Building Manitoba’s skilled and dynamic workforce, preserving and building on services for families such as health care, education and training, and enhancing public safety highlighted this year’s speech from the throne today during the launch of the fifth session of the 39th legislative assembly.
The speech, read by Lt.-Gov. Philip Lee, spoke of a province with a proud heritage and a bright future. It touched on the fact that over the past year Manitoba has led the nation in job creation, investment and consumer confidence.
Throne Speech Highlights:
Economy and Innovation
• small business tax eliminated Dec.1
• new Manitoba Youth Corps
• small business incentives for women, young people
• new innovation agenda
• new trade advisory organization
• new strategy to reduce use of fossil fuels
Educating for the Future
• plain-language report cards
• co-ordinated in-service days
• student consequences for late assignments and poor performance
• more student-friendly movement and transfer between high school, trades, colleges and universities
• new initiatives to combat bullying in schools
• plan to improve student attendance
• innovative ‘Early Returns’ program phased-in at licensed daycares and nursery schools
• online child-care registry to be expanded provincewide
• expansion of infant-care spaces
• pension plan for child-care workers beginning Dec. 1
Health Innovation
• new ambulance helicopter
• 100 per cent access to a family physician
• quick-care clinics staffed by nurse practitioners
• primary health-care bus
• mobile units for minimally invasive surgery
• legislation to cap health-administrative costs
• construction of ACCESS St. James, new Women’s Hospital, Ste. Anne Hospital and Mental Health Crisis Centre at the Health Sciences Centre (HSC) to begin this year
Safer Communities
• expanding the Gang Response and Suppression Program
• hiring more community-based police
• establishing a new mental-health court
• working with Ottawa on tougher federal laws on home invasions, carjackings and knife crimes
• developing new programs to keep youth in school and out of gangs
• planning for new correctional facilities
• initiating a new strategy to combat human trafficking
• developing a strategy to stop cyberstalking
• expanding the Safety Aid program to more communities and allowing Manitobans of all ages to participate
Helping Families and the Environment
• new program to improve programming and infrastructure of community clubs
• new initiative to revitalize rural community centres
• better protection for those buying cell phones, condos and insurance
• new measures to protect against real-estate fraud
• strengthened FASD strategy
• enhanced suicide-prevention strategy
• further increase to minimum wage
• expansion of age-friendly initiatives
• long-term plan for seniors’ housing and care
• improvement to pension rules
• regulation of residential development outside of Winnipeg to ensure proper water and waste-water treatment
• new nutrient-reduction targets to save Lake Winnipeg
• expanded efforts to reduce greenhouse gases
• new protected areas
• strengthened Polar Bear Protection Act
• measures to help beluga whales
• improvements to provincial parks including repairs to damage caused by the recent bad weather
Rural and Northern Manitoba
• new five-year highways and bridges plan
• work toward better access to Red Seal Apprentice designation in rural and remote areas
• expanded drainage, especially in the Interlake region
• long-term downtown redevelopment strategy for Brandon
• construction of Westman CancerCare Centre and Flin Flon Clinic, provision of dialysis services at Gimli, Russell and Peguis, and ambulance facilities at Ste. Rose and Arborg which are now underway
• new emergency ward at the Dauphin Hospital
