Could gambling help Manitoba address its deficit? Heads turn after MBLL mandate

Earlier this week, the NDP mandated MBLL to 'lift the pause on gaming expansion.' The ask has people wondering if this is a provincial move to climb out of over $1 billion in debt.

As the Manitoba government faces down a projected $1.6-billion deficit, could an expansion of the province’s gaming industry help?

Earlier this week, the NDP government appointed new members to the Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries (MBLL) board, with a mandate to “work collaboratively with stakeholders to lift the pause on gaming expansion.” The ask has been met with some curiosity, and a lot of talk, though nothing is for sure.

The demand comes alongside several liquor-focused mandates as a part of a letter to MBLL’s new chair, Jeff Traeger.

In a fiscal update Wednesday, Premier Wab Kinew said the decision to lift the freeze “was made by a desire to advance economic reconciliation in Manitoba,” noting that it has been a point of tension between First Nation communities and the government.

He said the green light on gaming expansion is “part of an overall strategy to advance economic reconciliation and of course the overall economic development of the province.”

“I think liquor and lotteries have shown that they are an effective generator of revenue for government,” he said.

An article by The Canadian Press details how a decade ago, First Nations groups were left in the lurch after True North Sports Entertainment opened a casino in downtown Winnipeg, even though the First Nations had been rebuffed by the government for trying to do the same thing.

Philippe Cyrenne, an economics professor at the University of Winnipeg, said gambling “has always been seen as a possible industry for governments to support,” but numbers from a 2021 MBLL annual report indicate it wouldn’t lift the province out of debt.