The only plan that comes closest to the major tax cuts needed to discourage movement of our most valuable tax base – well-paid and educated people — to Alberta and Ontario and to compensate Manitobans for years of bracket creep.

The great divide between the public and private sectors, in terms of productivity and efficiency, continues to expand.

The book predicts that governments will eventually be controlled by their customers, citizens who pay for and use their services. Thus we will see innovative policies to reduce operating costs – but for real this time. In a world of dwindling revenues, we will, of necessity, see high-performance government.

Ten years ago, this island’s population of 3.6 million suffered 18% unemployment. Its economy was based mainly on farming and natural resources. Talented folks did what generations before them had done to get ahead – leave, just as many of our own have done on the Prairies.

With the growing turmoil in world currency markets, our dollar is plummeting like a rock. Last week the Loonie sank to its lowest rate since 1858, below 64 cents, despite a one percent interest rate hike by the Bank of Canada.

When Michigan ended school property tax, house prices shot up.

A famous economist once said: “There is no such thing as a free lunch”. He was right. So beware of elected officials who skirt the sad results of excessive property taxation by offering high profile “freebies”. It’s another reason your house in Winnipeg suffers from the lowest property values in Canada.

Yes, they do. Therefore with the small budget surpluses at hand, the government should choose to lower taxes.