In years past, the advent of Christmas has come to be associated with pre-budget season. With a change of guard at the Legislature, the public will have to wait till the New Year before offering input on the provincial budget. The delay should not prevent Manitobans from preparing a Christmas list for Finance Minster Greg Selinger. After all, we're only asking for the things we already paid for in taxes.

1. First and foremost on the Christmas list is a cut to the provincial income tax rate from 47% to 42% for 2000/01. Don't kid yourself; income taxes are still climbing. Federal statistics recently released show the average Manitoba family spent $471 more in personal income taxes last year than in 1997.

The Statistics Canada study on household spending reports that income taxes account for the largest single expenditure, claiming over 20% of the average Manitoban's household budget.

Despite modest income tax cuts, bracket creep is the motive force behind runaway provincial tax revenues. In 1999, working Manitobans will pay an extra $104 million to the province and another $350 million to Ottawa in automatic personal income tax hikes known as bracket creep.

2. The province should replace the current tax brackets with a flatter single rate of personal income tax competitive with the 11% rate set by Alberta, and fully indexed to inflation. The purpose of a single tax bracket is to fashion a more fair tax system where all Manitobans pay the same rate of tax. The system is still progressive in the sense that higher income earners would still pay more taxes overall than lower income earners.

The other advantage to the single rate of taxation calculated on income instead of the federal tax is to blunt the impact of bracket creep. If the provincial tax brackets and credits move with the rate of inflation, the province will no longer be able to collect extra tax revenues by stealth.

3. The move to a single rate of taxation would also displace the need for the costly 2% surtax and the 2% flat tax. With debt and deficits more or less under control, the province can afford to lift the two taxes off the backs of Manitoba taxpayers.

4. The basic personal exemption and the spousal deduction should be increased to a rate competitive with the $11,620 rate recently set by Alberta, and fully indexed to inflation. The province should opt to exempt more low-income Manitobans from the tax roles by setting a higher Basic Personal Exemption (BPE) than today's $7,131 level.

While the province currently uses tax credits to eliminate provincial income taxes on the working poor, a BPE set significantly higher - and indexed for inflation - would accomplish much the same task and highlight the difference between a generous Manitoba personal exemption and the woefully inadequate federal personal exemption.

5. With the focus on tax relief, the province should not lose sight of the $6 billion debt. The debt still eats up $515 million per year in interest payments. Accelerated debt relief will release the choke hold our debt interest costs have on the budget.

If the spirit of giving has infected the new government, Finance Minister Selinger will return the gift of over-taxation that Manitobans are compelled to give with each pay cheque and with every purchase.