New Brunswick oysters test positive for dermo disease, first confirmed case in Canada

Former private-school teacher jailed nine months for luring after sending messages declaring love for teen

A former Catholic school teacher who sent inappropriate romantic messages to a teenage student, professing his love for her, has been sentenced to nine months in jail.

Ketan Badiani, 59, previously pleaded guilty to one count of child luring connected to more than 150 messages he sent the girl between October 2024 and March 2025 while a teacher at St. Maurice School.

Provincial court Judge Tim Killeen said he was satisfied Badiani had no sexual intent in sending the messages, noting a forensic psychologist’s report that described him as a lonely, isolated man with few friends and a limited history of social interaction.

“He appears to have genuinely cared for (the student) and somehow thought she would reciprocate his feelings,” Killeen said.

Audited public accounts show Manitoba's deficit last year half of predicted $1.67 billion

Manitoba’s audited public accounts for the last fiscal year show the province is “moving in the right direction,” NDP Finance Minister Adrien Sala said Monday.

The provincial deficit for fiscal 2025-26 was $832 million, nearly half the $1.67-billion deficit forecast in December, and in line with the $794-million estimate in Budget 2026.

“I’m particularly proud of this final result, (given the potential) implications of tariffs on our economy, the worst wildfire season in 30 years — which resulted in significant emergency expenditures — and, of course, a significant drought,” Sala said at a news conference.

The province reported revenues of $25.1 billion and expenses of $25.9 billion, resulting in the $832-million deficit. Manitoba’s net debt is $36.5 billion and costs the province $2.3 billion a year in debt-servicing charges.

Kinew, NDP rise to new heights in Free Press-Abacus Data poll; support for Khan, Tories falls further

Buoyed by a bump outside Winnipeg, support for Premier Wab Kinew’s NDP climbed to its highest level yet, while the Tories lost some ground.

Woman who fled abuse decries lack of consequences for landlord who breached lease-breaking confidentiality

The provincial government is being asked to penalize landlords who breach the confidentiality of tenants breaking a lease to flee domestic violence after a survivor discovered there’s no consequences now.

“It put me in a very difficult situation,” said the woman, who was stunned to see that her landlord copied her abuser in email correspondence, including the domestic violence certificate she obtained to end a tenancy agreement early and leave an abusive relationship.

“My heart dropped to my stomach — I was in disbelief,” she said, recalling the confidentiality breach that occurred in 2025.

“I’m very lucky to be in a situation where it’s no longer a threat to my immediate safety.”

Gillingham pledges growth office to speed up projects

Scott Gillingham says a new Winnipeg growth office would maintain a “shovel-ready” list of projects with the greatest potential to boost the city’s economy, if he’s re-elected as mayor.

A new chief growth officer would be hired to lead the office, with a goal to ensure the most promising projects have up-to-date cost estimates and designs, so they can quickly move ahead when funding becomes available.

“We need to be ready … so that when levels of government come forward and want to invest, we can say yes immediately and get to work in building the infrastructure that is required to grow our city,” said Gillingham.

The growth office, which he referred to as Winnipeg GO, would consolidate key staff who support economic growth in one group. That would include up to six new full-time staff positions. An unspecified number of existing employees would also be redeployed to support its work.