Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - April 16, 2020, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A2 A 2 WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 ? WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM VOL 149 NO 156 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 2020 Winnipeg Free Press, a division of FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership. Published seven days a week at 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R2X 3B6, PH: 204-697-7000 Publisher / BOB COX Editor / PAUL SAMYN Associate Editor Enterprise / SCOTT GIBBONS Associate Editor Operations and Engagement / STACEY THIDRICKSON Associate Editor Digital News / WENDY SAWATZKY Director Photo and Multimedia / MIKE APORIUS NEWSMEDIA COUNCIL The Winnipeg Free Press is a member of the National Newsmedia Council, which is an in- dependent organization established to determine acceptable journalistic practices and ethical behaviour. If you have concerns about editorial content, please send them to: editorialconcerns@freepress.mb.ca. 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GENERAL INQUIRIES 204-697-7000 The Free Press receives support from the Local Journalism Initiative funded by the Government of Canada CIRCULATION INQUIRIES MISSING OR INCOMPLETE PAPER? Call or email before 10 a.m. weekdays or 11 a.m. Saturday City: 204-697-7001 Outside Winnipeg: 1-800-542-8900 press 1 6:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday-Friday.; 7 a.m. - noon Saturday; Closed Sunday TO SUBSCRIBE: 204-697-7001 Out of Winnipeg: 1-800-542-8900 BILLS ? FROM A1 LAYOFFS ? FROM A1 TRUMP ? FROM A1 Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said laid-off workers and small businesses forced to close or severely scale back operations need help to cover basic costs. "There are times when the private sector melts down and government is the only institution with the tools and the resources to step in and rebuild," he said in the legislature. "This is one of those times. We cannot shy away from it." At a mid-afternoon news conference, Pallister hinted for the first time that the government was working on some form of direct assistance program that would complement federal programs. "I'd prefer to tell you next week when the details are ironed out," he told reporters. carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca In the house REPRESENTING the Progressive Conservatives: Premier Brian Pallister, Education Minister Kelvin Goertzen, Health Minister Cameron Friesen, Finance Minister Scott Fielding, Justice Minister Cliff Cullen, Crown Services Minister Jeff Wharton, Municipal Relations Minister Rochelle Squires, Families Minister Heather Stefanson, Conservation and Climate Minister Sarah Guillemard, Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler, Doyle Piwniuk (Arthur- Virden) and Andrew Micklefield (Rossmere). Representing the New Democrats: Leader Wab Kinew, Nahanni Fontaine (St. Johns), Adrien Sala (St. James), Bernadette Smith (Point Douglas), Matt Wiebe (Concordia) and Uzoma Asagwara (Union Station). Representing the Liberals: Party Leader Dougald Lamont (spelled off occasionally by Burrows MLA Cindy Lamoureux). Speaker Myrna Driedger (Roblin) presided. Pallister's Easter PRIME Minister Justin Trudeau and Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer were criticized for travel- ling during the Easter weekend, which appeared to contradict guidelines to keep Canadians at home. When asked how he spent his long weekend, Pallister said he would not criticize the two fed- eral leaders, saying both "have tremendously difficult jobs." The premier said he spent the weekend with his wife, but he didn't say whether they remained in the city. "I'm trying to do my best" to follow the instructions of chief provincial public health officer, Dr. Brent Roussin, he said.JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESSThe halls are empty as Premier Brian Pallister speaks with ministers after Wednesday's emergency session. Gord Delbridge, president of the Can- adian Union of Public Employees Lo- cal 500, suggested some workers could perform extra cleaning duties to reduce the pandemic risk while others could help repair city roads and other infra- structure. "We could be putting people to work addressing some of our infrastructure. There's not a lot of people on the road. Why aren't we filling more potholes?" said Delbridge. The union leader opposed the idea of wage cuts, arguing that would have a negative effect on local spending. "We've got businesses that are strug- gling. The last thing we want to do is start cutting that flow of revenue," he said. The city cast doubt on the feasibility of further worker redeployment. Ruta said road repairs, for example, require specific skills and physical abilities that laid-off workers may not have. joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga Trump said at his daily briefing that data indicate the U.S. is "past the peak" of the COVID-19 epidemic, clearing the way for his plans to roll out guidelines to begin to "reopen" the country. He called the latest data "encouraging," saying the numbers have "put us in a very strong position to finalize guidelines for states on reopening the country." Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus task force co-ordinator, added that data from across the coun- try shows the nation "improving," but that Americans must recommit to so- cial distancing to keep up the positive momentum. She said nine states have fewer than 1,000 cases and just a few dozen new cases per day. She said those would likely be the first to see a lifting in social distancing restrictions at the direction of their governors under the guidelines set to be released today. Birx said the White House was particularly concerned about Rhode Island, noting it has had a surge in cases from the Boston metro area after seeing a spike several weeks ago from cases from New York. Trump consulted dozens of CEOs, union officials and other executives via conference calls Wednesday. He received a mixed message from the industry leaders. They, too, said they want to get the economy going but had concerns about how to safely do so. In a tweet midway through Trump's round of conference calls with the ex- ecutives, the president said the partici- pants were "all-in on getting America back to work, and soon." But participants in a morning call that included dozens of leading compa- nies raised concerns about the testing issue, said one participant who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the private discussion. Another person who participated in Wednesday's calls said it was stressed to Trump that expansion of testing and contact tracing was crucial, as well as guidelines for best practices on reopening businesses in phases or in one fell swoop. The participant said those on the call noted to the administration that there was about to be a massive rush on personal protective equipment. Many businesses that are closed will need the protective equipment to keep their employees and customers safe. Trump was told "the economy will look very different and operations will look very different," one participant said. Mark Cuban, the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, was among sev- eral representatives from major sports leagues to speak with Trump. During a Fox News interview ahead of the calls, he credited the president with gather- ing some of the "best of the best" to help shape his approach on reopen- ing the economy. Still, Cuban did not embrace Trump's push to reopen parts of the economy May 1. "This is such a moving target that I think the biggest mistake we can make is rush to a decision," said Cuban, who had been critical of Trump's response to the pandemic. "But I'm going to help him in every way I can, whatever he needs me to do." Trump dubbed the panel the Great American Economic Revival Industry Group. - The Associated Press ESTEBAN FELIX / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS KEEP SMILING In Santiago, Chile, a woman waves to a city worker dressed in a hazmat suit as he disinfects her neighbourhood as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19 on Wednesday. JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Mayor Brian Bowman heads to his office after announcing Wednesday that the city was forced to lay off temporary workers. 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