Danielle Da Silva

Fourth Manitoba Tory decides to hang up his hat

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Preview

Fourth Manitoba Tory decides to hang up his hat

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Yesterday at 6:32 PM CDT

Manitoba government backbencher Ralph Eichler will not seek re-election after nearly 20 years representing the Lakeside constituency.

The former cabinet minister informed his colleagues in the legislature about his decision Tuesday while debating a resolution on fertilizer.

“As you go through life, you look at what you’ve accomplished and what you haven’t accomplished and you try and find that balance between family and friends and serving the general public,” Eichler told reporters following question period.

“I feel I’ve done a pretty good job. I didn’t get everything accomplished that I wanted to, but I feel very comfortable that now is the time for me to step back and let someone else have a run at Lakeside.”

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Yesterday at 6:32 PM CDT

Elder supports removal of legislature camp, calling it a ‘mockery’

Danielle Da Silva and Carol Sanders 6 minute read Preview

Elder supports removal of legislature camp, calling it a ‘mockery’

Danielle Da Silva and Carol Sanders 6 minute read Yesterday at 3:40 PM CDT

Sixty officers carefully dismantled a teepee encampment at the front of the Manitoba legislature Tuesday as a handful of protesters from the reprised version of the “freedom convoy” heckled them.

“You take down my house, I’ll take down your house,” one woman shouted at the officers who converged on the area where additional security fencing was put up for the removal of the occupation.

“There is no COVID,” yelled a man from the encampment they called a “law lodge” that had illegally occupied the grounds of the legislature for at least three months. New security legislation that took effect June 1 prohibits encampments in the legislature precinct.

Supporters have said they don’t recognize the government or its laws, and berated reporters whom they accused of being paid off by the government. The illegal occupation ended on Tuesday. On Monday, police stopped supporters from delivering more poles to erect a third teepee.

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Yesterday at 3:40 PM CDT

Dr. Brent Roussin rewarded with 47 per cent raise during pandemic

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Dr. Brent Roussin rewarded with 47 per cent raise during pandemic

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Monday, Oct. 3, 2022

Manitoba’s chief public health officer received a significant pay bump as he steered the province through the pandemic, allowing him to leap past the salaries of counterparts in Ottawa and other provinces.

Between April 2021 and March 2022, Dr. Brent Roussin earned $634,301 as a senior medical officer with the Manitoba government, according to provincial public accounts records.

That salary covered a period of significant change and uncertainty brought on by the pandemic, including the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, an overloaded critical-care system that saw 57 patients sent out of province and the gradual economic reopening ahead of the sudden emergence of Omicron in late December.

Compared to the 2020-21 fiscal year, Roussin’s annual salary grew by 47 per cent and was $224,300 higher than the $410,000 he was hired at in June 2019.

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Monday, Oct. 3, 2022

Finding inspiration in the North End

Danielle Da Silva 2 minute read Preview

Finding inspiration in the North End

Danielle Da Silva 2 minute read Friday, Sep. 30, 2022

Chris Clacio rattles off the history of the cast bronze bell that rang out over city hall at the turn of the 20th century and the contemporary youth movement that gathered in the shadow of its current Selkirk Avenue tower home to oppose violence in the North End.

The 30-year-old mayoral candidate explains that when he joined the Stop the Violence rallies in 2014, he found camaraderie, safety and inclusion among the Indigenous youth leading the social-justice movement supporting a community reeling from criminal and gang activity.

As a second-generation Filipino-Canadian growing up in The Maples, Clacio says he was cut off from his cultural identity, and throughout his youth struggled to find belonging in any community. But he found his place in the support and welcoming embrace of the North End gatherings.

“Urban indigenous young people made that space welcome to diverse community members, that’s one of the reasons I want to run for public office,” he says.

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Friday, Sep. 30, 2022

Province forecasts deep cut to deficit

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Province forecasts deep cut to deficit

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Thursday, Sep. 29, 2022

The Manitoba government is projecting a boon to its bottom line, with the deficit anticipated to be slashed by more than half — to $202 million — at the end of this fiscal year.

“We are showing a further amelioration on the bottom line,” Finance Minister Cameron Friesen said. “There’s positive signs of growth this year.”

On Thursday, Friesen released the government’s first-quarter fiscal update for 2022-23, and its annual report and public accounts for the past year.

According to the quarterly update, which covers the period from April 1 to June 30, the province’s forecast deficit is now $202 million, an improvement of about $346 million from the budget tabled in April.

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Thursday, Sep. 29, 2022

NDP complaint claims Conservatives got inside info

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Preview

NDP complaint claims Conservatives got inside info

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Wednesday, Sep. 14, 2022

THE Manitoba New Democratic Party has filed a complaint to the elections commissioner alleging the Progressive Conservative party received insider information from the government on the timing of the upcoming Kirkfield Park byelection.

A formal letter was sent to elections commissioner Bill Bowles Friday.

At the centre of the complaint is a decision by the Tories to delay the party’s annual general meeting to April to avoid conflict with the byelection, which was made necessary when cabinet minister Scott Fielding quit as MLA in June.

In statements to the media, Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba president Brent Pooles said the meeting — which was supposed to happen within 24 months of the Nov. 20, 2021 annual general meeting, according to the party’s constitution — would be postponed “to ensure that there is no interference with the byelection efforts.”

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Wednesday, Sep. 14, 2022

Manitoba Tories post wide margin of support for Poilievre

Carol Sanders and Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Preview

Manitoba Tories post wide margin of support for Poilievre

Carol Sanders and Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Monday, Sep. 12, 2022

Newly-elected Conservative Party of Canada Leader Pierre Poilievre easily won every federal riding in Manitoba.

The Alberta-born Ontario MP finished with at least 59 per cent of party member mail-in ballots cast across the province in results announced Saturday. Social conservative leadership hopeful Leslyn Lewis placed second across the province — except for in two Winnipeg ridings. In Winnipeg South Centre and Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, moderate Jean Charest placed second.

One political watcher in Manitoba was surprised — not that the firebrand Poilievre won, but by the margin of victory.

“I was surprised that Charest did so poorly in Manitoba,” said University of Manitoba political studies Prof. Christopher Adams. “The Conservative party in Manitoba is a moderate party compared to the Conservatives in Alberta.”

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Monday, Sep. 12, 2022

Province keeps U.S. spinal surgery price tag under wraps

Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Preview

Province keeps U.S. spinal surgery price tag under wraps

Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Monday, Sep. 12, 2022

Manitoba taxpayers are being asked to sign a blank cheque to cover spinal surgeries performed stateside, after the financial interests of a North Dakota hospital were found to outweigh the public interest in disclosing the price tag.

Some 40 Manitobans have received long-awaited and desperately needed spinal surgery at Sanford Health Fargo under an agreement signed in February between the provincial government and the South Dakota-based, non-profit health system.

However, the cost to perform those operations is being withheld by the province, after the hospital argued it would lose its competitive position if such details were made public.

The Free Press obtained a partially redacted copy of the medical services agreement between Sanford Health and the Manitoba government through a freedom of information request.

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Monday, Sep. 12, 2022

Province enters official period of mourning for Queen

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Preview

Province enters official period of mourning for Queen

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Friday, Sep. 9, 2022

Flags will remain at half-mast and the Royal Cypher will illuminate the Manitoba Legislative Building nightly, as the provincial government memorializes Queen Elizabeth during a formal period of mourning that began Friday.

An announcement by Premier Heather Stefanson in Brandon and an Opposition news conference at Grace Hospital were postponed following the English monarch’s death a day earlier.

After a 70-year reign, the Queen died Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, at age 96.

“Most jurisdictions do not anticipate a complete shutdown of operations during the period of mourning, but it is suggested that, out of respect, events, announcements and social media activities be limited,” Brad Robertson, chief of protocol for the Manitoba government, advised lawmakers via email.

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Friday, Sep. 9, 2022

Choice is to boost now or wait

Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Preview

Choice is to boost now or wait

Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Wednesday, Sep. 7, 2022

Faced with the choice to get the first COVID-19 booster shot available or wait their turn for a new, Omicron-targeted vaccine, some Manitobans are raring to recharge their immunity, while others say they’ve had their share of needles.

Hundreds of thousands of Manitobans will become eligible for a fourth dose of the vaccine as of Sept. 12. For many, the booster will come amid waning immunity as the seasons change and people head back indoors.

“There’s no question we’ll get the first one that’s available,” teacher and Winnipeg School Division trustee candidate Luanne Karn said. “We’re not waiting for something that we don’t know when it’s going to be available.”

Provincial public health officials recommend Manitobans wait to get boosted until they are eligible for the new, bivalent vaccine, which offers enhanced protection against the Omicron mutation and its subvariants.

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Wednesday, Sep. 7, 2022

Rural ER long weekend closures spark extra concern: doctor

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Preview

Rural ER long weekend closures spark extra concern: doctor

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Friday, Sep. 2, 2022

Closures of three rural emergency rooms in western Manitoba have physicians bracing for longer patient waits and heavy workloads through the Labour Day long weekend.

“We definitely are going to feel this in Neepawa,” said Dr. Nichelle Desilets, who works at the Neepawa Health Centre, about 190 kilometres west of Winnipeg.

Between Friday and Monday, rural ERs in the communities of Carberry, Minnedosa and Glenboro are scheduled to be closed or operating at reduced hours owing to staffing challenges.

Neepawa Health Centre will be the safety net for any patients in those communities in need of emergency care, which is a drastic increase, Desilets said Friday.

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Friday, Sep. 2, 2022

Province widens fourth-dose eligibility

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Province widens fourth-dose eligibility

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Friday, Sep. 2, 2022

Fourth doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are being released to the general public, but the Manitoba government is advising people to wait to roll up their sleeves until shots targeting Omicron are readily available.

“You might not get your vaccine right off the bat, but in due time, in a short period of time, you’ll get that vaccine. You will be protected,” deputy chief provincial public health officer Dr. Jazz Atwal said during a Friday afternoon update.

The provincial government will begin taking appointments for Moderna’s bivalent COVID-19 booster shot next week.

The vaccine, which targets the Omicron subvariant BA.1 and the original strain of the coronavirus, was approved Thursday by Health Canada for people 18 years old and up.

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Friday, Sep. 2, 2022

Premier, PM divided on carbon tax, together on immigration

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Premier, PM divided on carbon tax, together on immigration

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Thursday, Sep. 1, 2022

Manitobans are unlikely to get a tax break on fuel, after calls by Premier Heather Stefanson for Ottawa to pause collection of the carbon tax were dismissed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a stop in Winnipeg.

“There are some issues that we have to agree to disagree on,” Stefanson told reporters at the conclusion of a bilateral meeting Thursday.

Over recent months, Stefanson has made repeated requests to the federal government — including during an affordability announcement Wednesday — to suspend the carbon tax as a measure to help Canadians struggling under rising inflation.

However, Trudeau rejected the suggestion earlier in the day, during a stop at the Université de St. Boniface, where he met with about 10 nursing students and administrators in a mock hospital before breaking off to take questions from reporters. A small group of protesters were also gathered outside the post-secondary institution.

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Thursday, Sep. 1, 2022

Province announces ‘affordability’ funds

Danielle Da Silva 6 minute read Preview

Province announces ‘affordability’ funds

Danielle Da Silva 6 minute read Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022

The Progressive Conservative government is cutting cheques for families and low-income seniors struggling beneath the mounting cost of living, but stopped short of ponying up cash to help all Manitobans feeling the sting of high inflation.

“Everyone is feeling the pinch right now,” Premier Heather Stefanson said during a Wednesday morning announcement at a St. Vital playground, flanked by more than a dozen of her PC colleagues.

“It’s hard enough for many, many families, as well, to make ends meet — and we want to ensure that we’re helping them.”

Weeks after promising relief from 40-year-high inflation was on the way, Stefanson said the province will spend $87 million to mail cheques to families with a net household income less than $175,000 and to seniors with a household income less than $40,000.

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Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022

New regulations, little movement on legislature grounds encampments

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

New regulations, little movement on legislature grounds encampments

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2022

After an unsuccessful attempt to evict a pair of months-long occupations at the Manitoba legislature grounds, Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen insisted new regulations prohibiting such encampments have teeth — as the Tories seek to avoid a major political misstep in clearing the protest groups.

“It’s certainly not the ability for officers to take the actions that they desire or that they deem to be appropriate at the time,” the province’s attorney general told reporters Tuesday, when asked why eviction orders issued by justice officials on Aug. 17 had not been enforced.

Members of two camps on the north and east lawns of the provincial seat of government were ordered to tear down a medley of tents, teepees and fires last week under the Legislative Security Amendment Act and its regulations, which came into force in July.

Both camps remained intact as of Tuesday.

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Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2022

Long-term care facilities, hospitals battle COVID outbreaks; health workers’ sick-time calls rise

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Long-term care facilities, hospitals battle COVID outbreaks; health workers’ sick-time calls rise

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Monday, Aug. 29, 2022

After four consecutive months free from isolation, illness and COVID-19, the Convalescent Home of Winnipeg was once again placed on high alert last week with the return of five positive test results.

The Fort Rouge-based nursing home is one of 10 long-term care facilities in Winnipeg working to contain COVID-19 while the virus spreads unchecked in the community following a busy summer that saw Manitobans gather in droves.

“You don’t necessarily know who brought it in or where it came from. It’s just prevalent in the community right now,” said Sherry Heppner, development co-ordinator for the Fort Rouge-based personal-care home. “We were doing really well.”

For five weeks, public-health officials have reported increased COVID-19 activity based on elevated test-positivity rates, confirmed cases and outbreaks within health-care facilities.

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Monday, Aug. 29, 2022

Retailers prep for fall COVID test kit pressure

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Retailers prep for fall COVID test kit pressure

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Monday, Aug. 29, 2022

Demand for free rapid COVID-19 tests at grocery stores and pharmacies is expected to ramp up as summer comes to an end, and retailers are preparing to hand out kits by the handful for the provincial government.

John Graham, director of government relations for the Retail Council of Canada’s Prairies office, said most grocery stores in Manitoba currently have some stock available. However, a decline in demand over the summer could mean kits are few and far between.

“It’s possible that stores have run out and it’s just not being asked about right now,” Graham said. “You’ll see that change, and you’ll see everyone scrambling to try find the contact information for reordering the second week of September.”

In March, the Manitoba government partnered with grocery stores and pharmacies to distribute the free rapid test kits. Public libraries were later added to the distribution network.

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Monday, Aug. 29, 2022

Stalemate over two camps on legislature lawn

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Preview

Stalemate over two camps on legislature lawn

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Friday, Aug. 26, 2022

The Manitoba government remained tight-lipped Friday about two encampments at the legislature that have not budged after being handed eviction notices more than a week ago.

On Aug. 17, members of two camps on the north and east lawns of the provincial seat of government were ordered to tear down a medley of tents, teepees and fires by Aug 23. The groups were informed they were violating the Legislative Security Act and regulations that came into force in July prohibiting camps on the grounds of the legislature.

However, as of Friday, no apparent enforcement efforts had been taken to clear the camps.

“The decision to enforce the regulations is made by Manitoba justice department officials, along with law enforcement,” a provincial government spokesperson said in an emailed statement Friday.

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Friday, Aug. 26, 2022

Licence review on the table for care home where residents allegedly abused

Danielle Da Silva 2 minute read Preview

Licence review on the table for care home where residents allegedly abused

Danielle Da Silva 2 minute read Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022

A Winnipeg personal-care home at the centre of multiple abuse allegations could face an operating licence review, Manitoba Health Minister Audrey Gordon said Thursday.

In June, the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority said police were investigating after two health-care aides at Oakview Place Personal Care Home had allegedly abused multiple residents.

A whistleblower alerted local management with Extendicare — the facility’s operator — of the abuse in February. However, the health authority was not informed of the allegations, in contravention of Extendicare’s responsibilities, until approached directly by another whistle-blower on June 10.

The WRHA has not specified the type of abuse residents were allegedly subjected to.

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Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022

Visitation shelters eat up nearly half of province’s share of federal long-term care money

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Visitation shelters eat up nearly half of province’s share of federal long-term care money

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022

Nearly half of Manitoba’s $37.2-million share of federal funding for long-term care homes will cover the cost of pandemic-era visitation shelters — many of which are no longer in use.

Ottawa has agreed to cover the operating expenses — pegged at $18 million in the 2021-22 fiscal year — for approximately 105 external and 57 internal shelters at facilities across Manitoba through the Safe Long-Term Care Fund.

“We need to do everything we can to protect our seniors and everyone else who lives and works in long-term care,” federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said during an announcement Thursday afternoon at Fred Douglas Lodge care home alongside provincial Health Minister Audrey Gordon.

The Manitoba government was the last province to sign on to the fund, which set aside $1 billion for provincial and territorial long-term care expenditures in the fall of 2020.

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Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022

Manitoba inks surgery deals with Thunder Bay, Cleveland, North Dakota

Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Preview

Manitoba inks surgery deals with Thunder Bay, Cleveland, North Dakota

Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022

Manitobans who need hip or knee surgery will have the option to go under the knife in the United States and northwestern Ontario on the provincial government’s dime this fall.

Dr. Peter MacDonald, chair of the province’s diagnostic and surgical recovery task force steering committee, said eligible patients can put their name forward for surgery at Big Thunder Orthopedic Associates in northwestern Ontario; Sanford Health in Fargo, N.D.; and the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

“I know that hundreds of Manitobans are waiting for hip or knee replacement as a result of delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” MacDonald said. “People will begin to seek care at these locations in coming weeks and once projects are fully implemented, they will provide relief to hundreds of Manitobans.”

The task force said the volume of hip and knee surgeries performed at the three clinics will start small but grow incrementally to a combined total of 750 patients annually by 2024.

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Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022

Manitoba seeks public opinion on new COVID vaccine

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Preview

Manitoba seeks public opinion on new COVID vaccine

Danielle Da Silva 4 minute read Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022

Manitobans are being asked to share their opinion on a potential new COVID-19 vaccine that protects against Omicron and the original strain of the virus.

The provincial government is surveying citizens about their desire to receive an Omicron-targeted booster shot and factors that could affect their decision to roll up their sleeve for a bivalent vaccine.

“A bivalent COVID-19 vaccine is anticipated to be approved by Health Canada in the coming weeks,” the province states in its EngageMB survey, which closes on Sept. 9. “It is unknown what age indication will be approved by Health Canada but could be as low as 12 years of age.”

Health Canada is reviewing submissions for messenger RNA vaccines developed by both Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech that are tailored to the BA.1 Omicron variant.

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Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022

HSC nurses step up to help ER dodge understaffing bullet

Carol Sanders and Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Preview

HSC nurses step up to help ER dodge understaffing bullet

Carol Sanders and Danielle Da Silva 5 minute read Monday, Aug. 22, 2022

Nurses worked overtime and picked up shifts to help Manitoba’s main trauma hospital avert crisis over the weekend after it was forced to close half of its beds in the emergency department due to a severe staffing shortage.

As they pitched in to bolster staffing at the Health Sciences Centre’s ER, nurses reported unsafe working conditions.

“Wait times in our adult emergency department remained well above target levels but within recent norms over the weekend,” a Shared Health spokesman said Monday. Nearly 150 patients went to the department each day, which is near the average daily count over the past four months, he said.

“Shared Health is grateful to these nurses – and all of our staff in the ED – for their enduring commitment to patient care despite challenging circumstances. We also are appreciative of unit managers who worked on the floor this past weekend to support and provide patient care.”

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Monday, Aug. 22, 2022

NDP, Tories clash over CancerCare

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Preview

NDP, Tories clash over CancerCare

Danielle Da Silva 3 minute read Thursday, Aug. 18, 2022

The NDP has accused the Tory government of shortsightedness and disregard for cancer patients after Shared Health ordered $5.5 million worth of “immediate needs and stabilization” projects at CancerCare Manitoba.

“Instead of asking: how can we make health care better in Manitoba, time and time again we’re forced to ask what does the PC government have to do next to try and repair the mistakes they made by cutting an essential health care service in our province,” Kinew said.

He highlighted a recent request for proposals issued by the health authority that seeks construction management services for “immediate needs and stabilization projects” at CancerCare’s McDermot Avenue location.

The document says a needs assessment conducted in 2015 identified significant need for expanded services based on population growth and increased patient volumes.

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Thursday, Aug. 18, 2022

October 5, 2022

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