[Boreal]

Given that everyone has now had about a day to reflect on the Selinger 2008 budget, what are the general thoughts.

Personally, I thought it was a disgraceful budget. When you offer lots of little things, you essentially offer nothing at all. These little chiclets he tossed out to myriad groups and organizations are more about maintaining loyalty than enacting any positive change or development.

-Nobody in the province uses coal (basically 2 joints, the 3, the Brandon plant is already phasing out), so this was a complete waste. Nice sound-bite though.

-$5 million for day care doesn't buy much, but nice try Mr. Doer.

-Glad we're making it very viable for small business to operate, but nothing was done (hello, payroll tax) to increase larger firms to invest here.

-Spending is way up, yet the economic times are uncertain, and we have a MOUNTING debt to pay down.

-Reliance on transfer payments is stronger than ever, yet we have done nothing that could even remotely be interpreted to help balloon the economy.

Killing the tuition freeze, and helping hand to the waste-water treatment were about the only positives I drew from this.

It was a blind and dreary budget for me.

It didn't help business, it didn't help the poor, and it didn't help our citizens or our national/international image. It didn't even make the books lighter. Ouch.