Manitoba puts up $2.5M to help find and commemorate unmarked Indigenous burial sites
The Manitoba government said Wednesday it will provide $2.5 million to Indigenous groups to help find and commemorate unmarked graves at former residential schools.
The money, initially promised last year, is to be shared between groups including the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, the Manitoba Métis Federation and the Manitoba Inuit Association.
The Indigenous groups, not the government, will decide how to spend the money.
Manitoba Natural Resources Minister Scott Fielding leaves politics for private sector
Manitoba's natural resources minister stepped down from cabinet Monday and said he would resign his legislature seat within two weeks.
Scott Fielding, also minister responsible for liquor and lotteries, is going to pursue opportunities in the private sector, a government news release said. It did not provide details.
"Public service is extremely important but also means making great sacrifices to family life," Fielding wrote in a social media post.
Manitoba business group wants tax review; premier says she's willing
The Manitoba government is open to the idea of a wide-ranging review of its taxes to remain competitive with other provinces, Premier Heather Stefanson said Thursday.
"We're always looking at better ways to deliver services to Manitobans and being competitive with other provinces is absolutely key to that," Stefanson said during a question-and-answer session with the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce.
Expansion of Winnipeg hospital emergency room begins as wait times remain lengthy
Work has begun on a long-promised expansion of the St. Boniface Hospital's emergency room.
Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson says the $141-million project will triple the size of the Winnipeg hospital's emergency department and improve patient flow.
The expansion was promised by former premier Brian Pallister in the 2019 provincial election and had been recommended by a group that reviewed hospital wait times in 2017.
The head of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority has been warning of increasing wait times in ERs.
Former The Bay store in downtown Winnipeg to be given to Indigenous group
One of the landmark stores formerly run by the Hudson's Bay Co. is about to undergo a major transformation in the name of reconciliation with Indigenous people.
The company's six-storey, 655,000-square-foot building in downtown Winnipeg is being given to the Southern Chiefs Organization, which represents 34 First Nations communities in Manitoba.
The site will be transformed to include almost 300 affordable housing units, a museum, an art gallery and restaurants.
Manitoba slows a tax cut, offers some additional health-care spending
Manitoba's Progressive Conservative government is planning to move more slowly on a promised tax cut, reduce a handful of other levies and inject some money into a health-care system battered by COVID-19.
Tuesday's budget was the first under Premier Heather Stefanson, who took over after Brian Pallister retired last fall.
The fiscal plan still includes the intention to phase out the province's education tax on residential and farm property via rebates, but at a slower pace than Pallister had promised in last year's budget.