The province is reporting 20 COVID-19 deaths in one week after changing the way it collects data related to the virus.

The Dec. 3-9 number represents a staggering week-over-week increase in the death toll — a jump of more than 500 per cent compared to the previous week — because of the change in data collection.

“The new reporting standard is both more complete and more timely, as is based on direct reporting from the hospitals to Manitoba Health, compared to the prior methodology,” a provincial spokesperson stated Wednesday, saying prior and current data both report “COVID-associated” deaths.

“The change in reporting methodology is a contributing factor to the increase in reported deaths.

A Manitoba father of five is seeking a judicial review of a decision banishing him from his First Nation after he was charged with driving through a community checkstop.

Fifty-three-year-old Terry Wayne Francois of Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation filed a notice of application in federal court last week seeking to quash the banishment order, which prohibits him from going to the First Nation, which is 80 kilometres west of Thompson.

Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation, which includes Nelson House, has operated a permanent checkstop since 2019, allowing peace officers to search vehicles for contraband, detect human trafficking or gang activity, and ensure no one under banishment enters the community.

On Dec. 30, 2024, Francois was driving home from Thompson with his daughter when he stopped for the checkstop, says the review application.