Farmer and former Keystone Agricultural Producers Vice President Curtis McRae was one of many people to speak at a news conference on Friday about the federal government's proposed tax changes.

Premier Brian Pallister was also on hand to share his concerns on behalf of the province. Other participants included Western Marble & Tile LTD, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, and dozens of local businesspeople concerned about these proposed changes.

McRae said the federal government is going to make it more difficult for him to pass the farm on to his children.

“What the federal government is proposing is going to make it substantially more difficult to pass my farm on to one of my daughters,” he commented. “If Ottawa wants to grow the Canadian economy, it needs need to shelve this proposal.  The finance minister and his officials need to come and actually talk with me when I’m not in the throws of harvest, and learn about how I manage my farm business.”

Manitoba Finance Minister Cameron Friesen has written Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau asking him to consult with provincial-territorial finance ministers at the next federal-provincial-territorial meeting in December before moving forward with any measures.

“These proposed changes will have a negative impact on the thousands of small and medium-sized businesses in Manitoba and the tens of thousands of people who work for them,” said Pallister. “Tax professionals, the medical profession, small businesses and their representatives have uniformly denounced the proposals and have concerns over the serious impacts on small businesses, saving for retirement and Canada’s ability to attract medical professionals in the future.”

Pallister added that the federal proposals would dramatically increase taxes paid by smaller corporations, tax their savings and penalize a family that passes a business on from one generation to another.