The Floodway expansion project was touted by the Premier as being “on time – on budget”, yet this week it was uncovered that the $665 Million project will now cost at least $235 Million more. Federal Justice Minister Vic Toews, and Manitoba’s senior cabinet minister has said that the Federal Government is worried about the escalating costs to upgrade the Floodway, and the Federal Government wants to know why this has happened!

Eight months earlier, the Premier indicated that the Budget for the expansion was $665 Million, and now that cost has escalated by at least $135 Million. This NDP Government has obviously a great deal of difficulty managing its spending. For further evidence one would only need to point to Provincial Budget overspending. Since the NDP became government in Manitoba in 1999, it has not been able to live within its budgeted expenditures, and overspent its budgets by a whopping $835 Million. What did we get for all of this overspending? According to the Conference Board of Canada, We have the worst health care system in Canada! According to Statistics Canada, we have an economy that has not kept up to the rest of Canada for the last 6 years! We have some of the worst roads in Canada! Overspending with no results is an indication of bad management.

$135 Million of overspending on the Floodway is a sign that no one is controlling spending. Overspending without results means that there is less money available for priority areas, such as our roads. $135 Million could have repaved every Provincial road in the Constituency – all in one year! This government must be held to account for its overspending, with little to show for it!