Second silica sand mine proposed for southern Manitoba

A second company has its sights on mining silica sand in southern Manitoba — this time, near La Salle.

U of M over the moon about satellite’s lunar launch

A milk-carton sized satellite built by Manitoba researchers will go where no Canadian spacecraft has gone before — the moon’s orbit.

Magellan Aerospace’s Winnipeg division announced last week it had received a $6.9-million contract from the Canadian Space Agency to develop the lunar exploration spacecraft. University of Manitoba STARLab researchers are developing the CubeSat — a pint-sized satellite that will orbit the moon and launch a dart-like piece of tech to the moon’s surface to collect data to send back to scientists.

A U of M satellite was sent to space in 2023, but it remained in low Earth orbit.

“This is a completely different level. This is actually leaving Earth’s orbit and going into lunar orbit,” STARLab director and associate professor Philip Ferguson said. “It’s the first time Canada’s ever done that with a small satellite.”

Manitoba eyes bilingual designation ‘to be at the table’

The Kinew government is applying for a special designation to put its growing francophone community on the map and tap into new markets in French-speaking countries across the world.

Manitoba’s “truly bilingual province” consultations wrapped up on Oct. 31.

Francophone Affairs Minister Glen Simard is reviewing six months of oral and written feedback from Manitobans about what they want their province to sound like.

“What we’re hearing is people want to live their lives in French and they want it to be easier,” Simard said in a phone interview Sunday.

Decades devoted to helping young mothers

Eleanor McMillan believes everyone should have access to an education, which has led to a lifetime of professional work and community service related to teaching.

The 83-year-old Winnipegger says her parents instilled the importance of schooling in her.

“It was never preached. It was just there,” McMillan, whose father was a teacher and principal, says.

“This is back when not all women were encouraged to go on (with school), but there was never a sense that I wouldn’t go on and get my education.”

Cannabis producer eyes referendums for Manitoba’s Bible Belt

A cannabis producer and advocate wants to see retail sales bans in two Manitoba Bible Belt communities go up in smoke.

NDP, Tories spar as man with rare disease fights to secure coverage for $300-K drug

The Kinew government won’t commit to funding a costly drug for a 30-year-old with a rare degenerative disease, but it has appealed to a pharmaceutical company to keep donating it.

A Conservative MP told reporters public servants “must be choking on hypocrisy,” given Premier Wab Kinew’s flagship campaign pledge was to fix public health care and combat privatization.

“There’s no question that Manitoba Health should be covering this drug,” said Grant Jackson, who stepped down as the MLA for Spruce Woods this spring before running successfully in the Brandon-Souris riding.

Jackson spoke at a news conference at the Manitoba legislature on Friday to call attention to a coverage gap that was brought to his attention when he was a PC MLA.

Judge sends father who crashed car while fleeing police, killing son, to prison for 11 years

Arrested and released on bail following a high-speed crash that killed his 27-year-old son, Cainin Xavier turned to drugs to numb his pain and bought two stolen guns with the intention of killing himself, he told a judge Wednesday.

“After the accident, I didn’t want to live,” Cainin Xavier told provincial court Judge Heather Pullan, his words choked with tears. “Drugs were the only thing that could clear my head of the pain.”

Xavier, 48, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death, possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking and weapon possession offences, and was sentenced to just over 11 years in prison.

Xavier disputed a submission by Crown attorney Ken Hawkins who argued Xavier’s possession of the firearms was tied to his involvement in the drug trade.