Portage

Members of Parliament are gearing up for their return to the House of Commons in what's expected to be a busy fall. 

Here is a look at some of the things to watch for as Parliament gets underway this week.

The budget

The Liberal government took some heat in the spring when it decided to delay the introduction of the federal budget, which is typically done in March or April, until this fall. 

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said his fiscal plan is set to be released in October. 

The Portage Terriers wrapped up their preseason with a 6-1 victory over the visiting Neepawa Titans, who they will open the season against next weekend.

Green Bay, WI product Ryker Thomas notched the game's first goal late in the first period. After making a nice play to hold the puck in the zone, he walked in toward the net, and fired a shot into the top corner. 1-0 Portage after 20 minutes.

The second frame would start fast, as Thomas would take a double-minor for high-sticking, and Neepawa would capitalize.

 The Canadian Wheat Research Coalition (CWRC) has engaged Synthesis Agri-Food Network to review Canada’s wheat breeding innovation system in an effort to safeguard its ability to serve the evolving needs of Canadian farmers.

A review of the current wheat breeding landscape will help the CWRC identify and address potential risks and opportunities in the Canadian system while ensuring it continues to generate elite varieties for farmers across the country.

The latest report from the Canadian Crop Hail Association shows minor hailstorms are still damaging crops in Western Canada as harvest continues.

CCHA member companies are investigating 310 claims of crop damage from storms that occurred August 31-September 6. Companies are still assessing damage from the storms that occurred in late August.

“Adjusters are out in full force to complete hail claims quickly as harvest is in full swing across the prairies,” said Brian Bernauer, Rain and Hail Insurance Services.

Brianna Elliot has been named the recipient of the 2025 Reg Schellenberg Next Generation Legacy Award, the honour recognizing outstanding leadership in the Canadian Cattle Young Leaders (CYL) Program. 

This award celebrates individuals who embody the values championed by the late Reg Schellenberg - humble leadership, a commitment to mentorship, a spirit of collaboration, and unwavering dedication to the Canadian cattle industry. 

Four people are dead and a young pilot is in hospital after a plane crash in northern Manitoba.

Island Lake RCMP say they received a report of the crash around 6:45 p.m. on Sept. 13. The aircraft went down about 40 kilometres south of St. Theresa Point First Nation, near Makepeace Lake.

Police said the flight had departed from St. Theresa Point and was headed for Makepeace Lake.

If you’ve been swatting away more mosquitoes than usual this September, you’re not alone. The City of Portage la Prairie has noticed the late-season buzz too, thanks to a mix of warm, humid weather and recent rainfall.

“Within the last few days, we have noticed an uptick in mosquito population,” says Paul Ziesmann, superintendent of public works. “At this time, though, we really don’t have any plans for any fogging, but it is something that we will continue to monitor.”

Kathy Valentino, president of the Association of Manitoba Municipalities and a councillor in Thompson, says new polling shows Manitobans want Ottawa to act on bail reform and policing. She explains that municipalities across the province are dealing with unsafe streets, and the so-called “catch and release” system is failing.

A report that could shed more light on why Manitoba's former Progressive Conservative government rejected calls to search a landfill for the remains of two murder victims is being withheld under the province's freedom of information law.

Records obtained by The Canadian Press show senior bureaucrats assembled a presentation for cabinet ministers on a potential search in the weeks before the government decided not to proceed with the idea in 2023.

The early-1960s revelation that British spy Kim Philby had worked for Moscow alarmed Canadian intelligence officials who feared that he had betrayed confidences gleaned from Soviet defector Igor Gouzenko, once-secret archival records show.

Harold Adrian Russell "Kim" Philby was recruited by Russian intelligence in the 1930s. He joined Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, known as MI-6, during the Second World War, rising through the ranks to become a senior liaison officer in Washington from 1949 to 1951.