New presumptive case of novel coronavirus in Toronto, health officials say

Provincial budget fails to chart new course

If the 2022 Manitoba budget was intended to provide a lifeline for the Progressive Conservative government, it must surely be considered a failure.

Prior to the budget’s release, Premier Heather Stefanson and her government were teetering on the edge of the political abyss. Manitobans are profoundly unhappy with the government’s performance on most issues, including pandemic management. National polls show Ms. Stefanson is Canada’s least popular premier.

That political context made this budget a high-priority project for the Tories. It was, simply put, their best chance to shed the lingering burden left by former premier Brian Pallister, and rebuild the party brand under a new leader.

Unfortunately, Ms. Stefanson’s first budget remains shackled to the deeply flawed fiscal and political logic that defined the Pallister years. And no single budgetary measure embodies that failure more than the premier’s decision to continue cutting education property taxes.

Olympics Overnight: Speedskater Blondin wins silver in the mass start, Bowman narrowly misses podium in halfpipe skiing, Jamaica returns to bobsled track

Here’s what you missed overnight at Day 15 of the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

Affordable southwest Winnipeg attached two-storey home designed with families in mind

Those in the market for a new entry-level home tend to have one main thought in mind. That thought, in most cases, centres on how much value a dwelling delivers — in both price and livability.

Spencer Curtis, owner of Hilton Homes, says he and his design team are acutely aware of how meticulously prospective buyers scrutinize entry-level new house options, which in most cases are attached two-storey models.

“That’s why we keep tweaking plans to make those homes better,” Curtis says. “This model, the Wilkens, is by far our most popular plan. We put a lot of thought into its design, and are always working at making it as functional and family-friendly as possible.”

Right from the get-go, the Wilkens distinguishes itself from other attached two-storey homes with its square footage.

Court ruling concludes Canadian Wheat Board saga

It remains to be seen whether the recent court ruling in a lawsuit filed after Canadian Wheat Board’s dissolution in 2012 puts the whole debate to rest, as some no doubt hope.

But either way, the dust has settled on the post-CWB world. The sun still rises and a new generation of farmers on the land only knows by name an institution that for generations influenced every aspect of Prairie grain farming.

The first Rural Revival column I wrote for this newspaper more than 30 years ago was about a thousand farmers from Western Canada demonstrating in support of the Wheat Board. It was in the aftermath of the Western Grain Marketing Panel report, one of several efforts that eventually included a plebiscite to help the federal government decide what to do about a vocal minority of farmers who wanted marketing “freedom.”

The polls at the time suggested about two-thirds of farmers were comfortable enough with the single-desk system for food wheat and barley to keep it around. It served as a counterbalance to canola, which they sold on the open market. They essentially had a dual market.

Nine more deaths, 107 new COVID-19 cases in Manitoba

Manitoba is restarting its COVID-19 vaccination efforts, following a five-day break — and amidst questions about the delay.

The planned pause over Christmas was in the name of efficiency, a provincial government spokesman says, offering no other explanation on the reasoning behind the decision not to vaccinate anyone Dec. 24-28.

On Monday, the province announced nine more pandemic deaths and 107 new cases of the novel coronavirus.

As part of Manitoba's vaccination plan, the most recent immunization clinic happened Dec. 23; the next was set to start Dec. 29.

Behind the scenes at circus spectacle Odysseo, it's the horses who hold the reins

It’s almost 4 p.m. on a particularly steamy May afternoon and Cavalia Odysseo rider Chelsea Jordan is putting on her makeup in the back corner of the very humid artistic tent.

She’s already spent some time layering on foundation, and is now into the decorative portion of the 30-minute process, placing a pair of small gems on her forehead and enhancing her naturally sharp cheekbones with some extra contouring.

“This is the messy part of the business,” she jokes as she sticks on fake lashes over an eyelid covered in earth-toned shadow.

It’s odd that makeup is considered the messy part of the day when Jordan spends the majority of her time surrounded by horses, but as with most people involved in Odysseo, the glitzy and glamorous aspects of being a member of the largest touring production in the world aren’t nearly as fun as the time she gets to spend with her four-legged cast-mates.