Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 11, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A3 TOP NEWS ASSOCIATE EDITOR NEWS: STACEY THIDRICKSON 204-697-7292 ● CITY.DESK@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM A3 FRIDAY MARCH 11, 2022 COVID-19 AT A GLANCE Cases: MANITOBA Confirmed: 132,487 Resolved: 125,879 Deaths: 1,708 Active: 4,900 (As of 12:30 p.m. Thursday) CANADA Confirmed: 3,342,247 Resolved: 3,192,973 Deaths: 37,157 Active: 112,117 (As of 8 a.m. Thursday) The latest from Manitoba: ● The province reported five new deaths and a de- crease in COVID-19 hospitalizations Thursday. According to the government’s online pandemic dashboard, 424 people with COVID-19 were in hospital Thursday mor- ning, including 22 in intensive care. That’s a decrease of 12 COVID-related hospitalizations and a decrease of one ICU admissions over the past 24 hours. There were 200 new cases confirmed through PCR testing. The five-day test positivity rate provincewide is 12.7 per cent. The province is no longer tracking the majority of positive COVID-19 cases because PCR testing is limited and Manitobans using rapid tests are not able to report their results. The province reported 1,196 public health order inspections for the week of Feb. 28 to March 6, with two warnings and two tickets issued. The two $298 tickets were handed out to individuals in Southern Health for failure to wear a mask in an indoor public place. Vaccine eligibility: ● First- and second-dose vaccinations are available for all Manitobans over five years of age. Third dose shots are now available to all Manitoba adults. Check eligibility criteria and recommended time frames between doses at wfp.to/eligibility. Appointments can be booked online at wfp.to/bookvaccine or by calling 1-844-626-8222. The latest from elsewhere: ● Starting Saturday, Quebecers who live with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19 will no longer have to self-isolate, the same day most of the province’s remaining health orders are set to expire. The new guidelines require close household contacts of COVID-19 cases to monitor themselves for symptoms for 10 days and avoid high-traffic places such as restaurants and bars, interim public health director Dr. Luc Boileau told reporters Thursday. Boileau said the epidemiological situation allows the province to push ahead with a plan to lift most measures this weekend. Boileau said officials don’t have enough data at the moment to move up plans to remove mask mandates in all public places except public transportation. ● U.S. officials are extending the requirement for masks on planes and public transportation for one more month — through mid-April — while taking steps that could lead to lifting the rule. The mask mandate was scheduled to expire March 18, but the U.S. Transportation Security Administration said Thursday that it will extend the requirement through April 18. TSA said the extra month will give the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention time to develop new, more targeted policies that will consider the number of cases of COVID-19 nationally and in local communities, and the risk of new variants. As of March 3, more than 90 per cent of the U.S. population lived in areas with low or medium COVID-19 case levels, meaning that the CDC no longer recommends face masks in public indoor settings. A decision to eventually scrap the mask requirement has grown more likely in recent weeks as more states relaxed mandates. Quote: “While today is another really positive step forward, we have to be ready to bring some tools back, if necessary, depending on the situation as it changes” — B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announces the lifting of a mask mandate for all indoor public spaces and several other COVID-19 public health orders MANITOBA’S INCREASES DONATION TO UKRAINE PREMIER Heather Stefanson says Manitoba will bump up its donation to Ukraine by half a million dollars. The province had earmarked $150,000 for Ukraine after it was invaded by Russia two weeks ago. Stefanson said the money will be donated to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation. During question period Thursday, the government was urged to lift the $500 fee for Ukrainians who apply to Manitoba’s provincial nominee program. Immigration Minister Jon Reyes didn’t an- swer questions about lifting application fees for fleeing Ukrainians. Stefanson said the province is working with the federal government to facilitate the resettlement of Ukrainian refugees. FORMER TORY MINISTER APPOINTED TO BOARD THE provincial government has appointed a former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister to the Winnipeg Police Board for a four-year term. Colleen Mayer, who represented St. Vital from 2016 to 2019, replaced Alicja Szarkiewicz on the board effective March 2. Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont expressed disappointment with the Tory government. “What we need is people who are independ- ent, independent from government and not be treating police board positions as patron- age appointments,” Lamont said. “This needs to be somebody who is completely independ- ent who’s going to 100 per cent be on the side of citizens and ideally free of any previous government ties.” Mayer is currently director of donor relations and development for the STARS Manitoba Foundation. The order in council noted Szarkiewicz’s term on the police board had expired; member Damon Johnston was reappointed for another three year term. City Coun. Brian Mayes resigned from the civilian oversight board on Monday stating its relationship with city council was dysfunc- tional. NDP RAISES CONCERN ABOUT SURGERY DEAL MANITOBA Health stood by its contract with Sanford Health Fargo to perform spinal surger- ies on behalf of the province after the NDP flagged a three-year-old settlement related to allegations of kickbacks and unnecessary procedures. In 2019, South Dakota-based Sanford Health agreed to pay $20.25 million to resolve allegations brought forward in 2016 by two whistleblowers, both surgeons with Sanford, the United States Department of Justice said. Five Manitobans are expected to receive spinal surgery at Sanford Health Fargo over the coming weeks in a pilot project announced by Manitoba in January. “This was brought to our attention today and immediately raised concerns,” said NDP health critic Uzoma Asagwara, adding the surgical procedures should be provided in Manitoba. In a statement, a spokesperson for Manitoba Health said its agreement with Sanford is one of many with providers contracted to perform more than 11,000 surgical procedures. The pilot program with Sanford ensures patient referrals and transitions are safe and effective, the statement said. ADVANCE VOTE FOR BYELECTION BEGINS ADVANCE voting in the Fort Whyte byelection opened Thursday. Residents of the southwest Winnipeg constituency can cast their ballot to elect one of five candidates to fill the seat vacated by former premier Brian Pallister. Advance polls will be open until March 17 at the Fort Whyte returning office (1-104 Scurfield Blvd.) and My Church Winnipeg (955 Wilkes Ave.). Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mon- day to Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. Eligible voters must be Canadian citizens, be at least 18 years of age on election day, have lived in Manitoba for at least six months before election day, and live in the Fort Whyte electoral district. Voters have to show either one piece of government-issued photo identification or two other pieces of identification. Voters will be required to wear masks while in the polling station and election workers will also be wearing masks. Candidates include Patrick Allard (Independ- ent), Nicolas Geddert (Green Party of Mani- toba), Obby Khan (Progressive Conservative), Willard Reaves (Manitoba Liberal Party) and Trudy Schroeder (New Democratic Party). AROUND THE LEGISLATURE T HE Progressive Conservative gov-ernment hinted at legal action and demanded the NDP retract its ac- cusation Premier Heather Stefanson had a conflict of interest in awarding a contract to a company for which her husband did business. “Comments made by the NDP outside the legislative chamber are not protect- ed against legal liability,” said Olivia Billson, the premier’s press secretary, in a statement late Thursday. The accusations are false, she stated. The premier, her husband Jason Ste- fanson and the companies involved “all followed the appropriate disclosure re- sponsibilities under legislation,” Billson said. During question period, NDP house leader Nahanni Fontaine said the pre- mier was a member of Treasury Board and a cabinet committee that awarded a $23-million contract to Exchange In- come Corp., which owns several air car- riers, including Keewatin Air. Jason Stefanson, working with CIBC World Markets, was one of several un- derwriters for $100 million in bonds issued for the company in 2017 and another $70 million in 2019, after the company was awarded the government contract. Fontaine asked the premier why she didn’t recuse herself from discussions about the contract awarded to the com- pany to transport justice officials to ru- ral courts. The premier said it’s “disappointing” the NDP was “taking shots” at family members of those in the chamber, and that Fontaine didn’t know what she was talking about. “The member opposite is proving that she has no idea how banking works,” Stefanson said. The underwriters of the two bond of- fers were awarded fees of $4 million and $2.8 million, according to the prospec- tus information which does not indicate how much Jason Stefanson and CIBC World Markets would have received. Fontaine told the house Exchange In- come Corp. does “millions of dollars of business” with Stefanson’s family. “This is a clear conflict,” the NDP justice critic said. Ministers must recuse themselves if they have a dependent or spouse who has financial interests in the matter, she told the legislature. There is no record Jason Stefanson had a financial interest in the company that was awarded the government contract. The contract was awarded through a request-for-proposal process that doesn’t include financial information that would have identified him and CIBC World Markets as one of the un- derwriters. Still, Fontaine said, the premier should have known about work her hus- band had been doing for the company and recused herself from awarding the contract, she told reporters outside the chamber. “She should know that her husband is doing business with (Exchange Income Corp.) and stands to profit from the decisions being made,” said Fontaine. “I can’t prove that a wife knows what her husband does… She’s the premier of Manitoba. She should know what her husband is doing.” In the house, Justice Minister Kel- vin Goertzen called the NDP’s claims “false” and suggested they study the Tiger Dams report if they want to un- derstand “a true conflict.” The Manitoba ombudsman found that civil servants were directed to waive the competitive tendering process for the purchase of Tiger Dams flood-protec- tion devices in 2014. The report found the NDP minister at the time, Steve Ashton, directed staff to recommend the purchase even though senior civil servants expressed concern about it. “Not only did things not go to the Treasury Board,” Goertzen told the house, “there was no proper documen- tation.” Outside the chamber, Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont questioned the NDP’s allegations. “It doesn’t look great but there’s a dif- ference between not looking great and meeting the legal threshold for a con- flict,” said Lamont. “If the NDP were really, really seri- ous about this, they’d write an affidavit and take it to the courts,” he said. Conflict of interest commissioner Jef- frey Schnoor said Manitoba’s conflict of interest legislation does not give him any investigative powers but any voter can pay a fee and ask the court to rule on an alleged breach. When new legislation takes effect after the 2023 provincial election, the commissioner will have the power to investigate and determine whether con- flict rules have been broken, Schnoor told the Free Press. If an MLA has contravened the act, the commissioner could recommend penalties ranging from a reprimand to a suspension, to a fine of up to $50,000. In an extreme case, the member could lose their seat. carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca Tories hint at lawsuit over NDP claims CAROL SANDERS Premier dismisses conflict of interest allegation as false MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Premier Heather Stefanson says it was disappointing the NDP was ‘taking shots’ at her family. NDP justice critic Nahanni Fontaine (below) says the situation represents ‘a clear conflict.’ A_03_Mar-11-22_FP_01.indd 3 2022-03-10 9:36 PM ;