Manitoba throne speech dominated by health-care promises

The Manitoba government promised to make the health-care system safer, take more steps to “Trump-proof” the economy and study how to slash grocery bills in Tuesday’s throne speech.

The speech, read by Lt.-Gov. Anita Neville in the legislature, announced plans for a Manitoba-wide meth crackdown, new rules to stop “unfair” rent increases, four new schools, 402 new child-care spaces in Winnipeg and Brandon, and a new $2,500 security rebate for businesses starting in December.

“We just want to take steps to ensure that your safety as a patient is going to be improved,” Premier Wab Kinew told reporters. “At the same time, because we’re looking to fix health care (and) lower wait times, we’ve got to take care of the staff as well. The staff are the crucial piece to deliver you the health-care experience that you want.”

Creating a safer health-care system for patients and staff was one of the speech’s central themes. The province will create a new patient safety charter that enshrines into law Manitobans’ right to “good health care.”

Mandatory overtime will be eliminated for health-care staff, starting with front-line nurses. Staff-to-patient ratios will be created in priority areas, including hospital emergency rooms.

A supervised consumption site will start operations in Winnipeg in January, the province pledged. Kinew wouldn’t reveal the exact location but confirmed it will be west of a Point Douglas site that was previously proposed but abandoned because of opposition from residents.

Kinew said the province will commission a study to try to find ways to cut grocery costs. Potential measures could be included in the spring budget.

The province plans to build four more schools and add 402 child-care spaces in River East, Pembina Trails and Seven Oaks in Winnipeg, and Brandon.

To help “Trump-proof” the economy, the NDP government plans to build new dual-fuel combustion turbines at an existing site near Brandon to produce 750 megawatts of power to help heat homes in winter.

Manitoba will create a Crown-Indigenous corporation to ensure Indigenous involvement in the Port of Churchill expansion. A feasibility study will explore the expansion of shipping season.

A “meth sweep,” involving a new task force with members of the Winnipeg Police Service and RCMP, will target people who make and sell the drug. New legislation will target the sale of dangerous weapons, including machetes, on online marketplaces, and ban them from public spaces, such as parks and buses.

A security rebate program will be expanded to include businesses, who will be eligible to receive $2,500, starting in December.

Other highlights include the elimination of mandatory sick notes for short-term absences from work, and a new online patient portal that will give Manitobans access to their lab results and immunizations.

The province will begin work on a new overpass at highways 1 and 5, north of Carberry, following a crash that killed 17 seniors two years ago. Work will also begin to twin the Trans-Canada Highway between the Manitoba-Ontario boundary and West Hawk Lake.

Manitoba will also conduct its most comprehensive post-wildfire review, following this year’s devastating season.

The province has signed a new contract for park passes with a Manitoba company, replacing one in Texas, and it will hold a vote for a new provincial park-themed licence plate.

The throne speech was published in Anishinaabemowin, the language that named Manitoba, for the first time.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca