"I expect there will be layoffs in some departments and I am hearing from several sources within the civil service that in order to meet the kinds of budgetary savings being demanded by Williams and Sullivan, there will have to be large numbers of layoffs in some departments and increases in user fees for many government services. For example, I have heard one department alone may have to cut as many as 42 positions. Immediate savings cannot be realized through attrition, it would involve people losing their jobs and programs being slashed," said Barrett.

If this is the case, the outcome of this pre-budget planning exercise could result in more drastic results than initially expected at the time of the Premier’s statement. It would certainly be a departure from the commitment of no layoffs which Williams made during the election campaign.

Barrett says the approach of the Conservative government is being driven by the Premier’s right-wing conservative agenda, rather than any financial crisis. "There are other ways of dealing with the financial situation of this province, but the Tory approach will change the kind of social system we value as a society in this province."

Barrett says he is not confident that the Conservative government is doing everything it can to obtain a fairer financial arrangement with the Federal Government. If such an arrangement were achieved, layoffs and a wage freeze would not be necessary.