Selinger scuttles talk of HST for Manitoba

A harmonized sales tax is not on the horizon for Manitoba, Premier Greg Selinger said Monday.

Selinger effectively put an end to HST speculation by firmly stating that harmonization would not be part of his government's coming budget.

Manitobans would pay $400 million more each year in taxes if the PST and GST were merged into an HST, Selinger said.

A harmonized tax would be collected on such untaxed items as books and children's clothing, which are exempt from the PST.

In August, when he was finance minister, Selinger said he was weighing the pros and cons of harmonizing the provincial sales tax with the GST after federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said he was prepared to cut cheques to Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Prince Edward Island to sign on to tax harmonization.

Selinger was named the province's premier after winning a leadership contest against Steve Ashton on Oct. 17. Selinger replaced Gary Doer, who has been the premier since 1999 and party leader since 1988.

Doer announced Aug. 27 he was stepping down. The next day, he was appointed Canada's next ambassador to the U.S.

Just two weeks before his announcement, Doer said he was seriously looking into the HST.

When 94 per cent of the country is moving toward harmonization, Manitoba has to look seriously at the pros and cons, Doer said at the time.