Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 23, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba SIT. SWAB. SEND. WILL YOU SIT WITH US? 1-855-952-4325 / ColonCheck SERVING MANITOBA SINCE 1872. FOREVER WITH YOUR SUPPORT. THURSDAY, JANUARY 23, 2025 WEATHER SUNNY. HIGH -18 — LOW -21 COMMUNITY REVIEW SAY HELLO TO THERAPY ANIMALS ‘Incredibly dangerous’ Highway 8 to Gimli to get passing lanes GIMLI resident Teri Nicholson tries to avoid driving on single-lane Highway 8 at the height of summer, after witness- ing close calls or reckless decisions in bumper-to-bumper traffic. She was relieved when the Manito- ba government revealed that passing lanes will be built in various spots along a nearly 54-kilometre section where a surface reconstruction project will begin as early as this summer. “Most of us locals in the summer use (different) highways,” said Nicholson, who started an online petition to lobby the province for passing lanes. “Most of us would refuse to drive on Highway 8 because you’re taking your life in your hands.” In winter, there are concerns about the weather and ice. Manitoba Transportation and Infra- structure determined passing lanes are warranted on Highway 8, between Highway 67, west of Selkirk, and Pro- vincial Road 231 in Gimli, a govern- ment spokesperson said Wednesday. The project is in the design phase. The provincial department’s website said construction is expected to begin this summer and finish in the fall of 2026. The cost of adding passing lanes is not yet available. “The planning of the addition of passing lanes predates the petition and was made as part of the department’s regular process while assessing traffic volumes and safety priorities,” the government spokesperson wrote in an email. Nicholson received an email from Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Lisa Naylor’s office Jan. 17 to inform her of the improvements. “There are various locations on PTH 8 between PTH 67 and PR 231 that will be upgraded with passing lanes with construction anticipated to begin in 2025,” the email said. Nicholson started the petition on August long weekend last year, when local single-lane highways were busy with traffic headed to the Icelandic Festival of Manitoba in Gimli, Lake Winnipeg beaches and cottages and other destinations. CHRIS KITCHING Canada eyes matching Trump’s tariffs dollar for dollar ‘Make sure that it hurts the Americans’ SARAH RITCHIE OTTAWA — Canada appears to be leaning toward hitting the United States with matching tariffs if U.S. President Donald Trump makes good on his threats, but not all of the coun- try’s premiers support that approach. The premiers met virtually with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other federal officials on Wednesday morning to talk about Trump’s early moves as president and the looming threat of tariffs, which could be im- posed as soon as next week. Trump signed an executive order on Monday directing his government to study alleged unfair trade practices by Canada and Mexico and file a report by April 1. Later that day, he mused about imposing 25 per cent tariffs on both countries by Feb. 1. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who chairs the Council of the Federation, said Wednesday premiers want to ensure Canada has a “solid plan.” “We know these tariffs are coming Feb. 1. We need to match those tariffs dollar-for-dollar, tariff-for-tariff, and make sure that it hurts the Americans as much as it hurts Canadians,” he told reporters in Toronto. The federal cabinet spent two days at a retreat this week, waiting to see what Trump might do and hammering out the details of its response. The shifts in Trump’s rhetoric and timelines are par for the course, Trudeau told reporters on Tuesday. He said his government has plans for a variety of scenarios and is ready to retaliate, and that he supports “the principle of dollar-for-dollar matching tariffs.” Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said Wednesday that while he is on board with the Team Canada approach, “broad-based tariffs, dollar-for-dollar tariffs with the U.S. is not in Canadi- ans’ best interest, nor should export tariffs ever be considered by our government.” Export taxes on energy were the key sticking point for Alberta Premier Danielle Smith after last week’s meet- ing. She refused to sign a joint state- ment after that meeting because the federal government would not exempt energy exports from its list of possible retaliatory actions. Six illegal migrants arrested as security tightens, Trump crackdown raises fears Eyes on the border S IX people were apprehended as they tried to sneak into Mani- toba from the U.S. last week, amid tightened security at the border in the face of threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to clamp down on illegal migrants and drugs. An aircraft equipped with thermal imaging technology guided offi- cers on the ground to find the six people who were travelling in frigid temperatures in the dark on Jan. 14, RCMP said Wednesday. “They were from multiple coun- tries of origin,” said RCMP Assistant Commissioner Lisa Moreland, who said the investigation is ongoing. Moreland said the aircraft’s ability to respond quickly was instrumental in ensuring the migrants weren’t harmed by the freezing tempera- tures, which dipped below -20 C. Several ambulances were sta- tioned at the RCMP detachment in Emerson, close to the border, if needed. “The people who were arrested at the location were not equipped to deal with the weather conditions that night,” she said. “No gloves, no mittens, no nothing.” Canada recently bolstered border security by $1.3 billion after Trump, who was president-elect at the time, blamed the country for the influx of migrants and fentanyl into the U.S. He also vowed to impose a 25 per cent tariff on goods from Canada to the U.S. The border strategy includes aerial surveillance, Black Hawk helicopters and drones. On Sunday, a Black Hawk helicop- ter set off on its first flight to patrol the border for illegal migrants and drug smugglers; it’s capable of mov- ing swiftly along Manitoba’s stretch of the border, which is about 450 kilometres long. SCOTT BILLECK TIM GRUBER FOR THE WASHINGTON POST Sgt. Lance Goldau, head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police border enforcement team in Manitoba, is pictured earlier this month in Emerson, near the U.S.-Canada border. ● BORDER, CONTINUED ON A3 ● LANES, CONTINUED ON A2 ● TARIFFS, CONTINUED ON A2 ;