgets. The Manitoba Liquor Control Commission to merge with the Manitoba Lotteries Corp. to save on administrative costs. Government will reduce the number of government-appointed agencies, boards and commissions by 20 per cent. Government to save $10 million in the next three years by reducing the number of regional health authorities to five from 11. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Manitoba Book Dept: I love spending hours in a bookstore just meandering around waiting for a special book to jump off the shelf and into my arms and then rushing home to start reading it, according to Winnipeg Free Press. When I moved to Manitoba, I really didn't know much about the province. One way for me to get to know my new province was through books. I started searching for books that centred around Manitoba. Over the last five years, I have found quite a few Manitoba-themed books that I have really enjoyed. I also have a Manitoba book wish list, books that I have not yet read but I will read in the near future. Seeing as it is the Christmas season and many of my readers also live in Manitoba I thought you might enjoy my Manitoba book list. Perhaps they would make a nice present for a Manitoban in your life? Or perhaps they will pique your interest and you can request one of these books from Santa and i like things a bit retro in the book department. I love the feeling of a crisp, new book instead of an e-reader. I love to read in bed with a small dim light, and wake up with the book still in my hands and my last page dog-eared. I love getting books as presents and I love giving books as presents. When I read, I read for long periods of time. It is not uncommon for me to sit down and read for hours and hours and finish a book in one day. There is something magical about books. They transport you to another era, a different life. They teach you about life, and people, and things. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Manitoba Dept: While this move does not necessarily mean that the immigration system will be less responsive to the needs of Manitoba, it raises the potential that Manitoba's needs might be overlooked, according to Winnipeg Free Press. The agreement gave Manitoba the ability to maximize the impact of settlement funds through, among other things, co-ordination and development of programs with the non-profit sector and the announcement Wednesday that the federal government will be cancelling its settlement agreement with Manitoba is a big whammy that comes on the heels of other changes that, over the years, have moved immigration decision-making and services from Manitoba to Calgary, Vancouver and Ottawa. The decision to cancel the settlement agreement with Manitoba is distressing. While this does not necessarily mean that settlement agencies will see a decrease in funding, this agreement was signed in 2003 because it recognized that the Manitoba government could better assess needs of immigrants to this province. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program Dept: A closer look at the program reveals that while it is not perfect, it has generally been a success for Manitoba businesses, families and immigrants who move here, according to Winnipeg Free Press. The main criticisms of the program revolve around the income levels of Manitoba immigrants. In one study, it was found that, from 2005 to 2009, the average employment income of Manitoba immigrants was lower than in other western provinces and did not keep pace with average employment earnings for non-immigrants and last month, the Free Press published an article Is Manitoba's immigration 'success' worth crowing over? that indicated our immigration program is failing. But is it? The Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program, designed to allow Manitoba to select desirable immigrants, has been adapted by virtually all Canadian provinces and territories. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

birth rate: However, if the success of a province can be captured by how well it prevents infant deaths, then statistics also tell us that we may be failing our children, according to Brandon Sun. For decades, Manitoba has consistently had the highest provincial infant mortality rate in Canada — 5.9 for every 1000 live births in Manitoba versus 4.8 for every 1000 live births, nationally. Fortunately, our relatively high birth rate — around 1.93 for every 1000 women — combined with favourable immigration trends means that Manitoba population will continue to grow. In public health, infant mortality is often viewed as a marker for a society development, and Manitoba consistently falls to the bottom.A report by the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy highlights that Manitoba also has one of the highest rates of children being taken into care in the world — an alarming statistic that should signal to all policy makers and politicos that something needs to be done differently. Clearly this is morally unacceptable — but what less often discussed is that failing our province children also puts Manitoba in economic jeopardy. Poverty, limited education, historical trauma and colonization, to name just a few factors, can be linked to both Manitoba high rates of infant mortality and kids in care and puts children at risk for other negative health and social outcomes. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Manitoba government: Manitoba Finance Minister Cameron Friesen says the new government intends to help newcomer families make ends meet by lowering taxes, according to CBC. Friesen held a news conference Tuesday morning at Manitoba Welcome Place, an organization dedicated to helping refugees and immigrants settle in Manitoba. Brian Pallister and PC government table first budget today "We thought in our first budget as Manitoba government, rather than do something empty to satisfy a tradition, we would instead follow the Manitoba values of inclusiveness and generosity," Manitoba Finance Minister Cameron Friesen said. Friesen gave new pairs of sneakers to the Teweldes, an Eritrean family of five who recently relocated to Winnipeg via Sudan. Friesen said as a father of three, he understands how little costs add up quickly and can put a strain on any family budget. Senat, 5, the youngest of three children in the family, scored a pair of pink New Balance sneakers. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Manitoba PNP Dept: Immigration Minister Jason Kenney touched off the controversy, announcing the Manitoba government would no longer be on the receiving end of some $36 million for immigrant settlement services. The province reacted strongly claiming this would ruin the program, which was critical for the province's population and development strategy, according to Winnipeg Free Press. The key question was never asked: Is the Manitoba PNP really as successful as everyone seems to believe and the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program PNP , which played a key role in helping to attract almost 16,000 immigrants to Manitoba last year, got a lot of press last April. This largely turned out to be a tempest in a teapot, as all the federal government wanted to do was to administer these programs the same way it was in every other province and territory outside Quebec and not to cut funding as the province feared. As is often the case in Canada, the media coverage focused on the intergovernmental spat over who would get to spend the money and take the credit and not on the performance of the PNP itself. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Manitoba Developmental Centre: Despite its benign name, the Manitoba Developmental Centre haunts our province's past and present. , according to Winnipeg Free Press. Times have changed since then, and so has MDC. But has it changed enough to justify its existence? The Southgrove Building at Manitoba Developmental Centre in Portage La Prairie. Photo Store When the institution for people with intellectual disabilities first opened on the north edge of Portage la Prairie in 1890, it was called the Home for Incurables. This unseemly name was later changed to the Manitoba School for Mentally Defective Persons and then, it became the Manitoba School for Retardates. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Brandon University Rural Development Institute: Brandon University Rural Development Institute identified six recommendations intended to inspire ongoing conversations and actions about development in rural Manitoba at "'Rural Works!". More than 70 participants -- representing most provincial departments involved in rural development and academics, leaders and business organizations from rural Manitoba -- brainstormed workable solutions to problems at the Keystone Centre in November."'Rural Works!' was an important occasion to share and exchange knowledge on supporting prosperous rural communities across Manitoba," says BU president Gervan Fearon."I am proud of our university involvement with this think-tank, as well as our rich history of supporting rural research and development."Some of the recommendations included: initiating and sharing conversations about the many dimensions of rural development with all levels of government to articulate a Prairie rural economic development strategy; applying energy and resources to collaborative approaches for economic development in rural areas; and asking questions to better understand how government departments are involved in development to help improve service delivery."Rural Manitoba is dynamic and rural Manitobans want to have a say in the future of their communities," says RDI director Bill Ashton."Strengthened by their diversity, participants shared their vast knowledge and experience with a common focus on how to work together to create a successful future for rural Manitoba."» Brandon Sun End Related Items Four of the six communities that were studied in Manitoba were in Westman, including Brandon, Dauphin, Neepawa and Virden, according to Brandon Sun. In Brandon, nine per cent of the population are newcomers who arrived between 2001 and 2009 with the largest proportion of immigrants coming from Central America and employed by Maple Leaf Foods or in another capacity in the hog industry. The study, which was funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, examined 29 rural areas and centres in Western Canada identifying opportunities for improved services to better serve newcomers. Westman Immigrant Services was one of the providers surveyed for the study. WIS executive director Richard Bruce said he takes issue with the statement that locals aren’t accepting of immigrants. "I have not been any place where I have heard anyone talk ill of immigrants," Bruce said. WIS is unique as it offers a type of "one-stop shopping" when it comes to settlement services. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

farm industry: It is primarily for these reasons that farmers have been coming to Manitoba to establish themselves for centuries, according to Huffington Post Canada. The Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program has a Farm Strategic Recruitment Initiative under the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program for Business. The province of Manitoba is located in central Canada, bordering on North Dakota and Minnesota, USA. It is located in the heart of the Red River Valley, which is known to be amongst the richest farmland in the world. The purpose of the program is to bring new farmers to Manitoba. The farm is expected to operate in accordance with Manitoba current farm industry. The farm initiative is intended for those applicants that have proven farm/business experience, the requisite capital to invest, and who wish to operate a farm in rural Manitoba. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.