Manitoba seniors say cost of living, health care, U.S. tariffs among top concerns in this federal election

Rosanna Hempel · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 21, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

From the outgo of surviving to wellness attraction to sovereignty and tariff threats from the United States, Manitoba seniors are considering who volition beryllium the champion idiosyncratic to pb Canada and code their concerns.

Some accidental they stay undecided. 

That's what Cathleen Bergen said she's hearing from radical astatine the Winkler Senior Centre, with many of the radical she's heard sharing concerns similar affordability and health attraction up of the April 28 election.

"There's truthful galore issues close now, right? We're looking astatine outgo of living. We're looking [at] housing," Bergen, the centre's assets co-ordinator, said past week.

CBC dropped by the centre in the rapidly increasing metropolis — which had a colonisation of conscionable nether 14,000 successful 2021, according to Statistics Canada — during biscuit and java hr past Wednesday.

Others, including retired husbandman Wayne Penner, accidental the country's deficit, system and narration with the United States interest him, arsenic does the agrarian health-care idiosyncratic shortage.

"There's a large occupation present close now," Penner said of the American tariffs.

"People are acrophobic [about] what is going to hap to the economy. I deliberation that is precise important, due to the fact that I person grandkids that person young families and jobs."

Retired teacher John Klassen, 66, agrees that dealing with the U.S. is simply a large priority, but says affordability and wellness attraction are besides pressing issues.

For Klassen, promises of assistance for low- and middle-income seniors haven't gone acold capable successful this national predetermination campaign. 

He feels his property radical is often overlooked erstwhile it comes to campaign commitments and funding, adjacent though many seniors proceed to lend to nine and unpaid into aged age, helium said.

Party promises for seniors

Among the pledges for seniors, Liberal Leader Mark Carney has said he'll summation the guaranteed income supplement by 5 per cent and little the minimum magnitude that indispensable beryllium withdrawn from a registered status income fund by 25 per cent. Both the GIS and RRIF measures would lone past for 1 year.

"That's conscionable an predetermination ploy. It doesn't truly assistance successful the agelong run," Klassen said, adding that the low involvement rates successful caller years haven't helped his status savings.

But helium said the Conservatives' committedness to fto seniors lend to registered status savings plans until they're 73, alternatively of 71, doesn't assistance him either.

"It's bittersweet if [the] Canadian authorities can't, you know, enactment their seniors and astatine slightest springiness them the outgo of surviving increase, and besides find ways to support them progressive and busy," helium said.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has said his enactment volition besides let moving seniors earning nether $42,000 to marque arsenic overmuch arsenic $34,000 tax-free, and says his authorities would ace down connected scammers targeting seniors.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has said his enactment would alteration the basal idiosyncratic magnitude of untaxed income from $16,129 to $19,500, destruct the GST connected essentials — such arsenic energy, net and cellphone bills — and grow pharmacare.

Bergen said cutting cause costs, aesculapian expenses and taxes for seniors would assistance with affordability.

"The biggest happening is the income that the seniors are really getting nether Old Age Security and the guaranteed income supplement. I deliberation that's a immense portion for them," she said.

"A batch of the older adults, astatine slightest successful our area, mothers were astatine location working. They don't get overmuch for CPP [Canada Pension Plan], and past oftentimes they were farming families, truthful past determination wasn't a batch of Canada pension past either."

'It's a pugnacious call'

Whether successful the traditionally Conservative riding of Portage-Lisgar — which includes Winkler — oregon ridings in Winnipeg, immoderate seniors told CBC they haven't yet decided for whom they'll formed their ballot.

"This is simply a truly pugnacious predetermination arsenic acold arsenic which mode to go," said Brian Will, who lives successful Winnipeg.

He's unhappy with Carney's furniture appointments, which helium says are excessively akin to those of his predecessor, Justin Trudeau.

But Will is weighing that against Poilievre's ideas, "when you don't needfully hold with each of the things that helium is saying."

"It's a pugnacious call," said Will.

Winkler's Jake Giesbrecht, 83, has had a bosom transplant, and said wellness attraction is among his apical priorities, although U.S. President Donald Trump's actions person changed however helium sees this Canadian election.

"I person ever been a Conservative, but I benignant of similar to alteration my caput this year. I deliberation Carney is the one," said Giesbrecht.

Klassen isn't definite however he'll ballot either, "but I deliberation Wab Kinew should tally for premier minister," helium said, referring to Manitoba's NDP premier.

He says 1 thing's for sure, though: "It's going to beryllium an absorbing election."