Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 9, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A2 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COMA2 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9, 2022 VOL 151 NO 117 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 2022 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 News / 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 independent 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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INSIDE Arts and Life C1 Business B5 Classifieds D8 Comics C5 Diversions C6-7 Horoscope C6 Jumble C6 Miss Lonelyhearts C6 Obituaries D7-8 Opinion A6-7 Sports D1 Television C4 Weather B8 COLUMNISTS: Tom Brodbeck A4 Mike McIntyre D3 READER SERVICE ● GENERAL INQUIRIES 204-697-7000 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 The Free Press receives support from the Local Journalism Initiative funded by the Government of Canada THEFT ● FROM A1 DEBT ● FROM A1 Winnipeg Police Service spokeswom- an Const. Dani McKinnon confirmed the daycare gas theft was reported to law enforcement, adding there have been a few similar incidents recently. “It’s brand new — I’m calling it the catalytic converter 2.0. I think that’s sort of how it’s going to look,” McKin- non said, referring to past thefts of an exhaust pipe component that contains precious metals, which are then resold. “I think the old-school method we all think of — a hose and siphoning — I don’t believe that’s the method that’s being activated right now. It looks like either puncturing the tank somehow and using something to withdraw the gas or they’re using some type of pow- er tool to breach the tank.” She said such thefts are potentially “very dangerous.” The temporary loss of the daycare’s three 15-seat vans, which are normally used to transport up to 85 kids back and forth from school each day, has had a ripple effect on their families. “I had to cancel transportation for yesterday and today, and notify parents that it’s going to be longer. How long it’s going to be, I don’t know,” Jones said. “Not having the vans and not having the ability to repair them as quickly as we would like to… we don’t know how long these parents are going to be inconvenienced, and that really sucks.” Jones said the centre was trying to arrange repairs Tuesday; each van carries a $750 insurance deductible. “It’s difficult, right, any time somebody has to deal with an Autopac claim, and matching that up with who can repair three large vans is going to take us a little while. I’m hoping to get that all cleared up by the end of the day, so at least we know where we’re going from here,” she said. “The added concern is once it’s fixed, what’s to stop them from doing it again?” Jones said the community has been supportive. “But let’s be honest, it’s not just happening to us,” she said. “It’s put a lot of concern into the current financial situation it’s going to be affecting… not only for the repair of the vehicles but also for the length of time they’re out of commission. (It) is going to affect the parents and their ability to have child care and transportation for them to school.” On Tuesday, CTV reported several gas stations in west Toronto have seen increases in the number of incidents in which people fill their tanks and drive off without paying. McKinnon said she could not spec- ulate on whether similar thefts have increased at Winnipeg gas stations. Manitoba Public Insurance spokes- man Brian Smiley said the Crown corporation doesn’t track gas theft, nor does it have records of damage to fuel tanks from siphoning — such claims would be noted as vandalism. However, he did offer a tip to dis- suade would-be thieves from pilfering petrol. “If you have an enclosed garage, park the vehicle in the garage. Unfor- tunately, a lot of people do not have that option. Otherwise, try to park under a lit area,” Smiley told the Free Press. erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @erik_pindera The province’s current debt is ap- proaching $30 billion while Manito- ba Hydro has $23.5 billion in debt. The minister said the borrowing limit will not affect the normal operations of Manitoba Hydro or put pressure on the utility to increase rates. Senior management with the corporation participated in consul- tation on the borrowing limits, he added. The bill would require the reinstatement of detailed budget information, which the Tories were accused of hiding last year. The legislation would require the government to divulge details of each department’s spending every year, including staffing levels, with comparable numbers for the previous year. It also would require departments to release objectives for the fiscal year and how they will be achieved. Those details are contained in documents called supplementary estimates. The New Democrats complained last year when those estimates con- tained fewer estimates than usual. “Last year the PCs broke the rules and hid their cuts from Manitobans, but the NDP fought back,” finance critic Mark Wasyliw said in a state- ment late Tuesday. “Despite this new bill, we know Premier Stefanson and the PCs will keep making secret cuts that hurt families, but you can count on Wab Kinew and the NDP to demand better.” The province said the federal government and other provinces have also replaced annual loan act appropriations with borrowing authority limits. — with files from The Canadian Press danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca Break on gas tax up to Ottawa: Friesen FINANCE Minister Cameron Friesen was asked whether he will follow Alberta’s lead by sus- pending collection of the provincial fuel tax to give motorists a break. Friesen didn’t rule it out, but said any talk of fuel tax breaks should be aimed primarily at Ottawa. “We’re not saying no, but we’re saying this is a conversation that finance ministers of the provinces and territories cannot lead without the involvement of the federal government,” Friesen said Tuesday. While the province has its own fuel tax at a fixed price per litre, the federal government has a few levies on fuel — a price on carbon, an excise tax, and a sales tax. The last one is a percentage of the total price so it generates more money as prices rise. “The federal government must be in the conversation to think about which of those mech- anisms they would like to adjust in order to help Canadians save money,” Friesen said. The fuel tank of one of the daycare’s vans, which was drilled into before the gas was stolen. PHTOS BY JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Carol Jones, executive director of Little People’s Place Daycare, says the centre is trying to arrange repairs to its vandalized vans after fuel was siphoned from them. JESSICA LEE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Finance Minister Cameron Friesen said the federal government must be involved in fuel tax talks. W HEN she was health minister, Heather Stefanson was “com-pletely unaware of the poten- tial transfers” of ICU patients out of the province until after the first Manitoban was transferred on May 18, her succes- sor insisted Tuesday. Health Minister Audrey Gordon was responding to questions from the NDP about when Stefanson found out about the plan to move ICU patients out of Manitoba during the third wave of COVID-19. As health minister, Stefanson told re- porters on May 18 — the same day the first ICU patients were airlifted out of Manitoba — that the province could expand its ICU capacity to 170 beds. Despite that reassurance, overwhelmed ICUs in Winnipeg were forced to trans- fer 57 patients to critical-care beds in other provinces. The NDP on Monday produced a calendar for Shared Health chief ex- ecutive officer Adam Topp. It shows he had a meeting on May 13 on the topic of ICU capacity at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre and had met earlier that day with Stefanson to dis- cuss ICU capacity. Stefanson rejected suggestions from the NDP that she had misled Manito- bans about out-of-province ICU trans- fers being imminent. In a statement Monday, she said was only made aware of the transfers after clinicians made those decisions “in a rapidly changing environment.” On Tuesday, Stefanson didn’t attend question period, but the NDP pressed the government to reveal which day Ste- fanson learned about the transfer plan. Gordon defended the premier’s ex- planation that she did not know that the patient transfers were about to occur, or that there was “the potential” for them to occur. The NDP said that defies belief. “What the PCs are trying to argue to- day is that the premier, who was then the health minister, didn’t know what was happening in her portfolio during the most important phase of the pan- demic,” NDP Leader Wab Kinew said after question period. “That raises a lot more questions.” Gordon told reporters 34 people were admitted to ICU from May 13 to 17, and that prompted the need to send patients out of province on May 18. The first two patients were sent to an ICU in Thunder Bay, Ont. Gordon said there are protocols for patient transfers, and the decision to do so is made by health professionals. “They’re not being made here in the Manitoba legislature.” A Shared Health spokesperson said Tuesday that critical care physicians were aware of the contingency plans and capacity in Ontario. They were authorized to initiate patient trans- fers to provide appropriate patient care and maintain necessary local capacity. The spokesperson did not respond to a question about when that authorization was granted. — with files from Danielle Da Silva carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca Tories defend premier over ICU transfer timeline CAROL SANDERS Health Minister Audrey Gordon A_02_Mar-09-22_FP_01.indd 2 2022-03-08 9:28 PM ;