Manitoba government advertises program that does not exist

The Manitoba government is running an anti-crime ad campaign that focuses on the use of GPS monitoring devices to track high risk criminals, but not a single offender has worn an ankle bracelet in the province since 2017.

That's when then-justice minister Heather Stefanson cancelled the electronic monitoring program after an NDP-ordered review concluded the bracelets were either inaccurate or ineffective. At the time, Stefanson said ending the program would save the government around $100,000.

In a recent pre-election announcement, Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen said the province is reversing course by reinstating electronic monitoring devices, citing advances in technology and the impact of federal bail reform, which resulted in "individuals being released who perhaps shouldn't be released on bail."

It's been two months since Goertzen's announcement, but the public tender for electronic monitoring devices has yet to be posted. 

What has been posted on billboards and buses is an ad that features a person wearing an ankle bracelet with the slogan "Fighting Crime Tracking Violent Criminals." The ad also appeared on the front page of the Winnipeg Free Press on Thursday, all paid for with public dollars. 

Parties in power, including the previous NDP government, have run ads using the public purse in the run-up to the pre-election blackout period, which up until 2021 barred the governing party from using taxpayer dollars to advertise 90 days prior to an election. 

The Progressive Conservative government made several amendments to the restrictions on government advertising in the Election Financing Act, including shortening the blackout period to 60 days and carving out an exception for advertising that "is in continuation of earlier advertisements or publications concerning an ongoing or recurring program or activity."

This means ads bought with taxpayer dollars before the 60-day blackout can potentially stay up until election day. 

Manitoba's general election is scheduled for Oct. 3. 

The press secretary for Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen did not immediately reply to questions about the cost of the campaign and whether it will stay up until election day. 

The ad "contains no substantive public policy information," Paul Thomas, political analyst and professor emeritus at the University of Manitoba, wrote in an email to CBC News. 

Crime and justice are wedge issues the PCs are "seeking to exploit" because of perceptions the NDP is vulnerable to the accusation that they are soft on crime, he said.

"The billboard serves as a condensation symbol, it condenses people's feelings of anxiety, fear and frustration with rising crime levels."

Thomas noted crime problems are complex and this ad proposes simplified solutions for short-term political purposes.